My Favorite June Post
My favorite blog post I wrote in June post was On Love and Happiness in which I quote George Sand: “Il n’y a qu’un bonheur dans la vie, c’est d’aimer et d’être aimé.”English translation: “There is only one happiness in life: to love and be loved.”– George Sand In this...
Aluminum Cans, EHRs, and Incidental Design
My wife, who uses a straw when drinking sodas, pointed out to me the central hole in the aluminum can’s tab can be used to stabilize her straw. But was the second, more central hole in the tab of the aluminum soda can designed specifically to hold a straw? No, per...
Mealybug Haiku
Withering petals, Thrips, weevils, and mealybugs Will eat well this week. There is a relationship between black and white photography and haiku. The limitations of these two artistic forms enhance creative expression rather than restrict it.
Accepting Decisions vs. Respecting Decisions
Here’s one of the Oxford English Dictionary's definitions of accept: To endure (an event, situation, or person) with patience or resignation; to tolerate, submit to; to come to terms with. And here’s one of their definitions of respect: transitive. In favourable...
Playing With The Tools Of The Craft
As adults, we underestimate the value of play. It’s important to resist this bias. For example, one of the most valuable tools for a writer is editing (which happens to be one of the skills I most need to develop), so next to my keyboard I have Stet! Dreyer’s...
Philosophy of Mind—Intellectually Out Of My Reach?
Since the beginning of this year, in preparation for a philosophy course through Oxford University’s Continuing Education Program I will be taking this fall, I’ve been reading the textbook Philosophy of Mind. As a physician and writer, why am I spending the time and...
Good Bye, Black Swan. Hello Inuksuk
I have just completed 183 consecutive daily blog posts—a content rich, one-half year block of blogging! So what am I going to do to mark and celebrate this occasion? I am pulling out out my jade inuksuk piece and putting it it on my desk this week. (I have a...
Personal Healthcare Decisions: Logos, Ethos, and Pathos
In my recent post, Wicked Problems And Vending Machines, I mentioned the triad of Logos (Logic), Ethos (Character), and Pathos (Emotion), the core elements of a persuasive argument as described by Aristotle. However, I believe this is also a useful model of the...
Hesitancy, Obstinacy
Here’s the Oxford English Dictionary definition of hesitancy: The quality or condition of hesitating; indecision, vacillation; an instance of this. And here’s the Oxford English Dictionary definition of obstinacy: The quality or condition of being obstinate; obduracy,...
Being All-In
In the photograph above, my one-and-a-half-year-old cat Roo is “all-in” when it comes to being in this storage drawer. He is fully committed to the experience. As a physician, I know—physically, mentally, and emotionally—what it means to be all-in on a career. I have...