The Hickory Nuts

Tonight I did something I never, ever do. I went.... sit down my friends, you won't believe your eyes.... I went out!. Take a deep breath, I know, I know. Don't worry I have not lost my mind here in taper land. This does have something to do with my last post.

I spend just one night a week with some amazing people in the Pediatric ED. They are the other reason I keep my stint there. We have been in the most amazing, horrifying, exhilarating scenarios together.

I have been on the helipad (where we take the kids off a Mercy Flight) during a hot landing, in which I wasn't sure we'd make it. A hot landing is when they don't stop the propellers on the helicopter, because another one is hanging above waiting to unload.

Ever see that episode of ER where Romano's arm gets cut off..... exactly.

But during these moments when we are running down the runway, someone is bagging an intubated child, in those moments of oh my god the shit is hitting the fan
..... we've got each other's back. I work with an amazing group of people.

So tonight for the first tme ever, I joined them for a drink at the local "Hospital Bar" the Distillery. I worked a little 8-midnight shift and thought, you know it is about time I sit down with my work friends and just spend time.

So I did!

So there we were, pediatric emergency nurses, residents, fellows, and the attending.... just gathered around a table and spending time with one another.

I used to swim on a swim team as a kid, at a place called Hickory Hill. Our swim team was called the Hickory Nuts. Throughout my life when I find a group of people who mean something to me, I nickname them the Hickory Nuts. Just to myself. Just a reminder of their importance in my circle of life.

So tonight I salute you, the Hickory Nuts. For all you do, all that you are, and especially for always having my back!

:-) Mary Eggers

Alter Ego

Surprisingly, many people don't realize that one night a week, for 8 hours I am a Pediatric Emergency Room Nurse, and yes, that's an RN. I have been a nurse for 10 years and I have worked the past 6 in pediatrics. While I love my teaching, business, etc, I stay at the University of Rochester Medical Center (Strong Memorial Hospital) because I love my work with children. And I think it is an important way to give back.

There is a lot of misconception about nurses, doctors and the Emergency Dept in general, so as I am unable to sleep on Tuesdays from 9-1 as I usually do.... since the entire neighborhood is out mowing their lawn... I thought I would smash a few myths for you.

First, it is important for you to know that it is my job to remain the calmest person in the room. It's why you will never see me panic when you rush to our front desk screaming in a panic yourself, about the broken nail that your child has.

It is not that we don't care. Trust me when I say that we have seen it all.

I have met the arms of children before I have met them. Meaning, arm is not attached to the body.

I have delivered babies in bathrooms.

I will assure you that in most cases, puking is not am emergency. Here is a little parental lesson...... every single child in this world will puke. Yes, there is an issue of dehydration. Those children we need to see. But when your little Johnny shows up at our door snacking on Doritos after a night of "vomiting"..... my heart rate is never going to elevate.

You may not specify one of our attending doctors as your primary care physician.

When you tell me you "want the doctor to start your child's IV"... know that I am laughing. Know that the doctor's job is to think, and my job is to get the most impossible IV in the most impossible vein..... and I am good at it. So do yourself a favor, always let a nurse start your IV. (Disclaimer.... sometimes you can get lucky.)

The reason we hold down your flailing child for an IV is so we don't hurt them or us. We are happy they are flailing..... it is the 2 year olds who allow us to poke them that we worry about. Fighting is a good sign.

Our doctors and nurses, as awesome as they are... can not magically cure a virus.

When you see nurses sitting down and charting, we are not being lazy. It is from idiot people in the community who sure the medical profession for stupid things. Those stupid lawsuits cause New York State to mandate every pee, drink and breath be documented. Do that is not my fault and not my rule.

When I walk into your room and you begin to complain to me that you and Johnny have been waiting for "X hours" please understand that I might have just come from a room where a child has died.

When your child is in an accident and in our trauma bay, know how hard we are working.

