Licks

Things are better at work. My doctor has been back and I've gotten some good guidance about prescribing anti-psychotics, which frankly I'm a little nervous about, but I need to know how to do it. We meet every Wednesday for staffing, which is when all the professionals get in a room and we review each patient and discuss the treatment plan to make decisions about the future. It's terribly interesting, and this week we were reviewing a particularly tough case, one that I had to handle by myself when the doctor was out, and I said "I've put her on benzo's and anti-psychotics and haven't seen a bit of improvement. I'm not happy with this case at all." Those are the two classes of drugs I'm very, very cautious in using. Anti-depressants, sleepers, and the non-benzo anxiolytics however? Eh, here you go. (I'm kidding, of course. But I'm not terribly worried. The side effect profile for those just isn't very risky.)

So tomorrow morning I am meeting our new doctor for the first time, over breakfast. He suggested Kerbey Lane so he's already got a brownie point (a pancake point?) in my book. He's actually only agreed to be our interim doctor until we find a permanent and he'll be there only 2 afternoons a week - only 2/3 of the time that Dr. T was there - but hey, it's a start. (I'm wondering if it could actually turn more permanent.) Our census is terribly low right now, so it will work fine. And if it pops up, well, I think I remember where my sleeping bag is. Ha. And since things are so low, I don't need to go in to work this afternoon, which has been my routine. I think instead Dani and I are going to a dance performance. Of course, it's something that kind-of applies to my work anyway.... here's a link: Silence to Power. It's a collection of dances produced by local choreographers as a means to process psychological and emotional trauma and societal pressures, which includes eating disorders.

I've spent a lot of time with Dani, which is good for both of us. She's doing super great at school. Her sociology professor wrote such a nice note on her first exam, said that her essay responses were the best from all of students in all the classes she taught. I'm not surprised. My girl is smart. I'm so pleased that she now wants to be a nurse. I think it's where many of her talents naturally lie, and of course, it's such a worthwhile profession.

My back still hurts from the ACL Festival but it's probably because I'm still at the gym every day. Slow down? Are you kidding? It's all Phoenix's fault. I wanted to see them so badly, and they were on a smaller stage than they should've been -- they should've been on one of the big stages, I mean when their new album came out this summer, Rolling Stone headlined it. So we had a great spot an hour before they started, but we were so jammed together that nobody could sit down. Yes, it's oh so much fun to have completely stoned teenage strangers with their elbows in your ribs. So I stood there for an hour and then the concert was 90 minutes, so that's a loooooong time to be rooted to one spot. Worth it? mmmmmm not sure. I think if I could have gotten back far enough to sit as we waited, it would've still been pretty darn good. I did get kicked in the head by one of the crowd-surfers too, but just a glancing blow, didn't hurt. And I got chiggers. That's just part of ACL.

Last night Dani and I cooked fish and watched Miss Representation. It's about how the media has stolen the power of girls and young women by saturating them with images that only their sexiness matters. Yes, our culture is run by teenage boys with boners. Beavis and Butthead. It's an interesting thing to ponder, it's still fresh in my mind and I have more thinking to do. I'm against censorship and am a sex-positive person, I mean I hate slut-shaming and love Madonna, but OTOH I get furious when I hear stupid media reports about Hillary Clinton's hair. Miss Representation Documentary Trailer I see the consequences of this toxic, shaming, lowest-common-denominator culture every day at work. And it breaks my heart.

Lick on SoLa (South Lamar), on of our favorite Austin places, celebrated two years recently. We often go there for ice cream on a Friday or Saturday night. Lick has these wonderful, locally-sourced unique flavors. Here's part of the menu board from the last time I was there. You should go. It's near the Lucky Lounge, look for the big neon horseshoe.