Caduceus's Blog - 2old2play

Ode to Bloom (5/2001-11/2008)

Bloom and her sister came into our house in August of 2001 after we had moved to South Carolina as my wife wanted someone in the house when I was at the hospital overnight.

Last summer, she developed autoimmune hemolytic anemia, which caused her to be extremely fatigued. She did well for several months, on various medications, but we came home tonight and I found her in the back yard.

I'll miss my running buddy.

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Marathon = Fail

Well, I dropped out at 18 miles. It was a warm day.

I started out with my friend, did well until about 10 miles, he turned to me and said "We're going slower and slower." And we were. At that point we had gone from an 8:10 mile, to an 8:45.

We got separated and I started having abdominal cramps. I made it to the halfway point at a 8:59 mile pace, which had been my original goal, but had to start walking when I had cramps in my legs. After 2-3 miles of suffering, I went to the medical tent at mile 17. My blood pressure was 100/60 and my pulse was 120. I had been walking for two miles.

At that point, I figured it wasn't worth walking all the way to the end of the race for a medal I hadn't really earned. I shook my fist at the sky and vowed to return.

Back to training.

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Chicago (Marathon) Bound

In-transit tomorrow for Chicago. Stopping in Kentucky overnight, then on to the Windy City Saturday morning.

I'll be staying with a friend's family for the night before the race, then pasta night, sleep, RUN.

Wish me luck!

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Still in Disgaea 3

Still playing Disgaea, just passed through level 4-3. Quite the game. It keeps opening up unlockables as you level characters. There are still many hours left in the main story, though sometimes, I can't be bothered with that.

Next weekend, I'll be running the Chicago Marathon. I have been training to sub-4, which is under a nine minute mile. I think it is very possible. I'm probably about the top shape I've been for a marathon. Today, I ran with the regular group, ran about 8.3 with the group, 1/2 mile each way as a warm-up and cool down. With the group, was running around an 8 minute mile (much less for some of the really flat areas), which fills me with hope of getting sub 3:50.

We'll see. If you're interested in tracking me on-line Sunday morning, starting at 8 AM (Central time), PM me and I'll give you the info.

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Strange Week

I ran a 5K on Saturday, which went quite well. I finished 2nd overall for the males, 3rd overall with a great time (for me) of 21:22. It was a small town race here and there weren't many runners, not to minimize my achievement, but it is what it is. I also ran with my 4 year old daughter in the 30 yard (or so) Fun Run.

Then I ran with my buddy Sunday morning about 8 miles, didn't feel like I got enough in for the prep for the Chicago (yikes, 3 weeks from Sunday!) Marathon, so I ran with the group another nine miles, and felt better about myself.

Monday night, the four other physicians and I met with the administration of the hospital physician group we are a part of and found out that they will be ending the contract with our practice in a few months. This was quite a suprise for all of us. We knew times were tight, but expected more of a "we need to tighten the hatches" kind of speech as opposed to "we won't beat around the bush, you'll be getting a letter this week."

Anyway, Tuesday, we informed the clinic staff. Tuesday night, it was a misting rain and cool, so I decided to go for a run. I started running and got in about four miles. Then, I ran into a group of runners that I had been trying to start with when I started my run, so I joined them for another eight miles. That made me feel better, but I was running in a little "pity cave" for about 3 miles of the second part of the run then running angry for the next five miles.

Things are more settled as of Friday, discussions with a plan of attack is starting to formulate.

Now, I plan on running 22 tomorrow morning, so we'll just see how that goes.

Currently playing Disgaea 3, wow. It is like crack.

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I am... BATMAN!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEx9r5enZsk&feature=related

The following is NSFW for people with bat phobias.

So, I was sitting downstairs, playing Disgaea 3, last Thursday night a little after nine, when I heard my wife yell - "Chris, get up here right NOW!"

That usually means someone is either bleeding to death or is in other mortal peril.

I race upstairs to find her outside the girls' room. "What's wrong?"