I can juggle 10 patients, I can get the difficult IV, I can function in the trauma bay with calm and ease. I have held the hand of a dying frightened child more times than I ever care to share. Know that when a child dies, I cry. We take it very personally. Not for our "stats" but because to us the lives of children are our highest priority. Know that when a child dies it never, ever leaves us. EVER.

Thanks for stopping by.

:-) Mary Eggers

The World Tour Kicks Off!

My little tour of the East Coast the the world begins this week in Panama City Beach for the Gulf Coast 1/2 Ironman. Two weeks later the tour takes me to the Train-This Ironman Lake Placid Training Camp, and then two weeks after that I head to Eagleman 70.3! Whew!

Yes folks it is that time of year again. Time to kick start triathlon season! It has been a long winter but we are all ready.

And I am ready. I am ready to put some demons behind me. I am eager to tap the well, push the envelope, come unhinged and apart at the seams. Find that new level of pain, the performance elevating gutsy great race that I know is here within me somewhere.

Thank you for coming along for the ride! I shall update when I return!

:-) Mary Eggers

To Eagleman I Go!

Well the Eagleman versus Montana saga has finally come to an end. I was offered a spot in the Level II training but with some logistics of family... I had to decline. Rumor has it that they are going to extend to certification time frame. Let's hope so.

So I will join fellow Train-This'ers Kevin, Kitima, Bill, Sharon and Jay as we all head to Maryland for the June 10th race. These guys will love this race. It has a hometown backyard feel with the quality of the Ironman. And Vigo..... he's a freaking legend.

One week from today is the Gulf Coast 1/2 Ironman. Taper starts this morning with a 2:00 brick and tomorrow with a 9 mile run. We decided on a shorter taper for this race for a few reasons. TO understand that, understand the goals of this race.

1. Heat. I wanted to race somewhere hot before Eagleman, as Eagleman has the tendency to be hot. I have always struggled in the heat so I consider this to be a limiter of mine. Train your weakness I always say, so here it is. I am stepping into the fire. So it was Gulf Coast or St. Croix to choose from. Gulf Coast is on the Ironman Florida Course, so that made it a natural choice.

2. Nutrition practice. I believe we have nailed my nutrition down and I want to test it in the heat.

3. Data. Armed with the Ergomo and the Garmin, I will use both of these during the race to record data, heart rate, etc. This data is what we will use to plan training for Ironman Florida.

4. Have fun. What better place to go in spring than on Spring Break in Panama City Beach?

I feel quite good in preparation for this race. Typically I will go sub 5 hours for a 1/2 Iornman, however I haven't done that in 2 years for a bouquet of reasons. Some physical, nutritional, but I believe they were mostly mental.

I have worked very hard on my mental training this year. And I am excited to see how that goes as well.

My swimming feels good, my cycling feels good.... but it does feel like I have not done a lot of speedwork. Hills, yes, speed, not so much. Running feels like it is coming along. I have been averaging 40 miles a week for the last 2 blocks of build. We have touched on speedwork but again not a lot.

Essentially I want to see sub 5. I want to hold back on the bike. I want to feel strong on the run. I want my nutrition to work. I want my mental game to be on. I want to see the edge of myself but hold back from crossing it.

There are 2 days I am hoping to shine this year. July 22nd and November 4th. (Ironman Lake Placid and Ironman Florida). So I will not "go to the well" as they say, at Gulf Coast. I want to finish with money in the bank.

I feel like something special can happen this season, and timing is the key. I am ready, I am focused and I am ready for the tan!

Thanks for stopping by.

:-) mary eggers

Mouse Update

Well...... after 120 emails asking about the status of Montramer the car inhibiting, taunting, haunting terrorist mouse..... here is an update.

For three days there is no sign of Montramer the... we will call him Montramer the Mouse for short. No poop, no chewed up anything. So he is either dead or has escaped. My car is still sterile and I am essentially driving in a panic attack waiting for him to come out and taunt me.

