Have you heard? the (blue) bird is the word

Yep, it's official. After almost 8 months, I am back on the world's favorite P2P file-sharing program that every broadband ISP loves to hate (too cool for legit channels and too lazy to master BitTorrent).

I've been back for roughly 48 hours and already, I've downloaded over 8 gigabytes. Well over 8 gigabytes. And the lion's share of that came in all day yesterday (Sundays are very convenient). Yesterday I picked up all the latest ambient releases, and today I picked up all the new releases from popular artists. By the end of the day, REM, No Doubt, and Foo Fighters were mine. REM has disappointedly all but abandoned their trademark jangle-pop sound and No Doubt put the same 14 tracks in a different order, but Foo Fighters was well worth waiting for. They've strayed from their original roots, but it has been a well-penned evolution. After 6 years of doing a whole lot of nothing, Iio finally released something new as well. All in all, a success! It sure beat responding to the 10th practice email - not that I don't value them, but occasionally, enough can be enough.

Surprisingly (or maybe not), all my old list-buddies remembered who I was and we picked up where we left off - the chatting, the passing of cheese, the invites to exclusive invite-only VIP chatrooms, the warm welcome-backs, the respectful queuing, and lack of drama.

And yet, this time around, I'm bound and determined to minimize any and all of that said drama. Drama sucks and I didn't intentionally spark any before, but opening the collection up to anyone and everyone and downloading from those with whom I had very little in common linguistically, well, kind of set the stage for trouble. It had been such a chore to keep up with that P2P program - having to monitor for leechers and make judgment calls (leeching versus sharing is less of a black-and-white issue and more of a continuum), as well as setting download limits, unequal up/download speeds, dealing with people who didn't share, people who cussed me out, people to messaged me pointlessly, and more. Annoying.

So upon my return, I made a few changes. First, I share list-only. I'm sure that wins me more hostility than sympathy/empathy, but it's my connection after all and I don't have the time or desire to babysit. I also find that the program functions better the more I can keep control over the activity. So in the interest of stability (program) and sanity (mine), I share list only.

Where possible, I also download list-only, which means I try to search for the files I'm looking for among the people in my buddy list first. If I'm not successful, THEN I venture outside the buddy list. I'm not trying to be snobby, just trying to stay as familiar as possible. People on my buddy list already know I'm sharing and I don't have to explain (AGAIN) why they can't see my files, whereas I start from scratch and risk a ban every time I download from someone I don't know. (With more than 6 terabytes to browse, I'm surprised anyone can browse me at all, so the fact that people can queue files is encouraging.)

I kept my user info as simple and to-the-point as possible. I kept it as down-to-earth as possible. Hopefully people will get the idea that I'm mature, busy, common-sense, and have little time to police my machine, fill requests, or solve any problems. It's a controlled anarchy, within my parameters.

So far, it is peaceful and friendly, and hopefully it will stay that way. I didn't enjoy having to become a hardass and I didn't enjoy having to referee and explain and everything else. People were mean and/or stupid and I'm glad I haven't dealt with any of that yet. I probably will run into some of these douchebags eventually, but for right now I'm basking in the music-only-nothing-else vibe I'm putting out that is so far being gracefully returned to me.

Yay for birds :)

Children of the (cross-reactive) corn

Out of curiosity (and out of necessity--I also needed to be a guinea pig) I decided to run my own test panel through this new lab we established an account with. The test was yet another food reaction test panel (where you test a group of foods to see if you react to them), but rather than doing just one immunoglobulin (IgE or IgG) it did both IgG and IgA. And it grouped all the usual suspects together in one panel of all the foods gluten-reactive people are like to ALSO react to.

Ha.

Life dealt me another Joker. It was cruel. (Hint: not a new concept when it comes to my lab testing and forced dietary restrictions and whatnot.)

I react to (deep breath): milk (all protein subtypes), wheat (all protein subtypes and genetic varieties), coffee, (milk) chocolate, gluten-containing grains (we knew that): kamut, spelt, rye, barley, gluten-free grains (suspected some, like sorghum): buckwheat, millet, quinoa, pistacio, tapioca, sorghum, potato, corn, and hemp. I CAN still have: yeast, rice, and amaranth. Wewt.

