do you have it?

Part of me wants to throw on a yellow mask and walk around the grocery store with an I **heart** Mexico shirt on. Want a terrific way to check if you have Swine Flu?

Click here.

I just might be Swine Flu's biggest fan!

I will share this little secret with you however..... hospitals are not the places you should be afraid of. In my Pediatric Emergency Dept we have the best (with or without swine flu) housekeeping staff in the history of environmental services worldwide........ you can rest assure that when you child is placed in a room with us...... every surface including the floor is not only damn clean, it's sterile. I see them in action hundreds of times per day.

You can also rest in the comfort that every thermometer, every pulse ox, every blood pressure cuff and every single pair of hands has been wiped down twice with cavi wipes (sterilizing wipes that we have) before it ever touches your kid.

I personally somehow got into the habit of washing my hands before I come into your room, when I enter your room, then I use Purell, gloves, after I touch you I wash my hands inside and outside of the room. You can call me OCD but know that every nurse, resident and physician I work with..... does the exact same thing. My stethoscope won't touch your child until I have cleaned it with alcohol 2 times.

Can you say the same thing about your grocery cart? About the person who hands you money? Who hands you your coffee? Who opens the door before you do?

Want to be somewhere safe? Hospital. Trust me on that. I won't be diagnosed with swine flu. Just watch.

In other earth shattering news I have my Marching orders and am on a light week before we begin the 28 week build to Clearwater. Being part of the QT2 Team is really nice so far. I like the way coach Jessee presents things, he is a phone talker and he's very prompt.

QT2 has their own online training log designed by Jessee I believe. It's very straightforward. He calls your ATP your histogram. I know exactly what the plan is as it unfolds.

While I secretly wanted to be thrown down the throat of a 20 hour training week, my first week holds a pretty modest 13 hours. I am being sent back to the gym for four weeks of weight training. First exercise..... hack squat.

Haven't done a hack squat in about 10 years. This should be fun. The first day use no weights...... what? The girl with the muscles is going to head to the gym and lift with nothing on the machine.

Talk about ego. But I understand the why and I will do as I am told (see.... just you wait to see how good of a student I am!).

Over the winter I went back to one of my old gyms.... but I have to tell you that I can not go back there for the summer. Something about guys lifting while wearing flannel shirts and winter hats and people walking on treadmills with grades so high they have to hold on so tight or else they would fall off.

If I am going to walk uphill I am going to do it outside. Not hanging onto a dreadmill for dear life while staring at the pages of People. No thanks. Oh and while wearing clothing that went out with the eighties.

For the time I am in the weight room I will be back training over at RIT, where they have an amazing amazing amazing gym..... and believe it or not..... the kiddos who work out there are there to work out. I know!!! Isn't that cool?

In all honesty I was beginning to feel behind in things, but I have to realize that not only am I not behind..... the race I care about in November. Many of athletes will be hitting their peak for Ironman Lake Placid and I am very sure at that point I will feel behind.

But in November when I am ready to rip off this race... they'll be in their off-season.

Ebb and flow. I have mine coming and I have a boatload of work to do between now and then. Like a bike test on Saturday.

And oh yes, there is bad news on coffee. Very bad news. Which we will talk about next week. Until then I will be heading to the barista for my fourth Venti refill of Pike Place. Maybe I will get this one for free!