So we continue to wait. I know, I know you are all unable to sleep. Keep the faith my friends ... we will win this war.

Thanks for stopping by friends.....

:-) mary eggers

Mouse Capers

For days now we have been trying to catch a mouse. A mouse in my house? No. Worse. a mouse in my car. This four legged creature is believed to have jumped aboard my swimming bag in the garage, and was transported to my SUV. And ever since it has been a tour of madness and frustration for the ever growing "Team Mouse", who have tried to rid my vehicle of this small terrorist we have come to call Montramer.

It began on Saturday morning when we discovered mouse poop on my dashboard. That gave way to the entire stripping, bleaching, shampooing and sterilization of the car. Think an operating room is clean? You have seen nothing yet! My car…. cleaner!

Saturday night we placed a trap, bait and hold em trap in attempt to relocate the mouse to better places. Sunday morning there was no sign of a mouse which led us to believe that we were home free. Montramer had left the Rav 4!!!!

Curt headed to Kansas City on Monday morning and I awaken to a car full of mouse poop. ARGH! ^%$#%%%%!!!! The war had begun. I was confident enough in my freak out control to drive to the store and buy some snap trap mouse traps. I was confident Montramer would not show his snarly little teeth to me behind the wheel.

A snap trap isn't so easy to assemble. I had to even watch a video on the internet. So I laced it up, set it up, got it ready. I would kill Montramer and Curt would be so proud!!!!!!

Tuesday morning I bribed Luc to look in the car. We found the bait gone and an empty trap!!!!

Have you ever seen the movie MOUSE TRAP with Nathan Lane? It suddenly became my entire existence. Catching a mouse is addictive! Especially when faced with the threat of it chewing your bike tires or cables!

"I will get you mouse!' I cried throwing my fists in the air!

That's when the formation of "Team Mouse CSI" began to take shape. first inductee was Bill. Bill brought over some mouse poison, not really believing the mouse was in the car. Upon his arrival he was convinced….. we set three traps…… 2 snap traps, one block of poison, a catch and release trap…. and then the CSI idea. Bill surrounded the entire set up with baby powder. From this we could see the mouse's footprints, leading us like Hanzel and Gretel to his underground lair!!!!!

Brilliant!

Three hours passed….. I peered into the car. NO NO NO! The traps had been fumbled with but I could look no more! I called Bill who brought over his girlfriend Sharon, who rumor has it would grab hold of the damn mouse herself!!!!!!

Hence another member of "Team Mouse CSI" was inducted. They show up with our next member, Hanna, Bill's daughter. So now we had Me, Luc, Bill, Sharon and now Hannah. Together over pizza we would get Montramer and rid the IRNCHICK mouse mobile of the mouse terror!!! No one would beat us!

Curt would be so proud!!!

So they (note I said THEY) looked for the mouse. They prodded, poked, and could not find the mouse.

Not in the seat.

Not in the dashboard.

Not in the engine.

And not in a box with a fox wearing red striped socks, with chicken pox, a handful of rocks, and not even…… unbelievably…… not even on a block.

We set the traps, and we ate our pizza. Upon return to the car, the mouse had licked the traps clean. No mouse caught, we had been outsmarted again!

ARGH!

The last member to join was Ken, who suggested heating out the mouse. By this point we determined the mouse was taking residence in the heating ducts underneath the passenger seat… as evidenced by the baby powder footprints. So we turned on the car and blasted the heat! Surely this would work!

He still, I admit….. did not come out.

So at last we set the traps a fourth time, loaded on the peanut butter, shut the doors and called it a night. Curt would be home at midnight and I would be hailed as a brave woman, conquering, defeating this terrorizing little mouse! I could see the pedestal he'd place me upon now!

Fast forward to 7am, upon my return from swim practice (and of course I was driving his car….). He stood in the driveway weary and worn from travels to the Midwest, and 2 days of meetings that likely filled his head with too much thought.

