This Week at Mobile Tech Manor #35: Don’t Judge a Book By Its Cover
It’s my favorite time of the week once again, when I get to share the goings on at Mobile Tech Manor with you. Lots of gear going back to where it came from and expectations of new gear on the way. I learned a valuable lesson about how painful it is to pre-judge someone that shook me to my core. Come on in and I’ll share the week with you.
Gear going back/ new gear coming
The time has come to get some evaluation gear back to its rightful owners and I spent a fair bit of time getting it ready. The ginormous Lenovo w700ds with the two screens is going back to Lenovo with my thanks for giving me a chance to try it out. It’s the biggest laptop I’ve ever seen and used and it’s hard to believe it’s actually a notebook.
I’m also getting ready to return the Sony VAIO P to Dynamism. This one is hard to give up as it’s been so very useful. It’s the easiest notebook to carry around and still be fully functional for almost every purpose and it will be missed. They need it back, though, so back it’s going.
A while back I recounted my intention to revive the old HP tc1100 hybrid Tablet PC and use it in place of a netbook. I immediately ran into some snags doing that as both batteries I own are old and don’t hold a charge very well. The short periods I could use the tc1100 were enjoyable (and productive) enough that this week I broke down and ordered a new battery for it. It only arrived yesterday but it’s clear that the tc1100 will easily perform everything a netbook does and so much more.
Using the tc1100 in slate mode is wonderful and while I often wish it had a touchscreen in addition to the active digitizer (requiring the special pen), it’s such a joy to use. I’ll use it for a while and see if I think it’s worthwhile to get a second battery for extended use away from an outlet. The third-party batteries are at least $100 so I want to make sure. It’s cheaper than a new netbook, though, since I already owned the tc1100.
The folks at Dynamism have arranged with Viliv to get one of the new S5 Premium UMPCs sent to me for evaluation and I am really looking forward to its arrival. The small form coupled with the capability of a complete PC have me excited thinking about giving it a try. I have missed the old Sony U-50 and I really think the S5 can be just as useful as the Sony was for so long. I can’t wait for the S5 to get here.
Soul-searching self-analysis
I did far too much self-analyzing this week due to a number of things that happened. Self-analysis is not necessarily a bad thing, but it sure eats up a lot of time. The week was too busy to spend much time writing the short stories I have begun and my evaluation of the tools I mentioned last week stagnated as a result. I enjoy working on these stories so I need to get more free time to do so.
This week I took my 86 year-old Mom to the doctor for what should have been a simple visit to get blood drawn for testing, but turned out to be anything but simple. It exposed me first-hand to how careful the elderly must be in choosing their medical providers because there are some out there willing to exploit them for every dollar they can get.
My Mom had visited her doctor just a couple of weeks ago for a minor ailment. She likes this guy, a new doctor, as her previous medico had retired. The new doctor had thoroughly examined her during that visit and told her to come back in a few weeks for the blood work so he could evaluate the medication she is currently taking.
We spent several hours at his clinic this week, something that’s not easy for someone as old as my Mom. It was apparent to me that no one in this clinic had any idea that we were just there for simple blood work and I admit I got pretty angry at these folks. Mom ended up being seen by two different doctors that day when all she needed (according to them) was the blood drawn. It was clear to me that they have decided that she is a gold mine as she has excellent medical insurance and, as is typical with the elderly, she goes along with everything they suggest.
I let the doctor have an earful as he tried to sell her an expensive and invasive procedure that addresses a condition she’s already being successfully treated for with simple medication. I listened to him in disbelief that he would even suggest something unnecessary to someone as old as my Mom. I let him know that, too. It’s obvious that he’s after the insurance billing, which I find reprehensible. I hope I can get my Mom to find another doctor, but she’s so set in her ways and she likes this guy. Maybe I can get him to just treat her as needed instead of trying to sell her treatment she doesn’t need. It angers me just thinking about this and I’ll bet this is a pretty common situation with the elderly.
Something else happened this week which has triggered a lot of thinking about how I view people. You’ve probably seen the video of Susan Boyle’s performance on “Britain’s Got Talent” by now, as it’s been all over the web. I first saw the video early in the week before it got so widespread and it has affected me profoundly.
If you haven’t watched the video, go right now and watch Ms. Boyle’s performance. It is absolutely enchanting, on so many levels. Watch the entire video to get the full impact of her performance. If you’ve already seen it, go ahead and watch it again. I must have watched it 10 times over the week and it’s brought tears to my eyes every single time. Part of the reason it affects me is simply how beautiful Ms. Boyle sings. That alone makes this a fantastic experience but after a lot of soul-searching I realized the real reason why it affects me so.
