Documentaries, ESPN Classic, Health Care Systems, and Running Murphy (How are these things all related?)

It's Saturday evening and I am watching Hoop Dreams. I've seen parts of it before but never sat down to watch the whole thing. The movie is from 1994. It's hard to believe it's 17 years old. (For some reason, I had to use the calculator feature to confirm this was correct. It just didn't seem right.) It came out when I was 17--and yes, I used the calculator to confirm this as well. (I have a PhD minor in stats but don't do math in my head.) Now I am feeling old...I remember the discussion of Hoop Dreams when it first came out. I happened to find it on ESPN Classic, which is one of my favorite channels. If you know me, you probably know that Hoop Dreams is right up my alley. I like sports stories, and I love documentaries. Hoop Dreams is well-done, although maybe a bit long.

Lately, I have been into the 30 for 30 series on ESPN. If you know why it's called 30 for 30, please let me know. I really can't figure it out. I think there are 30--but 30 for 30???? Is it because it's over the last 30 years? The series documents sports stories with a human side. One of my favorites is on Marcus Dupree--a football player who had a lot of potential but never really made it. I've also watched one on the friendship between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. There's a great one on Vlade Divac and the split up of Yugoslavia. I saw one on Terry Fox, a Canadian who tried to run across the country after losing a leg to cancer. They are really well-done. I recommend them even if you aren't really into sports. I know you can order a box set of the DVDs at the website. If you are into buying DVDs, which I am not, it would be a good purchase.


I have decided I need to indulge my love of documentaries this summer. I talk all the time about how I don't know what to do with myself when I am not working 60 hours a week. I need to figure out what I enjoy doing...sometimes I think I really don't know. Well, I enjoy watching documentaries. Netflix has a great selection so I need to get on that. Today I watched a Frontline documentary called Sick Around the World. It compares the US health system to those in Great Britain, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, and Switzerland. (Is this really what I consider to be fun? Yes, I think so.)


Anyway, I learned quite a bit. For instance, Switzerland didn't allow women to vote until 1971. This really shocked me. For some reason, I thought Switzerland was on the cutting edge of gender equality. They also refuse to join the European Union, which I don't think I knew. Of course, this isn't really about their health care system--just a side note. I did learn that in Japan it costs about $4.50 (US dollars) to have a doctor stitch up a small wound. And that no one in Germany or Japan has ever gone broke from medical bills. Interestingly, Taiwan went from a poor to rich country in about 20 years. They have to revamp their health care system and did so based on research they did regarding the systems of other countries. They tried to take the best aspects of other countries' health care systems. Furthermore, the US ranks 37th in health care quality--according to this documentary. I would like to know exactly how this was measured. In general, health care in the countries discussed is perceived more positively by its residents than we perceive our health care system. Of course, our health care system is among the most expensive.

The documentary also discussed the role of gatekeepers, or individuals who decide if you should go to a specialist. I found this interesting because typically I must go to a gatekeeper (or my primary physician) who can refer me to a specialist. However, my recent two visits to Mayo Clinic in Rochester were not the result of a referral. Apparently, you can just call Mayo and get an appointment--which is covered by my insurance. I don't understand that, but I might not have ended up at Mayo if that were not the case.

My latest visit to Mayo was on Thursday. In short, it involved a catheterization that made me think I was peeing razor blades for two days, a long boring test that required me to stare at the ceiling for an hour and a half, and no real conclusive test results. The doctor isn't really sure what is causing my kidney pain. They recommend another test that would see if I have a reflux issue (sort of like acid reflux but with urine instead). So I don't know what to think....and I don't feel like thinking about it right now, especially since I'm not hurting too much today.

I should add that I am impressed with Mayo in Rochester and would recommend it. The facility itself is beautiful. It's clean. The place is huge, so I have no idea how they keep it so clean. Everything is well-organized. Employees are courteous. Doctors have good bedside manner. Bill didn't like that we had to pay to park, but that's about the only complaint. My doctor was running late, but I guess that's to be expected for a late afternoon appointment. Fortunately, they have wireless internet. I can tell there is a focus on "customer service" at Mayo. They make an effort to call patients Mr. or Mrs., for instance. I understand that this is an effort to show respect to patients, although personally I hate it. I don't mean to be nit-picky, but you can call me Elaine or Dr. Eshbaugh, not Mrs. Eshbaugh. Mrs. Eshbaugh implies that there is a Mr. Eshbaugh married to me, which there isn't. I am perfectly fine being called by my first name, but I guess my thought is that if you are going to call me bv a title, it should be the correct title. Even Ms. would be better than Mrs.

In other news, Murphy and I went for a run today. I left my GPS at home, so I'm not sure exactly how far we went, but I would guess about 5 miles. Maybe a little more. I felt good. I did have a lot of caffeine before I went, and I think that helps--although I'm not sure how much of that effect is physical versus mental. I could tell Murphy was a bit tired by the end of the run. It was only about 70 degrees, and he wasn't panting, but I just haven't had him out running much lately. I need to get him out more. He's a high energy dog who needs to run off some of that anxiousness. The better he sleeps at night, the better we sleep at night.

I was proud of him today because another dog on the trail went nuts when he saw Murphy. Murphy just kept running--didn't even look at the dog. It's funny because sometimes he can be so reactive, but when he's running with me, he's so focused. It's actually when he is the most well-behaved. My goal is to get him running more this summer, even if that means I have to go early morning or late evening when it's not as hot. (Dogs don't sweat, so I am careful about him overheating when we run.) A couple of years ago, I had an odd incident with a strange guy out on our trails, so it's good to have Murphy along. He's only 30 pounds, but in general no one really messes with you when you've got a dog with you, even if he's not a big dog.