"You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen. Everyday, we are given the sun- and also one moment in which we have the ability to change everything that makes us unhappy. Every day, we try to pretend that we haven't percieved that moment, that it doesn't exist-that today is the same as yesterday and will be the same as tomorrrow. But it people really pay attenetion to their everyday lives, they will discover that mahic moment. It may arrive in the instant when we are doing something mundane, like putting our front door key in the lock; it may lie hidden in the quiet that follows the lunch hour or in the thousand and one things that all seem the same to us. but that moment exists- a moment when all the power of the stars becomes a part of us and enables us to perform miracles.
Joy is sometimes a blessing, but is often a conquest. Our magic moment helps us to change and sends us off in search of our freams. Yes, we are going to suffer, we will have difficult times, and we will experience many disapointments---but all of this is transitory; it leaves no permanent mark. And one day we will look back with pride and faith at the journey we have taken."
-Paulo Coelho
Friday, June 26, 2009
Some new pictures
Our Crew: From left- Jon, me, sky, Ben, Ryan, Noah... missing nick but his guitar is standing in for him!
We had a hard time being serious
Happy bday ryan!
watching the sunrise on the sunmmer solstice/fathers day
our beauty!
dr ben, the dreamer
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Dirty jobs
Well, we have officially moved into our new house in Florida and it is so amazing. I finally have my own room, which is fantastic...no more sharing it with 3 other guys! We have a pool now which comes in handy on these scortching hot days and even better...our boat is in our backyard!
Everymorning we wake up around 7 and have breakfast together and then get straight to work on the boat. This week has been crazy with ammount of progress we have made. We lost nick and andrew afew days ago but nick will be back soon, he had to take care of some stuff at home, but we sure miss his goofy presence on the boat!
This week I have done a lot of painting! I feel as though I am permentatly covered in paint.. it's in my hair and all over my hands, legs and shoulders! I have been painting down in the back cabins, as well as storage boxes (called lazarettes) and finishing up afew walls in the salon. Today was a big day for me, as I got to demo an entire wall (much harder than it looks), put up insulation in the ceiling, paint the pole that holes up our wind generator, finished building an AC insulator box and painted more of the hull of the boat. We started carpeting and putting the matress padding on the bunks today as well! It's so great that we are starting to get to do asthetic work now instead of heavy duty construction.
Sometimes I feel that the time when we sail off this harbor will never happen, but I know that it will and how exciting that day will be!
Speaking of the harbor, in the last few days we have seen more manatees and an alligator! this is definately not swimming water! but its so wonderful to get to see so many creatures in their natural element!
We have had quite a few big storms this week, but luckily it has shown us that our beauty of a boat holds up in the rain! The storms here are incredible. Huge beams of lightning light up the sky and thunder booms, almost shaking the house. Im starting to really enjoy the storms though. We have also had a heatwave this week, with the temperature climbing to 105 with 80-90% humidity. Its like working in a wet sauna... and mixed with paint fumes makes it quite a challange, but i'm surviving.
Everyone is falling in love with Floating Doctors and Bens dream. We have had afew different reporters come out to interview us and I have had the two newspapers in Sonoma both interview me. They even want to follow us the entire year. We also got wind of a contest for amatuer film makers and we are entering it! I am doing the animation for the film, in addition to helping put our real shots in it and its going to be a great piece about making our dream become a reality. If we win, the prize is $10,000 which we direly need. We also have made a commercial for Home Depot and are trying to sell it to them. And we have had an outpouring support from the Florida community here, with people we have met in the hardware store or the grocery market, coming by daily to drop of supplies or see our progress on the boat. Its so great to be a part of something that is touching everyones lives.
Progress is being made on the health survey, which is what I am in charge of, and soon, once the boat is finished, we will all be studying our spanish, diagnosis cards and practicing sutures and minor surgery procedures. I can't believe that I will be practicing medicine soon!
The opportunities continue each day, and I am constanly humbled and inspired by the work that I do here. I love being able to be a part of something so great and I know that my time here is the adventure of a lifetime!
Everymorning we wake up around 7 and have breakfast together and then get straight to work on the boat. This week has been crazy with ammount of progress we have made. We lost nick and andrew afew days ago but nick will be back soon, he had to take care of some stuff at home, but we sure miss his goofy presence on the boat!
This week I have done a lot of painting! I feel as though I am permentatly covered in paint.. it's in my hair and all over my hands, legs and shoulders! I have been painting down in the back cabins, as well as storage boxes (called lazarettes) and finishing up afew walls in the salon. Today was a big day for me, as I got to demo an entire wall (much harder than it looks), put up insulation in the ceiling, paint the pole that holes up our wind generator, finished building an AC insulator box and painted more of the hull of the boat. We started carpeting and putting the matress padding on the bunks today as well! It's so great that we are starting to get to do asthetic work now instead of heavy duty construction.
Sometimes I feel that the time when we sail off this harbor will never happen, but I know that it will and how exciting that day will be!
Speaking of the harbor, in the last few days we have seen more manatees and an alligator! this is definately not swimming water! but its so wonderful to get to see so many creatures in their natural element!
We have had quite a few big storms this week, but luckily it has shown us that our beauty of a boat holds up in the rain! The storms here are incredible. Huge beams of lightning light up the sky and thunder booms, almost shaking the house. Im starting to really enjoy the storms though. We have also had a heatwave this week, with the temperature climbing to 105 with 80-90% humidity. Its like working in a wet sauna... and mixed with paint fumes makes it quite a challange, but i'm surviving.
