Been away for a few months, and will hopefully be back sometime in the early new year. Keeping well and working hard when required ;)

Been a busy boy.  Mamaged to get out and do some real rock climbing in the tail end of the summer.

I'm also in love with the new toy (KTM SuperDuke), it's sounds like a polite arrival of the appocalypse and handles beautifully.

Turned down both jobs, as the terms offered mean I'm better off here than at the other places.

Did some climbing and the shit summer has affected my grades.  Need to sort more real climbing asap.

More soon.

Rumours of my death have been greatly exagerated.

Much happenings, been getting more regular with climbing and hooked up with an old varsity acquaintance who's rather handy at climbing, so should hopefully get grades pushed by the end of the season.  Best scenario would be an end of year multi-pitch trad fest in sunny SA if I manage to organise a climbing partner etc...

There's an addition to the family - a 2007 model KTM SuperDuke is currently being registered by a dealer for personal attention and abuse.  Not a sensible decision by any means, but fuggit you only live once and I want ride it like I stole while I still can/want to. 

Possible new job in the offing depending the usual criminal checks and money discussions.

Nothing major to report other than plodding along at work and dealing with roller-coaster mood swings.  Ex-pain and bouts of acute depression.  Been trying to get more sleep which has helped.  Things looking better.

On a more sunny note I get the KTM back out of storage soon and off to go and play in the mud with some friends when it happens.  I also helped transport a patient to another hospital for some treatment.  As it was an ITU patient myself, a colleague and a consultant anaesthetist went along for the road trip in an ambulance.  On the way there a back we went in on blues and two's.  If anyone ever gets the chance to go through a busy central london with lights and sirens on in an ambulance (obviously not as a patient!) I would highly recommend it.

The other thing that has taken shape nicely is the Territorial Army  is finally pulling it's finger out.  I got my number and uniform and off for my first weekend away soon (includes combat fitness test etc).  This is good because it'll keep me busier and keep the despair squid away, but also learn new things (not just medical) and broaden my social circle outside the hospital clique.

Climbing at the westway on a regular basis now, and getting on well except for niggling injuries.  Boudlering V3 and want to organise a regular partner for top-rope and lead climbing.  Off to Scotland in a few weeks time for some winter action, and have just bought a shitload of winter climbing clothing. Bring it on.

Note: tendonitis isn't funny.

If anyone ever sees me with alcohol again, please just shoot me. Ta.

Well things have been rather interesting lately...

After a horrendous on-call thursday (up all-night with a dodgy case) and slept most of friday I went to go and have a look at a new house share.  Big house with a garage to boot so we was very happy, new housemates seem nice too. New crash pad is not too far from the climbing wall I climb at either which is another bonus.

Went out and caught up  with friends afterwards which culminated in a dinner at  a restaurant which after a friend making a fuss (got the orders in the wrong order and brought them to the table defore we'd finished starters, rude waiters etc) we got free dinner.  Afterwards we headed off for more drinks and then made it to my friends place at 5am....  Needles to say a long lie in pursued by a large fry up was the order of the day.  At this point the potential new housemates rang up to say that they were happy for me move in, so I knew the day was going to be good.  I had cricket club drinks later in the day, but called off early to hibernate despite being tempted to Kittylyst's party by Silkyraven.

Sunday I slept.

Cautiously optimistic about things in the latest forge of work and swirling death and depression I feel that a serious chunk of stress in my life has been sorted out.  I move out to West London innit? on Thursday....

Current Location: The Brain Hospital
Current Mood: amused
Current Music: Dr. Online by Zeromancer

How things change.  It's been way too long and we now find ourselves in the depths of december. Yes, we had fun the KTM and we do like.

However the wheel has turned it looks like life is morphing yet once again.  Always the most opportune moments isn't it?  It appears that my flatmate and I cannot live together anymore so I'll be moving out soon.  Un/fortunately this means I'll be living in nursing accomodation for a while, which sucks because you don't have a you own space for cooking etc.  It rules on the other hand because it's smack bang in central london and easy to get to and from watering holes (Crobar)  and climbing wall (Westway).  Which is good because I need to crank the climbing for my first shot and winter climbing in Jockland in feb (after 14years rock climbing).

The low-light of recent times was the theft of my mobile and wallet from my bag in the anaesthetic room whilst I spent the best part of 8 hours in total looking after a trauma patient.  Here I am on one hand, a small part of a tight-knit neurosurgical team trying very hard to keep some poor kid alive after a severe head kicking, whilst on the other hand some light fingered C£$%£ steals from me.  I'd expect in hell holes like the H******* or K*****, but not in our small little pond. I guess it serves to remind one never to get too comfortable.  It's busy which is good, but also sad as the usual end of year cull seems to be taking place.  Every year around xmas time we seem to get alot of deaths, and this year so far we've done a few organ harvests on people who died and donated organs.  It's sad because it's usally young ones.  We try and keep busy to keep out minds off it.  Drinks help too.

Hopefully with the impending move things will change and get better. Bring on the new year.  Thinking about going for a short holiday to Aus/SA next year sometime.

I have today become the apprehensive owner of a 2006 model KTM250EXC-Racing dirtbike. Of course, I need another bike like a hole in the head, but this one is my birthday-post-break-up present to myself.  Time to get re-aquainted with dirt.  Predominantly green-laning/trail-riding in home counties and places like Wales.  Race the odd enduro, and a splash of MX on the track up the road from me.  Roll on pain, sweat and adrenaline. And more smiles per mile than any road bike has dished out.

Girls version:
Gasmerchant bought himself an orange BMX with an engine in it.  It sounds like the crazy frog thing.  And the weirdo is obsessed with it.

The hilarious part:
One on the the top-hats in the modernising medical careers (MMC) part of the health dept. said on Paxman last night that the mass change of docs today wouldn't effect normal running of hospitals.  Which explains why here at St. Elsewhere's we are only doing emergency work for today and tomorrow (because the junior docs a)are all on induction, and b)don't know St. Elsewhere's), instead of the usual full operating lists.  This clown should f*ck off to the Edinburgh fringe if he wants to be funny.

Reading a book called "Fiasco" about the american military adventure in Iraq.  Scary reading how they got sucked into a war they didn't understand, and the general ineptitude. Still, at least they don't work for the UK dept of Health.
 

Current Location: London
Current Mood: amused
Current Music: KSE - End of Heartache