"Amateurs." He sneered, shaking his head and holding out the failed clean traps. "Amateurs."

I stood there in disbelief! What, how, how could it be????????

"No mouse?" I felt defeated once again.

"You guys didn't even set the traps correctly!" He cried in disgust, "They need to be hair triggered! HAIR TRIGGERED!" He was in obvious disappointment. "Look what you guys DID to these things, how can you not set a trap!!!"

"But I watched the internet video instructions from the website." I stupidly admitted. Curt looked at me. I could see the bubble over his head with his obvious thoughts. …… did she just say she watched the video instructions on the website????????...... what kind of idiot goes to a mousetrap website………….

He stood there and sighed, knowing I was not driving the IRNCHICK Mouse Mobile.

"I will take your car…" He sighed, which by the way promoted him to instant superhero and CEO of Team Mouse CSI….. a title of which I am very certain he cares very much about and is very proud! "You are to go get 2 new mouse traps, and do not touch them."

One might assume the look on his face was pure annoyance, but I knew better. The man was just tired from traveling and now coming home to clean up the mouse mess of myself and my mouse posse. I knew he was secretly proud to be the knight in shining armor, to be secretly lacing up his superhero cape and sliding the black mask over his eyes.

I mean, what else could he possibly have on his mind?

Off he drove in the IRNCHICK Mouse Mobile, stickered to the bone with signs of Iron and various items. And I was free again to get back behind the wheel. I could travel again.

I got those mouse traps. If 2 traps were in order then certainly four would work better. So King Poombah National Champion Curt Eggers shall set the traps, and when he catches Montramer the horrible, antagonizing taunting mouse he will be once again hailed as the king that he is!

I quickly texted Bill to inform him of our failure, defeat not just by the mouse but by the King himself. I could almost feel the air let out of Bill, Sharon and Hannah's sails……. it slid out of mine as well.

I have faith. I have faith that my amazing husband will risk life and limb for me. He will catch that mouse, he will show me it's dead mouse body and then I will know that I am free from this terror. I will show the other mousse what will happen should they try to mouse ….. er….. mess with an Egg.

So mouses all around… listen up…… you stay on your side of the line, and I shall stay on mine. Don't bother me, I won't bother you. But dare, just dare to inhabit the vehicle of said Iron Girl Egg once again……

And you will have to face your kryptonite, the King, the Knight, the terror of all mousse. And trust me it ain't gonna be pretty.

Stay tuned for the update.

 mary Eggers

Beautiful

It's these quiet moments at 6:30am that I love. Sitting here by the bay window in our kitchen, sipping coffee and pouring random thoughts over paper, which is a computer screen and a key board. The sun has risen and the lilac tree just outside the window is about ready to bloom. Stop by some time for a vase of lilacs, I am very certain we have the prettiest ones in Rochester. My only regret for them is that they don't stay in bloom for the entire summer.

And they shouldn't. The lilacs give way to the trees blooming, Then when it is all said and done, come fall the apple trees are ready. The progression of life is fascinating, beautiful and often leaves me wonder struck.

Those are the things I notice from a bicycle, or from running. View it as one thing if you would like, but I see it as another. It goes beyond winning, and competing. It runs deeper than times and intervals. It is much simpler than that actually. Feeling the sun, feeling the air, smelling the roses you could say. The quietness of nature becomes more inspiring than what is on my iPod, more exhilarating then a cruise interval, when you pull it all aback and see it for what it really is..... that is where true beauty lies.

For this reason I will never understand why people actually can feel hatred for one another over bike splits, podium finishes, finishing times, accomplishments. I just don't get that anymore.

For that reason I don't understand why people cheat whether it be through drugs or course cutting. I just don't get that.

After all, we are all in this together. Whether you are a triathlete, gardener, a bowler, whoever you are. This is one world. we are one people coming together just living the best life that we can.

And that's a beautiful thing.

Thanks for stopping by.

:-) Mary Eggers