Never expected corn. Or potato. And I haven't even HAD help or quinoa enough to develop a reaction to it. I'm not emotional about rice, so it's kind of a so-what that I would gladly trade for something else, but then, I can at least have my Clearvite, my Pei Wei, my basmati (not that we have that much right now), rice noodles (in case I ever want them), and my Sushihana (their salmon and rice just plain rocks and every 10 years I can stomach sushi).

I am still having chocolate. Why? Because the test only evaluated for MILK chocolate and since I'm positive for milk, I don't actually know whether I react to chocolate itself. Sooooo....

Warpath Wednesday

Yep, I know I ranted a couple months back. It was that whole PMS thing. Well, I need to do it again, and this time, I don't even have PMS. This time, though, I'll try to come up with accompanying solutions. At least, where possible.

Gripe: Microsoft PCs
I despise them. And the more I use my Mac, the more I despise Microsoft. It freezes. It hangs. It gets confused. It can't multitask, no matter how much RAM you put in or how well-hung the CPU is. It's just not happening. My Mac has less RAM and a less powerful processor and yet, I've had to restart it maybe 3 times since January. And I've used it every day and night, with a gazillion programs running, browser windows open, PDF and Pages documents in progress, etc. I also can't stand the cryptic error messages, the excruciatingly long boot-up process, and the Office Clippy mascot.

Solution: Get away from PC altogether as fast as possible. (Reflex problem: lack of funding to do so. Reflex solution: be patient and save up.)

Gripe: Allergies who think they can come in and dominate my day
Sure, they just barge right in and take up residence as if I didn't actually need my brain and the ability to breathe or anything. So I embarrassingly sneeze through the day - those uncontrollable, don't-bother-trying-to-finish-your-sentence sneezes that come in a rapid-fire string like planes lined up on final approach to a major airport on a busy Friday night. These are the muscle-seizing, incapacitating sneezes where I can't hear anything, can't say anything, and can't carry out any other task. Repeatedly. All day. Thanks heaps.

Solution: Still looking. Homeopathics haven't done a thing. Herbs and herbal teas haven't done a thing. Nothing. Still looking to pharmaceuticals to save the day, and only a handful of them actually work (Claritin and Allegra are scams).

Gripe: Not enough fucking office space
I've outgrown my office. And my reception area. My books are stacked on my chiropractic table, constantly needing to be shuffled around to whichever area of my room I use the least. So are my binders--lots of them. Why? Because I have no bookcase and I don't dare put them on the floor lest I have one more thing to trip over.

Solution: Mercury needs to go golldamn direct so we can get a move on this other suite.

Gripe: Not enough golldamn time or memory
I'm trying to do the work of anywhere from 3-5 people at once. I also have no oxygen going to my brain and my thyroid hormones are low. Throw in a dozen different cross-reactive foods of which I wasn't aware and of which I'm constantly exposed to, and it makes for very poor brain function. Things slip through the cracks and people ask things of me that I will simply forget. I feel like I have too many demands put on me and no one else can help me.

Solution: Hire an assistant...again, Mercury is an issue. (Isn't it always?)

Gripe: Patients to whom I've given the world that begin to complain about prices/expenses and actually go so far as to ask if the new information I'm about to present actually needs a visit (!!)
Uh, yeah. It does. It took me time to research the problem, time to design the protocols and time to make the handouts, none of which I got paid for. It took me time to travel to the classes that taught me this stuff and time to sit in the class and learn all of it, none of which I got paid for but instead *I* paid for. Now, my time and expertise are all I have to sell. And I have given away A SHIT-TON of time and expertise FOR FREE to several of my patients. So yeah, I'm actually going to collect SOMETHING for my time. I'm a doc. I went through school. I paid dearly in MANY ways, some of which I cannot undo or pay back (i.e. my time and my health). I currently drive a scratched up truck badly in need of a tune-up and I live in a low-income apartment with my husband who is also a doctor. And now I'm about to present new information to a patient who has historically taken MUCH time to ask MANY questions. Yeah, I'm gonna get paid.

