MM2S060: Season 4, Episode 12
By: Ken Boone We've reached the end of Calendar Year 2022, and now it's time for me to come up with my list of resolutions for Calendar Year 2023. I promised it won't be 15 items long, but it won't be just one or two items. But I will try my best keep my expectations low and my acceptance high. If I can do that, I can live with the results. Also, my podcast as well as this blog post are going on a brief hiatus. When I return on January 4, 2023, I'll kick off things with my new list of New Year's Resolutions. But before we jump into this post, let me give you an update on my health situation. I just had a follow-up visit with my brand-new Physician's Assistant, Jeffrey. Things look great, although my hemoglobin needs to come up a little bit more before I'm cleared to go back to the gym. I also got my flu shot and my second COVID booster. His Assistant, Jill, took my vitals and gave me the shots, painlessly I might add. Unlike my previous primary care provider, Jeffrey didn't insist that I have any unnecessary tests. He just referred to this visit as us “closing up the loop.” Celia and I agree that he is a good fit for me! He's in the same practice as my former PCP, so I hope I don't bump into her. That would be awkward for me. Now for today's episode, the last one for both this year and for Season 4 of this show. With a few detours, this year's episodes were built on my list of 15 New Year's Resolutions. Keeping the list in view helped give the show more focus than prior seasons as well as shows I recorded in the past. Not to tamper with a good thing, I'll use my 2023 New Year's Resolution's list as guidance for the next season of the show. There may be some items from my 2022 list that will appear on my 2023 list. However, here are the 7 items that I'm pretty sure won't make the cut for 2023:
We made it through another eventful year. For me, it was a successful learning opportunity. I used the resolutions I made as the basis of an action plan, and I approached each podcast episode and blog post with a discipline I never had before. By de-cluttering my mind, using the 80/20 rule, and speaking with my authentic voice, I was able to bring you a show from the heart. I hope you have a wonderfully magical holiday season and I'll see you next year! Today's Quote “Approach the new year with resolve to find the opportunities hidden in each new day!” Michael Josephson – Attorney
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MM2S059: Season 4, Episode 11
By: Ken Boone I planned to publish a new episode of my podcast this past Wednesday, but those plans were interrupted by a health emergency. To be clear, I passed out at home and briefly lost consciousness. There was blood loss involved. The situation was so scary that I was taken by ambulance to Atrium Health University City Hospital. I'm familiar with that facility since that was where I was taken by ambulance and treated for Congestive Heart Failure back in 2019. After that first hospital stay, I had a few appointments with my Cardiologist that had me in and out in less than an hour. But this time they had to perform a procedure that required a two night stay. So hence the delay. When they reviewed my medical history and discovered a past heart condition, I kind of went to the front of the line. The good news is that, after a series of tests, my heart is still in great shape! They drew multiple vials of blood. They tested to see if I had ulcers. They also wanted to rule out cancer. There was a CT scan and an EKG thrown in the mix! In other words, they gave me the “once over” and then some! A lot has changed since the last time I was hospitalized. Security is much tighter. Masks are worn in all public areas. And most noticeable is a shortage of hospital staff. Nurses are leaving the profession in droves for a number of reasons. And while the supply of hospital workers has decreased, the demand for hospital services has increased. I spent over 24 hours in the Emergency Department because they had no beds available. But the staff valiantly soldiered on! To a person, they were all overworked and underappreciated, so I did my best not to be a extra burden to any of them. So when I learned that my situation could be fixed with a relatively simple procedure, I decided that I wanted to get discharged as soon as possible. At first, they might had thought I was being an “impatient” patient complaining about slow service. That wasn't the whole truth. While I did want to get out of there, I also wanted to free up some of their time and space for patients who needed them more than I did. Every time one of my caregivers apologized for taking too long to take my vitals, draw blood, bring a meal, or whatever, I expressed my gratitude to them for coming to work and making my life easier. Then I would beg them to discharge me or point me to someone who could. While some of them were just doing the bare minimum, trying not to burn out, there were the ones who had a true calling, going the extra mile. I made sure I thanked them all! The procedure went smoothly. The needles were painless. Even the food was delicious. It wasn't until dietary came by to get my meal requests for the next two days that I literally began whine. The nurses were understanding. One of them said that my bitchiness meant that I was feeling well enough to leave. I actually snatched the discharge papers out of her hand, and I wouldn't even let them bring me a wheelchair. I got a good laugh out of them. That's what I was going for! This morning, I got an email from the hospital asking me to take a survey about my experience during my stay. On a scale of 1 to 10, I gave them all 10s on everything. Even for the ones who were just going through the motions. At the end of the survey, they asked for additional comments. That's when I rattled off a gratitude list even longer than the list I wrote when they saved my life three years ago! So, I'm back behind the microphone, recording another episode of this podcast. I've got one more episode for this season as well as for this year. We'll return to our regularly scheduled format next week, to be published next Wednesday. But today's episode is devoted to the angels who give of themselves every day in order to make the world a healthier place! Today's Quote “Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world. For indeed, that's all who ever had.” Margaret Mead – American Cultural Anthropologist MM2S058: Season 4, Episode 10
By: Ken Boone We're nearing the end of Calendar Year 2022! After celebrating Thanksgiving, next up is Christmas, Hanukkah, and finally New Year's Eve, depending on the year! And as always, I wish you and yours had a safe and happy holiday! But for now, let's see how we did in keeping up with our New Year's Resolutions for 2022. Heading into 2009, I made it my New Year's Resolution to relocate from the cold Northeast to the Southeast. By August 2009, I actually pulled that off! In fact, I still live in Huntersville, North Carolina with no plans to move, ever! It wasn't until 2020, that I made another resolution, which was to do whatever it took to recover from my cardiac health scare. So far, so good. At last check, my heart function had return to normal. I've got a good handle on my chronic high blood pressure with the help of diet, exercise, and medication. This year, I dared to create a list of 15 resolutions that I hoped to keep. I succeeded at some and failed at others. But the key was to keep my expectations low and my acceptance high, and to try my best. As my wife, Celia likes to say, “God honors our efforts”. With that said, let's take a look back to that list:
Now for the things that took more effort for me start and maintain. To pull these off, I had to get my soul just right. And they are:
This next group of resolutions fall in the “Practice Makes Progress” category. These activities have always been a part of my routine. However, I haven't paid them the attention they deserve:
And here are the Final Four. When it comes to my voice work, I've been working very hard to get better, and I'm seeing the progress. And I've added “working smarter” to the mix:
There were 15 items on my resolution to-do list. With the exception of going to church, I started all of them and have stuck with most of them. What I learned was that every time I put in the work to publish a brand-new weekly episode of my podcast, I realize that anything is possible, if I keep my expectations low and my acceptance high. I'm about to start compiling my list of resolutions for Calendar Year 2023. It won't be 15 items long, but I will work hard to accomplish as many as I possibly can! Today's Quote “Be not afraid of growing slowly, be only afraid of standing still.” Chinese Proverb |
About the HostKenneth E. Boone, Sr. is a writer, podcaster, music lover, sports enthusiast, and retired accountant. Archives
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