Google did a Veterans’ day logo (finally) and they left off the Coast Guard.

They did fix it, though:

There are five services.  Happy (belated) Veterans’ Day!

(I screwed up, and changed the first post I did on this).

Legal Blog Watch
If you try to hire Skeeter Jones as your lawyer, you’re barking up the wrong tree. Sure, Skeeter has a degree from Baylor Law School in Texas. And, yes, Skeeter has a knack for sniffing out the essence of a situation. But Skeeter will not be taking the bar exam and any appearances he makes in court will at best be second chair. This is because Skeeter is a dog and his degree — the first by Baylor to a nonhuman — is Juris Dogtor.

Read it and enjoy.  Though I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t like a dog lawyer.

via Overlawyered.

Movin’ Meat: Critical Care
So what is “Critical Care” anyway?
The nice thing is that Medicare provided a very loose and vague definition, and left it to physicians to decide on a case by case basis.

Tremendous review of E&M Critical Care billing.

Our billing company called us together a year or two ago to point out that, in a facility that has 90K visits a year, accepts 2K transfers a year fo higher level of care, out CC billing didn’t even show up on a graph.

I would have been nice to have read the Movin Meat review, as we had been billing CC only for the care that really mpressed us, and not per the guideines.  We’re doing a touch better.

Here.  Looks like they did a very good job on the house!

From humble beginnings have become great things.

Semper Fi Devil Dogs.

A new baking stone and a new recepie. Delicious.

Monumental home makeover
SHELDON, N.Y. (WIVB) – - You’ve probably seen the home makeover shows where distressed families get major help reconstructing their homes. Now generous western New Yorkers have taken on a monumental makeover job themselves to help a family whose hero has already helped all of us.

There’s a beehive of activity underway at 1013 Centerline Road in the Wyoming County Town of Sheldon. What’s it all about?

Pete Andrews (Christian Youth Corps) said, “It’s all about bringing volunteers together to make a difference in Robert Toland’s life.”

Watch the video here, and enjoy the sight of regular people pitching in to help other people.  Beautiful.

Backstory here and here.

I have some anecdotal evidence.

My grandson is 8, and has recently joined the Boy Scouts.  He just announced an interest in ‘going hunting’ to his mom.  Mom, not being dumb temporized with ‘you can go with GruntDoc when you’re 10, but the first thing you’ll do is a snipe hunt’.

Those of you who know what that is are already smiling (those who are puzzled can ask someone or read on).  Grandson is nothing if not a problem solver, so he asked his teacher what a snipe hunt was.  Teacher replied ‘I don’t know’, which wasn’t the answer he was looking for.  (Teachers are smart, too).

He called me to ask, and I told him it was a hunting ritual to a) catch the elusive snipe and b) show your hunting partners you had the skill and stamina to be a hunter.  I appear to not be as reassuring and educational as I thought.

The other day his mom called and related that he’d gotten up extra early, started up their computer, and looked up ‘snipe hunt’ on Wikipedia.  Cat’s out of the bag, but wait: he has been going through his stuffed toys to find one to use to fool me, to prank me for planning to prank him on a snipe hunt.

Kids are getting smarter.  Really. 

(Yes, he occasionally reads this blog.  His mom has changed her startup page away from this one in order to tell this without him seeing it.  We hope.  But, he is pretty smart.)

(CBS) Best-selling author and filmaker Michael Crichton died unexpectedly in Los Angeles Tuesday, after a courageous and private battle against cancer, according to a statement released by his family. He was 66.
Crichton is best known as the author of "Jurassic Park" and the creator of "ER." His most recent novel, "Next," about genetics and law, was published in December 2006.

What a terrific writer.  I got a lot of entertainment from his work, but his first book I read before I knew he was going to be a Big Deal: Five Patients, published in 1969; he assembled the stories while a 4th year medical student at MGH.  It’s a good read, and the lesson still applies.

He’ll be missed.

iowahawk: Just a Quick Reminder
burge08

Even if you’re one of the idiots planning to waste your vote on one of my inferior non-write-in rivals, I encourage you all to get out there and vote tomorrow, Wednesday November 5. What better way to celebrate the secret free big screen TV & liquor giveaway at Wal-Mart today? Supplies are limited, so get your spot in line early

Just so you know. Civic minded, I am.

Election Day at Grand Rounds – Nurse Ratched’s Place

Grand Rounds is up!  (apparently the issue numbers have been lost).