"There's a bat in the girls' room!"

And sure enough, there's a little bat hanging on the edge of the fan near the ceiling. Apparently my 4 year old pointed it out to my wife about thirty seconds earlier - "What's that black thing on my fan?"

"That's a switch, honey."

"No, mommy, what's that black thing?"

"That's a bat!"

Fast forward to me coming upstairs. The bat's about the size of my palm. My wife is not in complete freak-out mode, but I can see the white of her eyes and if I don't come up with a plan in the next sixty seconds, there will be trouble in River City.

We usher the older one out of the room and she gets the baby out of the crib. I go downstairs, get some work gloves and a small trashcan with a removeable lid as well as a step ladder. I close the door to the girls' room and trap it between the trashcan and the ceiling. My reasoning is twofold - a.) I don't want to chase this sucker around with a broom for an hour and b.) I don't want to clean up bat blood/brains off the floor and the walls.

Of course, the little squeaker starts freaking out. I slid the lid across the top, between the celing and the can, and before I completely close it, it stops squeaking. All I can think is, "Great, I have an asphyxiated bat squished between the lid and the can", but he wasn't trapped, thank goodness.

He's chucked out the front door, can and all while we get the 2 million candlewatt flashlight to disorient him some more. I dump him out on the lawn and he starts squeaking some more while I go back into the house and check on the family.

Everyone is fine, both girls have fallen asleep on our bed and they're tossed back where they belong for the night, which goes without further incident. My wife felt obligated to get Stella Luna from a friend to have a "friendly bat" story to read.

I assume it got through the chimneys, which, like the house are over a hundred years old.

I think I took two steps up on the "hero ladder" in my wife's eyes that night. I'm already an imperious, heroic figure in my four year-old's eyes, or at least, still a heroic figure.

I asked Christy later if I had been on-call or out of town whether they would have all slept in our bed, and she just looked at me and said, "Are you kidding, of course! I would have waited for the exterminator the next day!"

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Two for two?

Well, we were supposed to go away for the weekend to a meeting in Charleston, SC. Hannah's going to get in the way of that, so we're at the "backup" location, Greenville.

I live in the Upstate, so that's not a far drive, but the wife had been looking forward to a real weekend away from the kids, now it will just feel like a day trip.

Our last weekend away was in 2005, Katrina hit 3 days beforehand. I know it is selfish, but I was looking forward to time away.

Anyway, about a month or so until the Chicago Marathon. I am on target to sub-four hour the marathon, which will beat my previous time by 12 minutes! If you feel like contributing to a charitable organization and watching someone suffer at the same time, might I suggest dropping a couple bucks in my bucket.

http://www.firstgiving.com/chrismcw

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Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions - Initial Impressions - from 2old2RPG

Alright, I admit it, I bought a PSP just to play this and Jeanne d'Arc.

That being said, I do like turn-based RPGs and wanted to see what all the hubub was about.

The Story

FFT:WoL takes place in Ivalice, centuries after Final Fantasy XII, but long before Vagrant Story and is part of a new "Ivalice Alliance" brand of games, including Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift and I have no idea where that one falls into the continuity. The game is a port/remake of the 1998 Playstation title. Confused? You will be!

After a flashforward, you find that you play the protagonist, Ramza (who can be renamed), the bastard son of a nobleman, and his friend Delita, a commoner, verging on becoming a knight himself.

A war of attrition between two neighboring states has finally ground to a halt and the footsoldiers have returned home, to find there's nothing left of their ravaged homelands.
The disgruntled have started a rebellion at home against the crown and the nobles, in which you become involved.

The Job Classes

You have a squad of up to 24 characters and monsters. Ramza is always in your party and you also often have "guest" characters who are not under your direct control in combat, but can be manipulated on the world map.

You start with a squad of about seven characters with the option of two initial job classes - Squire and Chemist. Acquiring levels in these job classes unlocks the next job class - i.e. Knight and Archer for the Squire class and Black and White Mages for the Chemist.

