We know the fire awaits unbelievers….
…all of the sinners the same.
Unbelievers–Vampire Weekend–2013
Just in time for Halloween, and it’s a bloody mess! The hot shot, Jobsian (think Apple, not Biblical) CEO with the start up venture in California was going to change the way we lab rats did your blood work. No more tourniquets and making fists. No more scary needles and “just one more tube, dear.” She was going to do all your blood work with a little pin prick on the tip of your finger. She had big national pharmacy chains linking up as blood-drawing partners. She had Wall Street falling all over her. She was going to make the world a kinder, gentler, place.
Now, faster than you can say “Enron”, we read about questionable lab practices and not quite right federal inspections. And let me tell you, a few of my pathologist buddies are gloating! But every medical lab has been through those inspections, and we know how capricious and arbitrary the inspectors can be. By which I mean if they find a problem in MY lab, the inspector is capricious and arbitrary. If the problem is with YOUR lab, oh well.
But I wish Ms Entrepreneur and her company well. Change is good. And lots of things have gotten small. You can go to Lending Club and make teeny tiny consumer loans. You can go to PredictIt and make teeny tiny political bets. So why not drive to the drug store and give a teeny tiny drop of blood for your lab work? And maybe someday, replace the drop of blood with a teeny tiny microchip circulating in your blood stream. The chip will send out signals with all your blood counts and chemistries. Drive under the Devon I-Pass Transponder on the Tri-State after the office party and the overhead electronic sign will flash to the world “Driver of Brown Ford Fiesta in the far left lane is anemic. And he has a blood alcohol of .18. Keep your distance!” Gives a whole new meaning to Amber Alerts.
Size IS important, but it is not about big or small, it is about getting it right. Barb and I reviewed the engineering drawings on the new house with our architect the other night, and came across the “impervious surface” limit. The building code says only a certain percentage of the lot can be covered by substances such as asphalt, concrete and roofing. Well, we aced it! One more paving stone on the patio, or one extra inch on the driveway would have set us over the limit and sent alarm bells ringing. But we are perfect. I don’t know if the architect is very, very good, or if we just got lucky! It is a good thing that Barb and I weren’t planning on putting in any playground equipment with an impervious safety mat in the backyard. Got to hope current and future grandkids won’t miss a swing set!
Have a happy and safe Halloween. And remember to read/comment/subscribe. Otherwise the vampires will suck your blood.
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photo credit: Carlee Huttle as Vixen in Dracula via photopin (license)
Just Like Starting Over 