Surgery, transformation

I had the great luck to watch an exquisite surgeon, Dr. Stefan Karos, in action a few months ago. It was a Saturday and it was rather slow on labor and delivery. I wandered down to the OR. My fellow Greek colleague had a case and was open to my observing him in the OR. That morning I really envied urologists-- it was a clear that the gentleman- patient was going to need surgery. Clearly a significantly diseased kidney was the source of this man's admission into the ICU. The hardest decision to make, when you are a surgeon is when NOT to operate, (and more so when you are an obstetrician because it is rarely clear cut, no pun intended). No question here, though, a nephrectomy was necessary for this man's survival. (Reminded me of a med school classmate-- now a urologist by the way-- "Nothing heals like cold hard steel", he would say-- and I would shudder at his eagerness. ) Dr. Karos-- and this is how you can tell who is really a GOOD surgeon-- was eager to explain the procedure in detail in the OR and it was an amazing experience. Having only ever seen kidneys in cadavers and formalin, my examination of the specimen was anticlimactic-- the excised "offending" organ looked like a big piece of fat. (Where in the world was the fleshy part?! I did not pursue the pathologic examination for fear of looking completely ignorant. Perhaps the disease itself made the kidney look so alien...?)

Indeed, sometimes it does not take an earth-shattering event or a transcendental meditative experience to transform oneself. The banter in the OR influenced me significantly, not in a medical sense (OK , a bit of that too-- how many times does one get to see removal of a kidney?). The surgical assistant was the chief of surgery. Both surgeons were avid cyclists. I had a one -year old hybrid bicycle which I had intended to use, oh y'know-- "someday", but never got around to it. I couldn't make up my mind-- commuter bicycle vs sport cycle so I had settled on a hybrid a year earlier. It was used maybe two times. The OR banter by the surgeon-cyclists was about the fun of mountain biking and the great trails in the area (Leominster, Groton, etc). Their enthusiasm was infectious. I thought, boy would I like to do that and boy would I like to bike with these guys! They'd be better than me but it would be awwwwwesome. I love the outdoors, I live in an area with tons of trails and... say whaaaaaat-- I am not afraid of speeding down the trails??! My BMI was creeping down below 19 kg/m2 from inactivity so I needed to do something physical... So, within two weeks I swapped my hybrid, panniers and all for a mtn bike. (Wheelworks was gracious to remove a small percentage for "stocking fee" for the swap) . I got myself a Gary Fischer mtn bike. Sturdy, good shocks, good knobby tires.
Can I just say that mountain biking was fun beyond belief? It was early spring, crisp with bright skies. The trails varied tremendously and I still have that "I''ll be back", in Schwarzenegger speak-- mentality of returning to attack some trails (My nemesis: Hell's Highway, first and foremost; other-- Heartbreak Ridge... well named). MB led to my thinking of heck, try not a triathlon (which I did-- on my mtn bike-- and I felt like a dwarf, spinning my wheels up those hills!). And now the infection for cycling has permeated my life. I just bought a road bike (with Sidi road bike shoes...). Thanks, Stefan & Les! Just know that my bank does NOT thank you!