Posts Tagged ‘stories’

pink is a serious color

Hearing CODE WHATEVER on the loudspeaker is pretty typical in the hospital.  The most common ones are Code Blue (Medical Emergency) or Code Red (Fire/Smoke).

When it’s Code Red, the overhead lights start flashing like there’s no tomorrow and the doors auto-close and it’s easy to get a little freaked-out because what if there really was a fire and the doors closed so you couldn’t get out?  But every time I’ve heard “Code Red” (they always mention the location) within seconds there’s another announcement that says “Code Red All Clear.”

But today’s a different story. I’ve just dropped off a L & D (Labor & Delivery) Patient on 3 and I’m about to go back down to the E.R. when I hear —

CODE PINK 3 WEST! CODE PINK 3 WEST!

Code Pink = Infant Abduction. Code Pink means that EVERYONE on the staff – ANYWHERE in the hospital is supposed to drop what he/she is doing and BLOCK the nearest exit. Read the rest of this entry »

not the time to cop an attitude

Are you Half-Full?

My mom was (even to the end). And she really-really tried to pass her look-on-the-bright-sideness to me.  I thought about her A LOT on Friday…

Lucky or Unlucky, depending on how you look at it.

It’s a typical I’ve-planned-too-many-things-Friday when I realize traffic isn’t cooperating. The thing is, since they started construction on the 405 (which seems like for.ever ago) there’s no way to know how long it’ll take to go anywhere in this city! I get up early and head to the Westside, because I’m addicted to Steve Ross’s classes at Maha Yoga and the juice cleanses from Pressed Juicery at 26^th & San Vicente.

Feeling mellow after class and carrot-coconut juice I figure I’ve got plenty of time to make it to my Acting Class in West Hollywood. WRONG!  Heading east, there’s gridlock everywhere. Sunset’s backed-up. Wilshire’s backed-up. So I end up driving through the residential streets – meaning stop sign to stop sign —  through Westwood, then Beverly Hills — and that’s where I realize I’m running out of time. So I  sorta scoot through one intersection, forgetting to yield to the guy in the truck to my left. Oops! Two blocks and multiple flashing-lights later I get BUSTED! Read the rest of this entry »

Just got home from an exhausting Sunday eve in the E.R. and before I watch “Entourage” I need to vent about the CHALLENGES OF COMMUNICATION, specifically about – –

Being HEARD!

It’s the 5:00 to 9:00 shift and I land in the waiting room from hell! Anthony Chan is being particularly pissy. Multi-tasking, he takes vitals of a SOB (in E.R. speak that’s “shortness of breath” guys) and answers the phone abruptly but he keeps getting interrupted by this 60ish man who looks like he’s about to blow a gut. The gut blower demands that Anthony listen to him NOW.  Anthony snaps condescendingly — Read the rest of this entry »

he needs a bear hug

Arrivederci vacay!
Last night it’s back to my dreaded reality (ugh!) Running late, I’m already in deep do-do as I listen to three escalating voicemails from Charlayne, translating to: “Where the F are you!?”

The ER is a Zoo —

Triage is backed up. A worried Mommy carries in a little cutie whose curly blond locks are now stained blood red from a nasty fall. Then there’s this seven year-old scared kid who limps in with his Mom. And a nice voluptuous Latina who in-between constant calls on her cell, apologizes as her “UNCLE” upchucks all the way to the men’s room. Read the rest of this entry »

rocking out at molto

My intro to Rome is via the driver from the airport to the hotel. He asks where my Dad and I are from and when we answer “L.A.”,  he says “Marlon Brando” and proceeds to whistle the theme from the Godfather. In-between whistling, he points out sites like the Mouth of Truth (um, maybe not), the Coliseum and some cool spot where they used to have chariot races. I’m thrilled that I can now say I’ve done the culture thing so I can proceed to sites like Prada, Bottega and Cucinelli. Um, fashion is culture too, right?

I feel a super strong bond with Rome since we both have a history associated with RUINS – ahaha! Read the rest of this entry »

protection from the paparazzi

Finding the Funny in Italy —

In the short time I’ve been in Lake Como,

I…

• couldn’t get the car in reverse and had to be pushed
• encountered a bus and lost my side mirror
• boarded the wrong train, twice
• went to the wrong restaurant and unknowingly took someone’s reservation
• got a rope stuck in a boat motor and got stuck with a big charge

Good Times!  (but it’s what memories are made of, right?) Meanwhile, I’ve also made some — Read the rest of this entry »

My Dad is–

• my Rock
• my Mr. Mom
• my up when I’m down

When I was little and we’d go on vacations, he’d call my room pretending to be “Throckmorton” my secret admirer (and I totally bought it!)  When I was at camp, he’d send me letters cut up like puzzles or written backwards (when everyone else just got boring normal mail.)  In middle school we’d brainstorm into the night, creating award-winning projects in his workshop.  And he was always super cool — taking me to concerts like STING, MICHAEL JACKSON and JACKSON BROWNE.

My friends are all jealous, but they love him to pieces and many have actually asked to be adopted! Seriously! I mean it. He’s really that awesome!

When I get hurt, he’d makes it all better. When I book a job, he’s be my biggest FAN.

My Dad taught me —

• How to balance my checkbook (still kind’a working on it) Read the rest of this entry »