Hole in the head gang - new member

Welcome to the club, brother Rick. My sympathies on the upcoming headaches and aggravations that come with having a piece of your skull removed so someone could go rooting around in there with a stick, but, you know, it's all worth it in the long run. I understand that it was problems with typing that tipped you off to the problem. For me it was not being able to make left turns. Pat's awareness of and enrollment in the hole in the head club came with much more immediacy, of course, but it kinda makes sense that everyone would take their own route to membership in the perforated cranium society.

The good part of this is that from now on you've got an official bona fide medical excuse for being as goofy as you want to be, and, as I'm sure you've noticed, that's something that Pat and I have taken full advantage of every time the opportunity has presented itself. And on some occasions before the opportunities have arisen, but that's not something we need to go into here, of course. Anyway, from now on you've got license. Forget a birthday? - dadgum hole in the head. Go to the grocery store for bread and milk but come home with radishes and light bulbs? - doggone noggin' knockin' gotta be the reason. Wear red sneakers everywhere? - well, you get the idea.....

Seriously, though, I hope you get back on your feet as quickly as you want to and you don't have too many unpleasant side effects. If there's anything I can do to help please let me know. There's a comfortable spot for you here at the Crazy Cave for convalescence if you're interested.

And, also seriously, let's all try to have fun out there but be careful not to end up brain side down too much, OK?

Progress

I took a few shots of and in the building before I left work tonight. We're getting close to being able to call this a built.....



I climbed up on the roof of the building next door to take these next shots:





This is the Pediatric ICU, called "Speediatrics" because the Nascar folks are big contributors to the pediatric program here:



This is the ICU nurse's station:



This is one of the operating rooms:



This is a view of the surgery waiting area on the second floor from across the atrium:



Cool stuff. Our state inspectors will be back at the end of next week for what we hope will be the last of their final inspections. After they get done we'll still have the fire department finals to complete (they've inspected everything but the first floor already), the health department (for the kitchen), and then the last of the City finals. We've got a lot of loose ends to wrap up, but I think we're gonna gitter done.

Gotta scoot now. It's bedtime and I need some sleep.

buenas noches y sueños dulces, los niños....

See the sky

When was the last time
you really saw the sky?
Not through the windshield
or out the kitchen window
but full on
head back
eyes open
falling in

Lying in the grass
in the afternoon sun
under the bright blue dome
my mind wandered back
to you
and your eyes
and the first time I really saw the sky

Warming trend

These are the glory days, as far as the weather is concerned, anyway, here in the beautiful Florida Keys. Cool clear nights, warm and bright days. It seems like everything sparkles, and the water....good lord, the water....it takes my breath away every time I catch a glimpse of it. I bolted from work today after lunch, and the view from the top of the Card Sound bridge, with the calm green of Barnes Sound to the south and the deep blue of Card Sound and Biscayne Bay to the north, was almost unbearable. Like driving through a picture postcard. I had intended to spend the afternoon looking for birthday presents for my March birthday friends and relations, but I hauled ass to the house instead, got my gear, and rowed out to Reprieve to spend the afternoon. Please accept my apologies if you're among the many who are still checking the mailbox for a package from the Crazy Cave, OK?

Anyway, it was a glorious afternoon, and it seems kind of funny now, but for the few hours I was on or on the way to and from the boat I felt like a kid skipping school, which is something I have a lot of memories of somewhere. The sun on my face, the sand under my bare feet, the deck rising and falling on the swell....no phones, no fax machines, no inspectors, architects, subs, or superintendents. Peace and freedom, by god, and I highly recommend it.

Peace and freedom. I don't know if those are necessary partners with independance and solitude, but for me they sure do seem to go together pretty well.

Hanging out with Susie a while back reminded me how powerful and soothing it can be to have someone to be close to, and how unfamiliar I've become with the comfort of a close ear to whisper in. It also reminded me how much work is involved in being in a relationship, and how if you're gonna go for it you'd better make sure you've picked the right person.

There was a wedding at Snook's this afternoon. They have a jetty that goes a little ways out into the water, and the bride & groom exchanged their vows as the sun disappeared into Florida Bay behind them. I stopped and watched from the dinghy for a few minutes as I was rowing in. It was a beautiful scene, but it made me wonder if maybe getting married at dawn wouldn't have a more hopeful symbolism.

I stopped at the cafe on the way home for some frijoles negros y maduros, and flirted with an incredibly charming woman. Usted tiene la sonrisa más hermosa, I said, and she replied with, I believe, my smile is for you. And she was right, because I left with the smile she gave me.

The weather forecast for the next few days here is sunny and warm......