Raking Leaves

Maybe it’s me but it seems increasingly difficult to figure out what to do.

Like should I rake the leaves so I can jump into a big pile or let them wilt into the lawn. “What are you, like 6?” my wife says. Or now that I am 50, I have to start doing tests I’ve only heard my folks complain about – like that new study suggesting colonoscopy doesn’t lower the risk of mortality from colorectal cancer any more than if you just skip the procedure. I mean, that’s sort of like saying doing your homework doesn’t lower your risk of being dumb any more than if you just skip the assignment. Then there’s eating - dark chocolate can apparently increase caffeine levels in your blood and raise your heart rate, which doesn’t sound so good, but it can lower blood pressure too, which my doctor Jon Wenceslao, MD says he likes since sometimes my BP runs high. If you have kids, youth sports club teams can apparently get your young athlete a shot at playing in college, maybe a scholarship, but can lead to a higher incidence of eating disorders according to a study we have coming out on this issue, so is the old rec team better? None of my kids played on these clubs nor did they get sports scholarships to college, although our oldest Jack says he’s “not on the Indiana hoop team by choice…because I easily would dominate dad if I wanted to.” At least he doesn’t lack confidence. If you’re a doctor or nurse, figuring out what to do seems tough these days – like do you treat the pain with a drug knowing it will probably cause inflammation in the eye, requiring another drug – a steroid – creating more cost and confusion for your patient? Do you take risk or stay the course, and do you join a multi-specialty practice, hospital system, or sell to an insurer because staying independent is difficult? Maybe it is me, but maybe the easiest way to choose sometimes is just to flip a coin as Joe Dee Messina sings. Heads Carolina, Tails California.