A ONE MONTH JOURNAL Sept-2004

And now, the journal dedicated to the child singlehandedly responsible for the world's diaper toxicity crisis: Mr. "Where else would you like me to put it?" -Isaiah

2004-11-16 - 9:04 p.m.

I work at New Horizons OB-Gyn. Don't ask me how we ended up with that name. I would've preferred something more exotic like "The Aphrodite Center for Fertility and Reproduction." But I was the low man on the totem pole, and my suggestions were met with tolerant smiles, but they were nixed just the same. And so, we ended up with a much more functional and marketable name like New Horizons. Too bad the local trailer court, a baptist church, and a modular home builder in Marion all shared the same name. WE set the standard.

Here is my lobby. One of the suggestions I made that seemed to make sense to my partners was that a professional interior designer should be used and not a local amateur. I wanted a cutting edge urban look. Ed and Sam, guys who not only shared a life partnership, but also a design business, came in and did a superb job. It has a bright, cheerful look that lends itself to small changes that go along with the holidays.

There are days when the lobby is packed. It's great to have a practice that is growing rapidly, but with it comes the usual concerns with the logistics of providing personal, private, but efficient care to our clients. I have three exam rooms that I have personalized with a table lamp, pictures of my family, and educational materials. Personally, I would like my visit with a doctor to be as least like a visit to a hospital as possible. Keep the cotton balls and alcohol out of sight, please.

In my office, where most of my late night paperwork is done, (and updates to my diaryland get slipped in), I have a corner view of the parking garage and a line of Bradford pears that have incredible blossoms in the spring. The two trees immediately outside my north window are home to two robins' nests at just the right level to watch the little ones grow. It's a sight that would warm the heart of any obstetrician. No robin phone calls in the middle of the night. They just hatch on their own without anyone's help but God's.

All in all, I am a fortunate man. There is no other work I could imagine that would bring me greater satisfaction than helping little families grow big, and big families grow bigger. It reminds me of my college job where I was the DJ for the college radio station. I somehow got this incredible job from my sophomore year on. I would sit with my headphones on every morning, meeting Bob Edwards of Morning Edition precisely at 6 am, cueing up LP's and taped programs, and never really understanding exactly how I had landed a job where I could get paid to listen to my favorite music and NPR programming. My buddies were still working at the laundry across the street, a job I had shared with them the year before, still getting their hands stuck in stuff I didn't want to think about anymore. I had the time of my life, and I was grateful for what that station job taught me over the course of the next three years. There are days I wish I was still in broadcasting, but I'm sure things are quite different now. I'm sure no-one edits and produces programs by slicing and splicing reel-to-reel tapes anymore! Thank God for the digital revolution.

Doug

MOST RECENT ENTRIES

- - 2009-02-12

Back in the saddle again - 2008-02-12

Jack makes out like a pirate - 2007-09-29

Cruise control - 2007-02-17

Mexico Orphanage trip - 2006-11-23

Conception<< - >>Birth

0 Comments