It’s obvious that the audience and judges’ reaction to her performance is due to surprise as well as how great it is. Ms. Boyle is a 47 year-old “dowdy” woman, certainly not one of the beautiful people as it turns out we expect. It’s clear that no one at her performance believed she would sing well based on her looks. My realization was that I was the same way. I have always taken care to not pre-judge folks based on the way they look but I realized I do indeed do that. Like the millions who have watched her performance I, too, was stunned that someone “less than beautiful” could sing a song so wonderfully. It caused a lot of soul-searching on my part and I’m going to try to be better at not judging the book by its cover.
I wish Ms. Boyle all the best in her desired career and think it’s great she’s pursuing her dream. I’m confident that based on her talent alone she will achieve her dream of being a professional singer and I wish her well. I would not be surprised to see her appear on “American Idol” doing a paid performance, given Simon Cowell’s involvement in both shows. Ms. Boyle, to quote one of the judges in the video, I, too, found it a “complete privilege” to have experienced your performance.
E-books of the week
This week I started off reading “The Regulators” by Stephen King. It’s well-written, as are all of King’s books, but I didn’t like this story as well as most of them. I couldn’t put my finger on exactly why I didn’t care for it much but it left me wanting more.
I then jumped into “Double Homicide” by Faye and Jonathan Kellerman. The book is two novellas, one written by each of the duo, and I quite liked it. They are both great writers with their own style and I thoroughly enjoyed both of them.
Wrap-up
That’s my week, sorry it got off on a personal tangent but it was a big part of my week so I share that, too. I have a big gadget week coming up so until then…C-YA.
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While I’d be hesitant to tell anyone who went through probably the most rigorous education a professional can go through (for good reason, there is no inherent “predisposition” or “talent” for knowing medicine and the average person knows little at best) what was “necessary” or not….sometimes dealing with hospitals can be frustrating. But it sounds like a lot of what you were frustrated about quite possibly were factors that a doctor isn’t really responsible for (ie – the waiting and general confusion). But at this point, I hope your mother does decide to switch doctors, because although we like to think the absolute best care is afforded to all patients of all doctors, they are human too. And are just as capable of subconsciously being frustrated and thus, not exactly thrilled to go above and beyond for patients who they see as questioning the core ethics of their practice.
Kind of creates a “Why bother, if someone has already pegged me a certain way” scenario.
I hear what you’re saying but frustration wasn’t the primary motivator for what I wrote. During this visit this doctor tried to talk my mother into having a nuclear stress test, something I’ve experienced personally and it’s a trying experience. You have to bear in mind that my Mom is 86 years old, in good health, able to live alone and take care of herself.
That said, it’s obvious to me, biased though I may be, that she doesn’t need these invasive tests and IV treatments that this doc was pitching to her. That’s the reason for writing what I did. I’m not trying to second-guess the doctor, I’m just suggesting that these expensive procedures are not something that an 86 year-old person should be subjected to just to be sure they really are OK. At that advanced age shouldn’t the concentration be on simply treating ailments that crop up, not preventing new ones?
Off my soapbox now.
James the flip side of that is the doctors nearly killing you with neglect.
In my case something bad happened to me Dec 18 and I kept trying to convince the doctors something had gone wrong with my heart. Heck they even sent me to a pulmonologist(!) to get me off their cardiologist backs.
Eventually they finally decided to do the stressed/unstressed nuclear camera series on my heart and discovered I was days away from death (again). In fact the stressed test just about left me for dead all by itself (sometimes those wavers saying the test could kill you aren’t just routine). I wound up getting another emergency steent procedure. Apparently one more steent and I’ll have the complete Tony Stark anniversary collection from Boston Medical. :-)
If the doc is worried about CAD from plaque build up the non-invasive check is an Electron Beam Tomography. This procedure is completely non-invasive and measures the amount of calcium build up that is the pre-cursor to cholesterol plating onto the artery walls. It’s $395 here in Seattle.
If they are worried about function (flows n’ valves) then there is this new turbo charger for the echocardiogram where they inject nano sized bubbles into your blood. The bubbles ring when struck by the ultrasonic waves and give almost nuclear camera level resolution on heart function without the dangerous stress test.
You can also ask Mr. Hot Shot if his clinic has a Rad-57. This device uses multi-spectrum analysis from a clip-on finger measuring head. It’s completely non-invasive and gives a rapid 1 minute analysis for several issues affecting older patients and their cardiovascular system. Issues that often get missed because the doctors are reluctant to battle with insurance companies to perform the blood tests. Now they can check with no blood sample required. Star Trek baby!
James, I agree with you objecting to the test based on whether its worth the strain on your mother (except that nuclear tests are non-invasive), but not about the cost.