Each job class has Abilities that can be purchased with job points earned during battle (alongside experience points which advance the basic level of the character). Abilities are broken up into four categories when purchased: Primary, Reaction, Support and Movement.

Primary abilities are things like a cure spell for the White Mage, casting a Stone for the Squire. Reaction abilities encompass actions like Parry (Knight), Auto Potion (Chemist, when taking damage), Counter Tackle (Squire). Support abilities include equipping different types of armor when not acting in that character class, Throw Item (Chemist), JP (Job Point) Boost (Squire). Movement abilities like Lifefont (Monk) affect or occur during the movement phase.

When selecting a skill set for a character, you automatically get the purchased primary abilities for that job. You select a secondary skill set of primary skills that can be used in battle. The other skills can be chosen before entering battle, making the combinations almost endless as to what kind of specialist Ninja Monk, for example, you want to field.

Signs

In addition to some monster classes having strengths and weaknesses, all characters have Zodiac signs with strengths and weaknesses against other signs. I haven't advanced far enough in the game to exploit this, but I am sure if you can prepare a killer character with the right zodiac sign against a difficult boss, zap in with a Teleport with a back-side attack... Well, let's just say it's worth doing some homework on.

I currently have my wife on high alert that her Microsoft Publisher skills will soon be at work to make a Zodiac "wheel" that I can use to see where my favorable attacks should lie.

Other statistics which are new to me - Bravery and Faith - are introduced. Faith affects how powerful your magic spells cast by and against your character are. Apparently with a faith of 0, magic doesn't work on the character because they don't believe in it! Bravery affects damage (more is better), and the Treasure Hunter ability (low is better).

Grinding

If you don't like battles for the sake of battles, to raise your character levels up, STAY AWAY. This will drive you insane. You have to get a good amount of job points in each class to have a shot at keeping your 4-5 character squad alive during story missions and generate gil (money) to outfit said characters so they don't end up pummeled to death every major battle.

Being knocked out (KO'ed) isn't the end of your character, unless their 3 turn timer winds down prior to completing the battle. If they evaporate into a little experience crystal or treasure chest, Lauda just took a one way trip, unless your memory stick has her last incarnation.

The Visuals

The sprites and textures of the basic gameplay have been sharpened up for the PSP. The opening music is excellent. Battle and in-game music is meh, so I usually turn the volume off. The animated cut scenes are cel-shaded beauty. You can go back to these scenes at any time to watch them or show them to a friend in the Chronicle option on the menu screen when viewing the overworld map.

Tutorials

This game has a steep learning curve. Yes, that's me. Up here. Talking down to you. I'm only a little bit into the game and have had to learn this much.

There is an in-game tutorial which is helpful in navigating the game menus, especially using the "select" button when viewing the status of an enemy to find out what tricks they have up their sleeves, gear to pilfer (as a thief), weakness they have, and range of attacks.

I don't like that you can't move your character and then note whether your spell would reach an enemy or friend. You move, then are locked into that move for good or ill. Then you can Act and choose the action - defend, cast, attack, and so forth.

I also didn't initially like that all spells are "cross" shaped affairs with area effects, be it cure or fire. This is growing on me as I am learning to position my forces a little more efficiently, but when your battle plans are going kablooey, its a bad time to remember that Blizzard is going to crush your little Chocobo into powder as well as the Goblin he's facing off against.

You can read about this elsewhere. I haven't explored it, but I will sooner or later.

The Verdict

Is it a masterpiece? Maybe. Right now, I'll give it a nine out of ten.

I'm 15 hours in, though only about five story battles completed. I know I have a LOT left to cover and probably haven't told anyone here anything they didn't know.

Am I grinding? Yes. Am I enjoying the grind? I just "mastered" (got all the JP) for the Squire class for two characters which filled me with unfettered joy. I woke my wife up to show her the little star floating over the Squire on job selection screen. So, I guess the answer is yes.

