Something New. Well, Sorta...

I've mentioned once or twice in the past that I've been in emergency services for a number of years. When the lovely yet talented Mrs618 and I returned to Maine, I finally had a chance to get on the local VFD (most of the last thirty years, I've lived in areas with career FDs) and retake the EMT training.

The EMT was due, in large part, to Randy Cassingham, whom I've cited here a number of times, but also to a number of the medical bloggers out there, the guys (and gals) like Kelly Grayson, aka Ambulance Driver; Chris Kaiser (Life Under the Lights); Mark Glencourse (formerly of 999Medic, who has moved on to greener pastures); Justin Schorr, the Happy Medic; Hydrant Girl (all the times I've been banged up, I never had a medic as cute as she is); Epijunky at Pink, Warm, and Dry; and TS, aka the Urban Paramedic (who has also retired, and whom I have mentioned in the past).

But perhaps the blogger most responsible -- however you want to take that -- is Captain Michael Morse, of Providence Rescue 5. His blog, Rescuing Providence, reminded me that there still are good people out there, people who care, who give a damn. He also showed me that one can have bad stretches, where one doesn't seem to care... until "the one call"... the one that makes you whole again, that gives you the energy to get your ass back in the fight.

I've been reading Rescuing Providence daily for several years now, and leaving occasional comments on his posts, and the other day, he said I should have a blog, because my "heart is ... in the right place." I don't know if I would go quite that far, Cap, but I learned many years ago on the PD that the senior officer, like a wife, is always right.

Oh, and why haven't I blogrolled any of these excellent sites? Because when I first started this blog, way back in 2005(!) and later when we moved to Maine, I wanted to try to keep the two parts of my life separate, the political beliefs (which, if you've ever read me, you know tend to lean to the left) and the public service (where many of my brethren tend to lean to the right... sometimes, the very far right).

But, you know, looking back over the years, I can see where bits and pieces managed to sneak in between the diatribes and rants. I can see where the frustration has come in (especially when writing about cops), but I can also see where some little bits of hope have filtered in too.

If I post on any calls -- fire or EMS -- I will tell you a few things right now:

• ALL names, details, locations, etc, have been changed (I live in a very small community, where it would be too easy to ID a victim, and I don't want to run afoul of HIPAA); most will be based on things I dealt with years ago, in other states.
• Any police calls involving me will, by definition, have occurred prior to 1989, when I left the field.
• Most of the time, I'll be discussing other peoples' calls, or the administrative/political impact of decisions affecting the emergency services world.
• Who knows, I might even go back to some of my excruciatingly long posts on terrorism, the TSA, response, public safety, preparedness, or the legal system.

Anyway, if the new posts are popular, thank Captain Morse. If they suck, blame me.