I work in the nuclear medicine industry and, yes, radiopharmaceuticals and the equipment involved cost a lot money. However, these types of tests are also the only things that can analyze organ function in real time, biologic function rather than anatomic structure. You mention focusing on treating ailments as they crop up, but NM can detect ailments before symptoms appear, like detecting cancerous cells before they form tumors. It’s not about preventing new problems, but detecting existing problems before they manifest.
They can also determine if treatment is working as it is supposed to. Outwardly, it appears your mother’s treatment is working, but again, that only looks at symptoms. From the outside, you can’t tell if a treatment is a cure or a patch. For a person of age, I cannot dispute your logic that a patch is fine, but doctors are obligated to try to cure.
Finally, there is the consideration of relying on patients with good insurance to pay for expensive machines that can help all patients. Maybe your mother’s doctor is just a greedy jackass. I don’t know. But I do know that NM equipment is expensive, and doctors are struggling to pay for them. So while running your mother through myocardial perfusion imaging may not help her much, it would help them keep that diagnostic equipment and justify future investments, which would help more patients.
Obviously, I’m biased toward the advancement of nuclear medicine, but even if your doctor was primarily after your mother’s insurance money, the benefits of performing the test are not frivolous.
The Susan Boyle issue is an interesting one in many ways. I was shocked that there was some very blunt conversation from the judges about how everyone expected her to fail and such. Yet I admire Susan, because she seems very practical about what happened – that she was judged on her looks and found wanting until she sang.
Begs the question – would the audience have jumped spontaneously to their feet and applauded, and would the judges have been so effusive in their praise if a gorgeous, young thing had sang like that?
Susan Boyle showed that many people judge by looks and not by who they are.
A good lesson for the world…
James: I had heard about Susan Boyle’s performance but wouldn’t have bothered to search it out until you provided the link. On your strong recommendation I clicked through, and I agree entirely – she’s just remarkable. How thrilling for her, and no doubt life-changing. I watched America’s Got Talent (corny, but how amazing to see just how talented some of these people are!) last summer and thought that as the competition progressed that the contestants seemed to be getting some coaching on grooming and presentation, so it will be interesting to see if that’s the case here as well. I’m sure we’ll be hearing more about Susan.
A weekly must read. The tech goodies are great but Double Homicide” by Faye and Jonathan Kellerman, is a plus. This is the 2nd or 3rd time I have followed book suggestions from you. No bad ones to report.
Mike
I see what you are saying about the severity of tests. It is hard to have a person dear to your heart in an advanced age doing highly stressful tests, especially when they seem to be making out perfectly fine at the moment.
It is a shame that the healthcare and hospital industry has evolved the way it has, like Sumocat mentioned. To where sometimes people are financially ‘leaned upon’ to help the greater good, even if it mean they could end up going through more than they should really have to (financially, emotionally, physically). But such is the case with many aspects of industry I suppose.
James,
I wanted to say that EVERYTHING you said about the Susan Boyle situation could have come straight out of my mouth. The whole thing is just INCREDIBLE. I see that it really is going two ways. First, I am absolutely elated as to what is going to happen to this woman regardless of the outcome of this show. It is just fantastic. I have watched her performance numerous times and I am sure will watch it many times again. The whole thing is just great.
Now, there is still the other facet. What happened on that show will be debated aggressively for some time. There is whys and why nots on everything that happened. Why was she laughed at? She was not there for a comedy routine? Agreed. The physical appearance obviously comes into play. Did the panel over react so they came off looking great? Did the audience over react because they felt like inhumane “wankers” as they say in the UK? These are all good and debatable issues.
In closing, I care about one thing now, I want Susan Boyle to benefit the best she can ( and it is only obvious she will ), I wish her all the luck in the world, and I must say, her appearance will undoubtedly have an effect on many people for some time to come.It certainly did me.
Anyone who doesnt get emotional watching that does surprise me though. LOL. It is definitely FEEL GOOD TV and lord news we all can stand some good “Feelin Good” these days.
Mini Boyle Rant Over
Ron P.
What the Susan Boyle thing expressed to me was how shallow we’ve become, especially as regards ‘entertainment’ and it really exposed the judges and audience for that.
BTW, she lives 10 miles up the road from me. Anyone want an autograph? ;-)
Gavin,
Should you ever run into her, I will take you up on that offer, not that she will be out watering the heather anytime soon!!! ( Does heather get watered?)
But should the bizarre coincidence ever possibly happen, my Mom would be ecstatic, should that offer be serious. Mothers Day is coming up over here and when they get to be in the Mid 70s, neat gifts are few and far between.
Figured I would cover myself just in case it really did happen!! My luck on JK OnTheRun has been pretty great, so I always cover my bases!!
And whats really wild, is my Mom is also named Ron, can you believe that!!!! LOL Didn’t think so. But if you can remeember Kevins new Brides name, Barbara, you’ll be spot on.
LOL,
Ron