On why you should not come to me for medical advice

Right now I am feeling a little like the writers at Grey's Anatomy must have been feeling when they wrote the script for this Thursday's episode. I say this because I am having little trouble getting started. I am having some problems organizing my thoughts. This might be more because of the kids running around and the dog howling than true writer's block --especially since I do know what I want to say. Just having some trouble getting it out.

I am certain that if I were a more gifted writer I could tie it all together in some witty and bright way but alas. . .( And no, I am not tossing out a baited hook. Really, I'm not.)

So, anyway, I noticed in the preview for next week's Grey's it looks like it is going to be a quarantine episode.
The quarantine episode? You ask?
The quarantine episode is the cliche episode of medical dramas.
All the medical dramas do at least one--ER, House-- and it is always so, so predictable.

It seems that the writer's pull out the quarantine episode when they have reached a point in the story line that has left them stuck or for whatever reason they have to get all the characters trapped together. However, whatever; it is a weak device and not very original.

And I always imagine the writers of the shows as sitting all Dorthy Parkeresque Algonquin Round Table-like hashing out banal ideas and everyone going-- no,no, no that won't work. And then from the quiet corner comes the "Well, hey, how about this? We could do a quarantine situation. . . "

I remember once in one of my undergrad lit classes it being said that Shakespeare has already written all the original plots and everything modern is just that-- a modern twist on an old plot. Now I don't know about that but I do know that the quarantine is the staple of all medical dramas on TV and that the writers parade it out when they've got no where else to go. Even still, who doesn't love the thrill of a good Hazmat/CDC situation? And usually they reveal some cool new virus or bacteria that I have never heard of and has disgusting, dire and creepy symptoms. So for the sake of some delicious new dramatized disease being revealed I will watch. I mean, that is assuming I can stay up for it this week like I was able to last week.

And that is the long winding road that brings me to what I really wanted to talk about: last week's episode.
Did you see it?
It totally had me peaking out from behind my hands.
You know, that scene? The one where Calli and Christina slash open the marathon runner's legs sans anesthesia?
Freaked. My. Ass. Out.
And after my OHMYGOD scream I asked why the hell they did that and more importantly, how can I avoid having that happen to me?
Unfortunately, they skipped right over the medical tutorial and went straight to the smoochy kissy kiss stuff.
Do these people not understand that I watch these sorts of shows (House, ER, Grey's et all) for the obscure medical information they provide?
How else I am I to sound knowledgeable at the Doctor's?
Or, when friends ask my medical opinion on stuff-- just like someone did on Saturday night about what happened to that runner.

Well, I finally remembered yesterday to Google about it. And apparently I wasn't the only runner slightly wigged out by that scene. Amby Burfoot had already blogged about the same thing on his Runner's World blog. Some fine Md's came along to comment that the marathoner's glossed over condition was probably this.

And, so it would seem, that probably isn't something I am going to have to worry too much about. In fact, I should probably focus more on what is going to happen when my tightly wound Achilles finally pops.