I think of myself as a ruggedly healthy person, but it’s been a rough run this past week or two. First there was the kidney stone, and this weekend I was laid low by a gastroenteritis that would have certainly sent me to the ER if not for a well stocked home pharmacy. And films have revealed yet another stone-in-waiting. I’ve asked Santa to save that little gift for the new year.

But work is finally, slowly starting to show a glimmer of improvement. My new partner is a good doctor and a nice person, and suddenly it is not just me, all the time, every day. Being the only full time doctor for the past thirteen months has been a little like being a single mother. It’s especially a relief to have another person to share the responsibility of mentoring the residents. I must admit though, I miss being able to threaten them bodily harm. The only good thing about being the only doctor in town was that I had pretty high job security. I suppose now if I strike an intern they might give me the boot.

The only bad thing I can really say about my new partner is that he is cheerful all the time, no matter what is thrown at him. After putting up with my hormonal overworked snarling for the past year, my office staff thinks he’s a saint. It’s making me look bad! And, when I confronted him on the lack of grumpiness he had to go and bring up the fact that he spent the last three months stationed in Iraq, and in comparison our office is a little slice of heaven. There’s no fighting that logic. Booger!