Solution: I'm too much of a bargain as it is. Charge MORE. This will command the respect I deserve for the time I put in to each case and the results that I produce. Put a complete stop to lengthy informative emails and instead start doling out a simple Yes, No, or Too Long So Make An Appointment. Rejoice in the fact that I'm doing more volume, more successfully and ride that wave!

Gripe: Facebook stress
This, too, is something I've sort of brought on myself by letting things get out of hand and get to me. I've subscribed ("liked") too many groups and causes and I'm getting deluged. (Same could be said for Meetup, LinkedIn, and other naggy sites.) I've already waxed several people off my friends list because of drama and whatnot, which I just plain don't put up with, but now it comes down to all the political groups and such. Yeah, I'm right there with them in spirit, but there comes a point where I reach a limit, beyond which I just. Don't. Care anymore.

Solution: Trim the FB groups and start using FB for more benign things like professional networking/contacts, fun posts like eclectic music, and informative posts about things a broader audience can appreciate.

Gripe: Those cross-reactive foods
Ugh. I did my own food sensitivity test a few weeks ago. Rest assured, the tests I run do not return a false positive. If anything, it will be a false negative, but even that scenario isn't real likely. I ran a panel of like 20 different foods and lo and behold, I'm only negative for THREE. Yes, of the 20-something foods I tested, I CAN have only three. Everything else I've been eating is producing a similar reaction, even stronger than some of the gluten grains. WTF?? The interesting part? I did not perceive these reactions. I thought I was FINE. I wouldn't have known had I not been tested.

Solution: Rejoice in the fact that I can have 3 of those foods without a problem and that I at least know about the rest (it's better than not knowing) and go pretty much dairy-free, egg-free Paleo from here (minus peanuts, strawberries, kiwi, and raw tomatoes). Jesus.

Cross fingers for our space and a good assistant! (And an abatement of the allergies.) I think I can get through the rest.

Random questions to no one in particular

If I tested positive for corn, oats, tapioca, potato, buckwheat, millet, sorghum, milk, chocolate, sesame, quinoa, and more, what's left?

And why does every food I react to have to be something I like? The only foods I did not react to are rice, yeast, and amaranth. Seriously?

Why is it that as soon as I find (and fall in love with) something cool, Whole Foods Market has to pull it off the shelf (always blaming the "suppliers")?

Why does Teen Nick have to keep changing their lineup...which is not an improvement?

Why does 10pm have to invite all the scary, disturbing, fight-or-flight-inducing TV shows, documentaries, and infotainment? They rev it up just as I'm trying to lull myself to sleep.

Why do drivers swing out in the opposite direction just before making a turn?

Why are the cosmetically-nicest parts of town also the rudest?

What is the point of blasting the volume on the TV commercials, especially after the advent of the mute button?

Why are the shittiest companies also the biggest and most profitable? (It's not like most of them were even good at one time and deteriorated over time; many large companies were simply never good - always selling cheap products at inflated prices via subpar/absent customer service.)

Why does Facebook keep having to make ridiculous and pointless changes?

How did I not hear of Family Guy until 2009? (Answer: the Universe wanted me to actually pass med school.)

How is it that neighbors in our apartment complex keep moving out and yet we still continue to have a parking problem?

Why does family have the tendency to treat you like you're 16 no matter how old you are?

Why are there so many freaking crazy people (especially in San Antonio LOL)?

How does Beezit sell an iPad for $13? Why would anyone even do this?

Why do people still go to Walmart? (It's not like it's any cheaper to have to buy that skillet/shirt/etc *again* because it didn't last the first time.)

Why do iPad, iPhone, and Facebook games have graphics of 1993 caliber?

Why did anyone think the "Good Mood Food" Arby's jingle was acceptable?

How did shows like Robot Chicken, That 70s Show, and others even make it on to the airwaves?

Why do people buy comprehensive insurance plans? They always cost more than they provide.

I'm sure there are more random rhetorical musings, but it's getting late and the office will be waiting for me early in the morning.