Canadian Health Care

Enjoyful -- so GLAD that you're feeling better.  Next tx after the holidays, I hope?  And please don't wish for snow, unless you have some handy hills nearby to practice your slalom technique.  IMO that's all that snow is really good for (oops, a dangling participle!).

Leprechaun -- I was wondering when we were going to here more about the Quebec bc cases.  The medical profession has been protected for much too long -- they do an abysmal job of self-regulation.  The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario is pathetic, and it's probably the same in Quebec.

Elizabeth -- I understand that the icewine makers need several consecutive days of -8 temps at night before the grapes can be picked.  I was talking to someone (a young someone!) who goes out every year at night to join the pickers to earn tuition money -- and it's da*n cold work.  The grapes must be hand-picked because the machines that are used in the fall would do too much damage to the ice-cold grapes.  I'm not fond of icewine but there is a HUGE market for it in Asia.  In fact, the Chinese have produced "icewine" with fraudulent Canadian labels....

Cheers, Linda 

Linda - Nice segue from marbles to dangling participles!  Yes, the next treatment is January 4 so I can enjoy the holidays.  :-) 

I wondered about self-regulation here as well.  Auditors have to have peer reviews at least once every three years to make sure they're auditing in accordance with standards.  I wonder if the medical profession has something similar?  I also thought that the profession and/or malpractice insurance companies should require errant doctors to undergo additional training and monitoring.  It would just make sense since they'd be considered high-risk.

I know this can happen anywhere. But it doesn't make me feel better...

leprechaun - I know what you mean.  It's hard to feel confident in our doctors when we see stories like this, and this is the time when we need to feel confident.  I do little things like reading reports, asking questions, checking labels on my chemo to make sure they have the right person, getting second opinions, even having pathology retested...  It makes me feel more in control and more comfortable with things. 

Edited to add:  There are lots of good stories out there, but we don't hear them because they're not newsworthy.  Sorry to go all negative....I blame the steroids!  

Before every tx, my nurse would check the med label with my wrist band and then ask me to read the label and verify it was mine.  They did this with every bag.  Obviously, there is good reason to be extra careful!

Enjoyful -- that's so bizarre!!  It's conservation/research bear tagging by a university prof and students.  Rick Mercer is a hilarious Cdn comedian that goes along for the ride.  He gets to cuddle 3 baby bears that don't even have their eyes open.  Big awwwww.  One funny part is when they replace the radio collar for mama bear (sedated, only protection is an aluminum shovel, toss in the students in case she's hungry jokes) Rick tells the camera that the collars are re-used on Cdn politicians.  Fun stuff like that.

This marble thing is mind boggling.  I'm enjoying all of your stories!

Sherri 

Thank you, lassie!  That was great.

Not sure about crawling into a bear den, tranqs or not!

Linda -

It's crazy here in Maryland when snow is predicted.  It doesn't even have to actually fall for the hysteria to begin! 

A few weeks ago the weatherman predicted 1-3" of snow for the next day (Saturday morning).  When I got home from work Friday, the roads and sidewalks in my community had been salted and I passed a number of snow plows and salt trucks on the way home.  The local news started running Friday night emergency reports at the top of the hour, and they interviewed people coming out of grocery stores. And yes, they were stocking up on toilet paper!  The people they interviewed were afraid they wouldn't be able to make it to the store the next day.  In 3" of snow.

It eventually did snow, but it started out as heavy rain and washed all the carefully laid salt out into the bay. 

I've lived here all my life and I still don't understand it!

We had between 7-9 FEET of snow in Barrie last year. It varied due to the lake effect and what part of the city you were in. I'm at the top and we get more than the bottom....sigh.

The snow piles in the parking lots were just under 20' (just below they hydro wires). We've gotten 3 feet in one dump before!

People warned me before I moved north, but I said how different could it really be??? Holy crap! Yesterday anything north of highway 89 was locked in. That be me. But I got through...

Lake effect snow -- yes!  Buffalo is just 30 minutes south of here, but while we can usually dash merrily between the gently falling flakes, poor Buffalo gets dumped on, thanks to the Great Erie...and Barrie gets dumped on thanks to the Great Huron.  Hey, they aren't called the "Great" Lakes for nothing!!

Sherri -- Church Lady  "Well, isn't that special!"  Oh, Carvey was so good, and he did a mean George H.W. Bush too.

You're right, SNL today does not compare to SNL of the 80's and 90's.  But I stay up and watch it too -- ever since I retired, I've turned into a night owl.

Strangely enough, he might not be too badly off. There can be dry roads and sunshine all the way to at least highway 9 (Bradford is just north of 9 for those who don't know) and then once I hit 88 or 89 on the way home it's like the twilight zone! There is still more snow than Toronto in Bradford, he might be surprised...but at least you warned him.

ehhehehehee, see we really don't get political about anything!

OHMIGOD it's supposed to snow Saturday!!!  I just sent my daughter out for toilet paper.  (For real..we're out of it.)