George's first post...

George here-

Things have been busy these last few weeks. As already has been mentioned, we've had trips to Grand Rapids and that has been nice - seeing the Sanford's. I've also been able to get my fix for handy man projects - living in an apartment in the D has limited the amount of home repairs I can do.

So I wanted to add to the post about our recent weekend at the Sanford's - Steve and I also moved a TV. Now, normally, this type of thing would go without notice, but if you look up just how much a 36" Sony Trinitron Flat Screen CRT tv weighs (no, not the thin LCD screen type) - you'd appreciate why this is to be noted here. The sucker was like 300 pounds. Sure, I felt pretty wimpy that I had thought it was tough to lift this thing, but even more impressive was the fact that we barely could get this thing into the wagon. Yeah, Barbara (as Nicholas named 'her') is a decent sized car, but when we had to lay the tv down on its front, you know it's tall. When Steve and I finally got it into the house and onto the stand and got it all connected and such, we couldn't stop saying 1. how large the tv is and 2. just how much it weighed. yep, git er done. Though I'm not a football fan, I know he'll enjoy watching Notre Dame on that thing.

This month is bittersweet for me. I have to spend it away (mostly) from Charlotte, and as "we" are growing bigger by the week, it will be hard to spend this time away. On the other hand, I'm staying with one of the DO residents here at the U of Wisconsin FP program - he's graciously taken me into his home for the month. It's been great to see their clinic and see what Madison is like. I went for a 2 hour bike ride last night - it's like being back in Sacramento with bike lanes on the streets! They have extensive accomodations on the road, as well as bike paths that cover great distances. Anyhow, it's really nice to see this integrated into the city. I've heard people call it like a little New York, or the "Berkeley of the Midwest". Those might be a stretch, but it's definitely cool to see a midwestern town with the university as a big focus - like Columbia, MO or Ann Arbor. Cool towns. Cool people here - that's what I've noticed the most. Very accepting.

At the clinic, I've gotten to see quite a bit, and have even had my first hand at prolotherapy - a very interesting treatment modality for people with chronic pain that isn't resolved by meds or OMM. It's a great therapy for those who are trying to do everything before going under the knife for scopes, or total knee replacements. After seeing it, I'd seriously think about incorporating it into my FP future practice. It appears that coverage (insurance) is varied, so some patients pay out of pocket. With the results that I have heard from patients, they are happy to pay for it since they have great relief.

Well, I'll be looking forward to Charlotte's visit this coming weekend and checking out the city even more. The mosquitos are VICIOUS here - I haven't seen ones this aggressive since summers at Parker Mountain.

Anyhow, I've rambled long enough...