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04 March 2009

Have You Googled Today?

So, my PICU (pediatric ICU) rotation is winding down. Just one more 24+ hour call left on Saturday, and then it will be over. I plan to write a wrap up of the month on Sunday night. Today, though, post-call from the PICU, I was thinking about how much Google has changed the way I live.

I got an iPhone for Christmas. It's a fancy little gadget. Lots of buttons. Lots of memory. An ok camera in a pinch. The ability to play movies and games wherever I am. And, the all important, 24/7 connection to the internet and Google. I didn't think much about it until we took the trip to Gettysburg a couple of weekends ago.

My husband had planned things out for the most part. The route, how long it would take, etc. We used the GPS map (which, by the way is GoogleMap) on the iPhone to confirm where we were and check traffic conditions. As we got closer to the town where the bed and breakfast was we looked for a place to eat and were able to bring up a menu.

On Saturday, we used the map to guide us around the monuments in Gettysburg. When we had a question (like where were the Confederate monuments and where were the Confederate soldiers buried since they didn't seem to be at the National Cemetary - most were left on the side of the road since they were considered "traitors" but a group from the Hollywood Cemetary in Richmond, VA worked to collect them and transported a great number of the over 18,000 Confederate soldiers buried there) we would Google. We found the wax museum at the American Civil War Museum by Google. We checked out various places to eat and looked up the history of the Farnsworth House Inn.

Now, when we watch movies, we Google. We're planning for "Life after Residency" and have been Googling everything from real estate to where to mail order chicks. We've looked up draft horses for sale and have learned how to sheer sheep. We also have seen how to sheer an Angora rabbit and how to spin our own yarn.

During rounds in the PICU, I have pulled out my
iPhone to check when diseases were first discovered, how to treat diabetic ketoacidosis, and what the water content is of, um, BM's (bowel movements - otherwise known as your poop. Which, by the way, is 75% water; just in case you wanted to know.)

Google has certainly changed the way I am living. So, how has Google changed your life?

6 comments:

friedmsw said...

Sounds like you had a wonderful weekend in Gettysburg. You deserved it! Hooray for iPhones!! I find myself wondering what people did before fax machines.

Regina

Claudia said...

Thanks for the water content percentage, my daughter and I play weekly bar trivia and if the question ever comes up I will have the answer.

betty said...

Google is my favorite search engine; I can find about anything I'm looking for when I'm researching for medical transcription (why do those doctors talk so fast and slur their words when they speak?) when using Google

glad you got some time away with hubby!!

oh my gosh, did I miss it? did your first anniversary pass already? I think it did....like around February 20th give or take a day? Happy belated anniversary

betty

Julie said...

We do the same thing and it has made it easier. We know what the place will look like we will stay in, have checked out the restaurants and pretty much know what we want to eat, It's an amazing world. Especially since I remember so well when it wasn't around.

You should check out Skip and Vic's blog. They both gave up city life and raise chickens, ducks, alpaca's and dogs. Fun couple.

http://cluckinacritterfarm.blogspot.com/

MariesImages said...

I Google EVERYTHING & ANYTHING!
;)
Marie

Anonymous said...

I Google like everyday.... I LOVE GOOGLE! I have a ipod nano that I got for my birthday. I hope you had fun on your trip.