Another pursuit

I finally completed my application for DMAT/NMRT.

Should be good stuff. I'm extremely interested in disaster medicine. I like how in the wake of a disaster, you have some trauma patients but a ton of public health issues. It's really fascinating how the medical conditions resulting from a disaster evolve and change over time. You've got everything from the blast injuries of the first few seconds to the PTSD that may begin to rear its ugly head a couple of months down the line.

Oh, and to give you an idea of how awesome this team is:

"The NMRT-Central is now the only “all hazard” team within NDMS and deploys with 60 medical and non-medical specialists capable of decontaminating up to 1000 patients an hour or treating up to 200 patients a day in a medical setting."

"Currently a DMAT can provide care including cardiac resuscitation, basic to mid level trauma care, basic clinic operations, and now providing radiological services with portable x-rays. "

Good stuff. You know, people freak out and think that the government is incompetent and unprepared for disaster, but when you look at the whole picture they do a pretty damn good job. Admittedly there's weak spots in the system, but what the heck do you expect? They're trying to prepare for and manage catastrophic, unpredictable events at the national level.

XY XY XY XY XY... XX (and then there's me)

An abnormally large portion of my life has been spent around men. I was raised by a single father, my first best friend was a boy, and now all of my close friends (minus 1) are male. I spend my free time with a group of about 5 guys, ages 18-21. We go to school together, search together, rescue together, eat together, hang out together, work out together...

It's an interesting dynamic.

I am, essentially, "one of the guys". I am subject to all of the highlights of male friendships, like farting, inappropriate gestures, ridiculous pranks, a constant stream of sexual innuendo and sexist jokes, and random wrestling matches.

But I know that I will never, ever truly be "one of the guys," and that's not a bad thing. I'm just different. As my friend Code once put it, with good intentions, "You're an ARP (SAR team) girl. You're not female. You're not male. You're basically genderless."

They still open doors for me and act protectively and gentlemanly, when warranted. But it's more than that. By listening to them converse in the group, I know for a fact that each of them tells me much more about their personal lives than they tell each other.

When it's just one of them and me, I hear about deadbeat alcoholic brothers, dying dogs, distant girlfriends, crazy moms, jealous exes...

These are things that, apparently, the boys do not discuss in depth, if at all, with each other. Maybe it's relieving to have a woman's nonjudgmental, sympathetic ear to release these deeply personal tensions on.

Although there are unique connections, there are also rituals I won't break into. My boys are top-notch skiers and major powderhounds, and even though they'd let me come if I could ski worth a lick, I don't think I would try to invade on their special testosterone time anyways. They need it.

The things I treasure most.

1. Adventure. Going new places, trying new things, challenging myself to step outside my comfort zone.
   
2. Laughter. Being with friends and laughing so hard it feels like we did 100 sit-ups the next morning. Generally laughing my way through the little slip-ups and setbacks of life.
   
3. Sex. Indulging in others and myself. Embracing the fact that I am a sexual being and enjoying my time as a relatively attractive young woman, which doesn't always mean having intercourse.
   
4. Making a difference. Particularly for people in crisis. I don't find it depressing that I regularly see people experiencing the worst times of their lives because I am empowered to make things better for them, at least a little bit. Nothing is more rewarding than knowing that you've had a real positive impact on someone's life, even if your interaction with them was short-lived.
   
5. Learning. I feel wiser and more capable everyday. This goes along with teaching, something I have recently begun doing and have found to be more of a learning experience than anything.