Vote for Unity in 2008!

So, I'm working a mandate... It's about 1550 (3:50 pm) and I've been here since 0655... and I'll be here until 2330. Then I get to come back at 0700 tomorrow. During the 7.5 hours between shifts, I need to travel approximately 40 minutes round trip, eat a meal, sleep, and get snacks to bring in for work (which I promised before I knew I was going to be mandated). On top of this, I have not been able to sleep adequately lately, getting an average of 4 to 5 hours of sleep for the last three nights straight.

At least Friday is my birthday... the big 23 on 3/2. I feel like I should go see the movie The Number 23 on my 23rd birthday... but now I'm thinking I'll just spend it catching up on my sleep. =P

That's about it.

Love,
Dave

P.S. Check this out: UNITY '08 Sounds pretty sweet.

Hey, it's just me...

I love this photo, so I thought I should share it with all of you wonderful people who read this... which is basically myself.

Journalling is a great activity, though... whether or not somebody else reads it - and there is a strange comfort that comes in knowing that it is possible for others around the world to have access to your publised writing... especially in an age where publishing one's thoughts involves merely a quick flick of the wrists and the movement of a finger.

Yes, I am at work... which, while on one-to-ones, seems to be the only place where I am able to find time to do this. When I get home, my time is purely devoted to either trying to catch up on sleep or spend some quality time with the oft neglected love of my life. My time management skills have not been the greatest as of late... especially when I am working an average of 48 to 50 hours per week at a mental hospital. Sometimes, my capacity for love and compassion becomes drained to such a low level with the needy and demanding clientelle that I work with that I fear I have none to share with my friends and loved ones.

I'm working on finding ways to fill this emptiness... meditation and relaxation techniques have been helping me to find meaning in the work I do. It is very difficult to see the same patients returning for treatment over and over again. But, just as the story of the starfish goes... wait, perhaps I should share that story before I continue.

Once a man was walking along a beach. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. Off in the distance he could see a person going back and forth between the surf's edge and and the beach. Back and forth this person went. As the man approached he could see that there were hundreds of starfish stranded on the sand as the result of the natural action of the tide.

The man was stuck by the the apparent futility of the task. There were far too many starfish. Many of them were sure to perish. As he approached the person continued the task of picking up starfish one by one and throwing them into the surf.

As he came up to the person he said, "You must be crazy. There are thousands of miles of beach covered with starfish. You can't possibly make a difference." The person looked at the man. He then stooped down and pick up one more starfish and threw it back into the ocean. He turned back to the man and said, "It sure made a difference to that one!"

-Story borrowed from [http://www.cedu.niu.edu/~fulmer/starfish.htm]

I sometimes feel like I am the man walking the beach, only noticing the futility in the work being done here... seeing the returning patients, hearing the news of their deaths and not being able to talk about it because of confidentiality, and generally focusing on the patients that Pine Rest simply cannot help for one reason or another.

It's time for me to begin realizing that the work I do is helping people. Whether or not an individual comes to Pine Rest seeking treatment or even remains actively involved in their treatment while in residence on the unit does NOT change the fact that they are receiving treatment whether by petition or court order and I am health care professional providing such a service.

Well, I need to go tend to some business on the unit. Take care, faithful reader[s] and be safe. Until we meet again, may all your days be filled with warm food, fresh coffee, and a sense of peace.

Love,
David

Celebrities

What better thing to do when feeling under the weather than take old pictures of one's self and see what celebrities look similar?

That's what I thought.

http://www.myheritage.com

Interesting...

That's it. Time to rest... I still feel miserable.

Love,
Dave