The story is engaging, the customization and nuances running beneath the surface are as deep as any turn-based RPG you could point to. There are minor graphical and sound issues. You'll find some complaints of slow-downs on message boards, compared to the original, when loading battle animations for special attacks off the UMD, for instance, but as someone who hasn't played the original, I would never have noticed.

The true turning point for me was when the game price dropped to US$20 (new) from $39.99. I'm in and I may never get out.

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So I have a problem

It seems I can't walk by a used game store without perusing old titles and picking up one or two if they hit that sweet spot under $20. They are usually RPG's of epic proportions - 40+ hours.

I have half a dozen that I haven't cracked yet - Dragon Quest VIII, Rogue Galaxy, Persona FES, Radiata Stories, Xenosaga I & II (I'll get III when I see it in a bargain bin, for completeness' sake) and probably a couple of others.

Anyone else have this problem?

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Certification Maintenance

I am spending all day doing a module for the maintenance of my certification through the American Board of Family Medicine.

They estimate it will take 10-15 hours. Usually they take me around twenty.

Ooog.

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Home with sick kids and wife.

Everyone has the cough today (except me). I was standing in my office at about 8:15 when my wife called me to come home as she couldn't stand up without feeling faint and coughing her head off. So we're homebound today.

The kids have been sick for a few days, getting a little better, though the little on is still draining green/yellow snot. I put her on Amoxil since she had a fever. The older one is recovering pretty well. Hopefully my wife will be better so I can go back to work tomorrow.

Woo!

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Thinking about a car

Well, I have been browsing for a new car on and off. The 1999 Jetta runs fine, but has some gremlins in the electrical system that we can't seem to work out, and the front bumper gets caught on curbs all the time.

I have looked at the responsible stuff - Camry, Corolla, Accord, Civic. Then I saw the Mazda RX-8. I need four seats occasionally, otherwise I'd look at the S2000.

I should go with the responsible stuff, but I really want to drive the RX-8. Pretty, sporty.

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Alright, I give up.

I got Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom about a month ago. Now, I have a lot of stuff going on, so I haven't plowed through it like I should. It is kind of like God of War and Diablo. That may sound like a winning combination, and it should have been one.

Overall, the game was fair. The textures were good and I like the transparency of the combinations - meaning that you can see the combo in the bottom corner of the screen as you stack your slow and fast attacks. Nothing irritates me more than "how the @$(% did I just do that attack? Not only that, you can go to the menu screen and see a list of combos, similar to God of War.

Loot, well...., it is alright. There are five slots - helmet, shoulders, chest, legs and boots. There is a bit of randomization from drops from monsters but bosses will drop the same stuff. You can break down the stuff you don't want for "essence" which is the only form of currency in the game. Essence can be spent at periodic automatic save points (that's right, can't drop and save if the kettle's running) for health or mana, equipment or augmentations for your weapon. There doesn't seem to be enough variety within the character classes and the appearance of the armor only varies slightly.

Your weapon has four slots, though each gem/rune you find or purchase will only fit in 2 of the slots. The round gems typically have an environmental attack - cold/heat/poison - while hexagonal gems will augment your attack/defense stats. Runes will allow you see things on the minimap - chests, enemies, etc. Though about 2/3 of the way through you get a rune that changes your weapon into a scythe which is pretty neat.

The story is okay, I suppose. A mad king corrupted by demonic powers. No great shakes here. I was amused by the Library guardian dialogue. The "romance" which suddenly appeared in one cut scene was ridiculous, I played as a warrior and didn't bother to go back as the female scout to see if that changes, but I assume that it does. You can also play as a male wizard.

I don't like the jump mechanic and it seems to get the character caught fairly often in the "jump upwards" phase, but frozen in midair when trapped by obstacles. It just looks kind of stupid.

Camera angles - 90% of the time you have control of the camera. You can move it around and see, helpful especially when you're going through a doorway in a dungeon that blocks your view. During certain boss battles, notably the spider queen and the final boss battle, you can't. This is really irritating.

