H.D.M.

One of my favorite phrases describes my physical and mental body perfectly today: "hammered dog meat". People always gasp and then laugh when I say this. I usually end up prefacing my remark with "as we say in Texas, I feel like"........hammered dog meat although I don't really know the origin of this expression. Seems as though Denny and I picked it up when we lived in Houston; perhaps we heard it come out of the mouth of infamous trauma surgeon "Red Duke" at Hermann Hospital during our training days. No offense to dogs (I love them) but somehow hammered any-other-meat just doesn't convey the meaning quite as well.

I have not slept well for three days. Last night there was a drive back into the hospital (rarely happens) to supervise an urgent dialysis which got me back home around 1:30 AM. I'm way too old for these hours and no amount of caffeine provided the beneficial effect that yesterday's jolt gave me. I'm fuzzy, frazzled and restless. But, the good news is that I'm off work until late March; between a few vacation days and my knee surgery, there will be a break from the work routine. Certainly other "stuff" will fill in the time but tending to kidneys won't.

As for "hammered dog meat", let it just stand as it is; an exhaustion beyond the usual, enough to qualify me as road kill. One good night's rest and I'll likely be good as new, like the cartoon characters who get flattened by the steam roller and "poof", appear lively and rejuvenated in the next frame.