A Day (Or Night) In the Life Of A Volunteer Paramedic (Part 2): Night Shift At the Firehouse

It's starting to feel like summer now. It's hot and humid, it sometimes rains, there's been some spectacular thunderstorms. And the days are getting longer. On June 21st it will officially be summer...and I've been hoping spring weather would have lasted longer. I'm already wishing there was an outside faucet and hose at my apartment building...

Garden hose substitute

It takes approximately four gallons to water all my plants every hot morning when it has not rained. Since there isn't a faucet and hose,  I have to haul all that water to the patio from an inside faucet. I use a $2, two gallon bucket from Home Depot and fill it up in the bathtub because the other faucets are two slow and the smaller watering can is gentler on the plants. It's a gamble each time to see if I can get it through the living room to the back patio without spilling. My loving 11mo. Border Collie puppy tends to accidentally get in the way causing a spill on the carpet... ::sigh::

I think I have Fiona's full attention here...

Once I get my bucket to the patio, I fill my 1/2 gallon watering can from the bucket and water the plants. Some pots need more water than others due to the type of plant or the location of the pot. As you can see in the picture below, there are quite a few pots (and you can't even see half of them)!

The garden as viewed from the sidewalk...although you can't see all the pots since they're hidden behind the tall grass.

Some days I have to water a couple times a day due to the weather. Makes me grateful that the days of bucket brigades in the fire service are mostly just history in the US. My blue plastic bucket holds so little compared to the hundreds of gallons that a fire engine carries.

Think about it. Both of the fire engines at my station carry 750 gallons of water. It takes a lot more than 750 gallons of water to put out your average healthy, well-established house fire. And without being connected to a hydrant, the pump can run out of water in a few minutes give or take. Which should explain why parking your car in front of a fire hydrant is a really dumb idea, and why fire departments have tanker trucks (especially in rural areas) and the firefighter driving the engine learned how to "draft" (pump water from a pool, pond, creek or other water source).

Apparatus checks at the beginning of the shift.

So what happens on a typical duty shift at the fire station? Well, the station I volunteer at has six duty crews, which means that the crew I'm assigned to, Crew 4, has duty every six days. The station is staffed during the day by career firefighters, and at night by volunteers. Shift change is 6pm, or 1800 hours. We all arrive as close to that time as possible with our work and class schedules. Upon arrival, we usually meet in the watch office for crew assignments and a quick rundown for the planned evening activities (meetings, training, etc.). Then we head out to do a truck and equipment check before heading out for dinner or training--the two are interchangeable depending upon the season and type of training.

View of Goose Creek just below the Rt. 7 bridge. The water is about knee deep in this picture, and during the incident mentioned above, the patient was located on the large flat rock visible in the center of the creek. 

A couple shifts ago, we were dispatched to assist the medic unit with a reported unconscious person who was reported to have been in the water but was now out of the water. Turns out that some guys were fishing in the creek and one of them had a medical emergency and went down in the water. He was conscious again and had been assisted to a sitting position on the flat rock in the middle of the creek you can see in the picture above. We helped get him out of the water, across the creek and into the ambulance.

I discovered that the bumper line on the engine is a comfortable spot to read... and it was a really engaging book. One of the other guys on my crew took this picture after he came around the engine and jumped because he didn't realize I was sitting there perfectly still. 

I don't bring my dog to the station very often. The vet clinic I take her to is right around the corner from one of the stations, so we occasionally stop by and take advantage of photo opportunities. She's very photogenic if you're holding one of her favorite toys. Border Collie concentration powers at work.

Come on, she's adorable, isn't she?

Fiona is making the engine look good. See? She can put both ears up--if she wants to.

Speaking of which, I have to get on to my next project. Finish one and another one turns up... Fiona wants to go outside. Again. 

Elfin Thyme, Shiny Objects, and Helicopters

Small things, shiny objects and flying things all tend to fascinate people. Who wouldn't look at a very small plant and smile, wonder how the Hope Diamond could be real and take every opportunity to watch a helicopter? I do.

Speaking of shiny objects, I had the opportunity to visit the gems and minerals exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History last Wednesday. The photo below is of the Hope Diamond. It's about the size of a walnut, and if you view it from the right angle it's a spectacular blue, from other angles it usually looks charcoal gray. And it's apparently a priceless bit of rock. Isn't is wonderful that anyone who visits the museum can go see this rare bit of God's beautiful creation for free?

The Hope Diamond on display at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.

While I was there, I also visited the butterfly pavilion on the 2nd floor. You do have to pay admission, but I thought it was worth it. All those beautiful butterflies and moths from all around the world. Wow! I'm still in awe of the wonders of creation and the God who made them all. I think I need to add a butterfly bush to my plant collection, too bad I didn't think of that when I stopped by Southern States my last Region A medic shift.

In my wanderings while playing Region A medic last Saturday afternoon, I stopped by the farmers market in Purcellville to pick up fresh local vegetables. One of the booths at the market was Loudoun County Master Gardener's. The ladies and I ended up talking for a good 15 minutes about the fun and challenges of growing things in Loudoun. I've been having trouble getting rid of mealybugs on my plants, so we naturally got started talking about natural pest deterrents. The best solution to my problem seems to be regular applications of insecticidal soap. But did you know that planting certain things together can help with other pests?

For example, planting marigolds tends to repel rabbits. And nematodes. And marigolds are pretty. I need to plant some. Growing citronella helps to reduce the mosquito population on the patio. One of the plants I picked up and planted over the weekend is a beautiful little citronella plant. 

Citronella plant in the foreground.

While I was in the process of planting stuff, three little praying mantises turned up. They were about the diameter of a 20ga IV catheter and maybe 1in. long. I hope they stay and eat all the bad bugs.

I must also be obsessed with helicopters. I really enjoy calls where we get to fly patients only because I get to watch the helicopter land and take off. Here's this post's helicopter picture.

This the only double flyout I have run to date. Aircare 1 and Fairfax County PD transported the two patients from a rollover accident in May.

Until next time...