The final boss battle inspired my title. After more than two hours of trying to beat King Hraskar, I have given up. I don't have a problem with difficult battles. I don't have a problem with the AI taking cheap shots. I don't have a problem with bad camera angles. I don't have a problem with a pit your character falls into in the middle of the final arena that you can't get out of again except by dying. I have a problem with all of these things happening at the same time.

I recommend against wasting your time with this one because the end is so frustratingly bad.

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Get to know your doctor

Hopefully this won't be in our lifetimes, but pandemic flu and other mass casualty events are only seconds away, sometimes, which requires the rationing of available health care.

This is where public health, ethics and patient care collide.

You might want to get more friendly with your doctor:

Who should MDs let die in a pandemic? Report offers answers

Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding who to let die.

Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.

The suggested list was compiled by a task force whose members come from prestigious universities, medical groups, the military and government agencies. They include the Department of Homeland Security the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services.

The proposed guidelines are designed to be a blueprint for hospitals "so that everybody will be thinking in the same way" when pandemic flu or another widespread health care disaster hits, said Dr. Asha Devereaux. She is a critical care specialist in San Diego and lead writer of the task force report.

The idea is to try to make sure that scarce resources — including ventilators, medicine and doctors and nurses — are used in a uniform, objective way, task force members said.

Their recommendations appear in a report appearing Monday in the May edition of Chest, the medical journal of the American College of Chest Physicians.

"If a mass casualty critical care event were to occur tomorrow, many people with clinical conditions that are survivable under usual health care system conditions may have to forgo life-sustaining interventions owing to deficiencies in supply or staffing," the report states.

To prepare, hospitals should designate a triage team with the Godlike task of deciding who will and who won't get lifesaving care, the task force wrote. Those out of luck are the people at high risk of death and a slim chance of long-term survival. But the recommendations get much more specific, and include:

- People older than 85.

- Those with severe trauma, which could include critical injuries from car crashes and shootings.

- Severely burned patients older than 60.

- Those with severe mental impairment, which could include advanced Alzheimer's disease.

- Those with a severe chronic disease, such as advanced heart failure, lung disease or poorly controlled diabetes.

Dr. Kevin Yeskey, director of the preparedness and emergency operations office at the Department of Health and Human Services, was on the task force. He said the report would be among many the agency reviews as part of preparedness efforts.

Public health law expert Lawrence Gostin of Georgetown University called the report an important initiative but also "a political minefield and a legal minefield."

The recommendations would probably violate federal laws against age discrimination and disability discrimination, said Gostin, who was not on the task force.

If followed to a tee, such rules could exclude care for the poorest, most disadvantaged citizens who suffer disproportionately from chronic disease and disability, he said. While health care rationing will be necessary in a mass disaster, "there are some real ethical concerns here."

James Bentley, a senior vice president at American Hospital Association, said the report will give guidance to hospitals in shaping their own preparedness plans even if they don't follow all the suggestions.

He said the proposals resemble a battlefield approach in which limited health care resources are reserved for those most likely to survive.

Bentley said it's not the first time this type of approach has been recommended for a catastrophic pandemic, but that "this is the most detailed one I have seen from a professional group."

While the notion of rationing health care is unpleasant, the report could help the public understand that it will be necessary, Bentley said.

Devereaux said compiling the list "was emotionally difficult for everyone."

That's partly because members believe it's just a matter of time before such a health care disaster hits, she said.

"You never know," Devereaux said. "SARS took a lot of folks by surprise. We didn't even know it existed."

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Blog from the Beach

At Hilton Head this week with the family for a conference. It is supposed to be in the low eighties today and tomorrow!

Kind of a working vacation, with meetings for the next three days. Nights are mostly free.

Went mini-golfing with the 3 and 1 year old yesterday which was fun. Older daughter got 75 tickets out of one of the vending/games!

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