-- NOT--
On Thursday I got up and prepared to go to my medical doctor's office to have a blood test for my cholesterol. It isn't that my cholesterol is high or anything but African-Americans have a tendency toward high blood pressure and there is a history of it in my family. This will be shot. Well I get up and go out to go to the doctors and the roads and sidewalks are clogged. What should have been a short twenty-minute trip there and back with a short five minute drawing of my blood ended up being an hour and half ordeal. First off, as I said, even though the road crews had been out all night cleaning the roads they were still pretty bad and people seem to forget how to drive in a icy, snowy mess each year and the fact that we hadn't had a bad one in several makes it even worse. After taking forever traipsing on uncleared sidewalks I get to the dentist on time. I had anticipated unprepared and forgetful drivers and padded my schedule. Once there the doctor's office isn't opened yet. I know that I was the first appointment but had stupidly forgot that though I had correctly padded my schedule to get there on time, the office staff may not have realized or remembered how bad driving would be the first day after a bad storm and had not arrived. So I wait around for them to open and when I finally go in the staff ignores me.
Now for a digression: this is something that often African-Americans would subscribe to a possibility of a racist staff member just being rude. But a Anglo-American would just subscribe to a staff member being rude period. This time it didn't even enter my mind until I began this. Why you ask. Because the staff member that I saw the most was also Black. So when I finally got her to pay attention to me and told her that I had an appointment she was unable to find me in the books. After a few minutes of looking I informed her that I just needed a blood test and didn't need to actually see the doctor she tells me that blood tests aren't done in that office that I have to go down stairs to the lower office to have the test done. She tells me that the reason she couldn't find my appointment was that the two offices keep separate files. Is that stupid or what, it isn't like I was going to a different office, this was still part of this particular doctor's suite I was just going to a different part. So I traipse down, now about half an hour late and there are several people ahead of me. I didn't get mad I wasn't even steamed, I just took it in stride. When I finally get in to see the tech, the test it self takes only about two minutes and I won't hear the results for about a week. After that fine mess I headed back home. Making one stop on the way. Determined not to go out again.
After leaving in the morning for an eight o'clock appointment I finally arrive home about eleven and there I stay. Actually looking forward to going back to work the next day. At least there even on my worst day I have better control of my life.
ciao