Everyone is falling in love with Floating Doctors and Bens dream. We have had afew different reporters come out to interview us and I have had the two newspapers in Sonoma both interview me. They even want to follow us the entire year. We also got wind of a contest for amatuer film makers and we are entering it! I am doing the animation for the film, in addition to helping put our real shots in it and its going to be a great piece about making our dream become a reality. If we win, the prize is $10,000 which we direly need. We also have made a commercial for Home Depot and are trying to sell it to them. And we have had an outpouring support from the Florida community here, with people we have met in the hardware store or the grocery market, coming by daily to drop of supplies or see our progress on the boat. Its so great to be a part of something that is touching everyones lives.
Progress is being made on the health survey, which is what I am in charge of, and soon, once the boat is finished, we will all be studying our spanish, diagnosis cards and practicing sutures and minor surgery procedures. I can't believe that I will be practicing medicine soon!
The opportunities continue each day, and I am constanly humbled and inspired by the work that I do here. I love being able to be a part of something so great and I know that my time here is the adventure of a lifetime!
Friday, June 19, 2009
The first week is over!
Wow, its hard to believe i have been here for over a week. I knew that when I walked out of the airport and into the muggy hott Florida heat I was in for quite an interesting trip...
And it sure has been.
I live with 8 guys and one girl. Its a little overwhelming at times (I currently sleep on an airmattress in the living room with 3 other guys) but I instantly bonded with all of them and I feel like they are all my brothers. And they treat me like family (sometimes too much... a girl can only handle so much wrestling and nerf gun attacks) but its fantastic. Floating Doctors seems to attract an ecclectic mix of people, all with the same goal of helping people. I know I am creating friendships and memories that will change my life forever.
The first day on the job I had no idea what I was in for. I didn't realize how much construction on the boat had to be done and how hard I was going to be working. 5 minutes after I had walked on the boat I was handed a saw and instructed to finish making a floor on the "bridge" (a term for the upper most part of the boat where the captain is). 15 minutes after that, I was bleeding all over my tank top because i cut the tip to my thumb off. Nick graciously helped me with the rest of the floor, showing me how to cut, how to angle pieces in, and how to screw them in. Since then I have been dubbed "Nick's assistant" because he's the one that has the patience and guidance to help me. So far I have built vents for an AC system, built a floor underlay for linoleum, painted and degreased the engine room, painted the hull and the cabins and made, sanded and grinded down parts of the editing suite and storage compartments.
I have a new respect for construction workers. When I was working in the bottom part of the boat its like working in a 100 degree sauna. Sweat pours off of you in bucketloads and you have to drink powerade to restore the electrolyes you lost. The one day I just drank water I got so dehydrated and was barely able to move when I got home.
We also experienced our first tornado. All of a sudden we heard a huge boom from the sky and a giant gust of wind and the hardest rain I've ever seen. It was an incredible storm, so much thunder and lightning. We had to lock ourselves in the boat because we couldn't go outside...the storm was right above our boat and with so much metal on the boat, if one of us got electrocuted, it would be all over. It was exciting and frightening at the same time. We have had 2 more storms since then, not as bad at all, but we are heading right into hurricane season, so I'm sure it will get much more interesting.
I'm getting darker by the day (the sun is sooo hott here) and my legs and arms are covered in mosquito and other bug bites. Speaking of, the nature here is incredible. I'm seeing armadillos, manatees, all sorts of fish, frogs, lizards, turtles and snakes. And Ben, being the incredible teacher that he is, is able to tell me all the species and what they do. It's a beautiful area here in Florida I have to say, but its unlike anything I have ever seen. It's very country, and the people are all characters, but I feel completely at home and happy here.
I finally feel like I have found my place in the world. Ben is an inspiration and I know he is someone that will have a profound impact on my life (and already has). The work that I plan to do with floating doctors is something that is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Ben informed me that I would be practicing medicine while I am in the clinics in central america, belize, and the french polynesia. I get to start practicing sutures, wound irrigation and dressings and my diagnosis soon! I can't wait! I am also currently working on the world health survey with Ben, and its fantastic to get to connect with him and work together to create such an important tool for our medical mission, which is the spectrum of prevention and assessing the health of the world, while identifying what to do next to make a healthier future.
I couldn't feel happier right now and I truly believe my dad sent this opportunity to me. thanks dad! I can't wait to see what adventure is thrown at me next!
Me and Ben, the founder of FD
The Southern Wind-our beauty!
Working hard!
Me and nick, when we all finally left the boat and went to dinner!
More pictures to come!!!
Friday, June 5, 2009
Who we are
In four days I will be leaving Hawaii to join a team of men and women in Florida, preparing to make a medical relief voyage to some of the most remote regions on earth. Floating Doctors will be traveling with a high tech crew and cargo on an ancient and very green platform. Led by Dr. Ben LaBrot, we will sail on our 76 ft sailboat called The Southern Wind.
The first voyage will run along the coast of Central America, through the Panama Canal and out through the South Pacific. Our goal is to set up a mobile tented clinic and provide free medical services. The on-board staff (including me) will treat over 15,000 patients.
Floating Doctors will also undertake a study based on the World Health organization 2000 World Health Survey to make a 2010 report on what progress has been made in improving world health, what major challenges remain, and the effextiveness of our current strategies.
We will interface with local medical providers and visually document the practices of health care delivery by local caregivers.
We will strive to create health care access to isolated communities and to promote preventative medicine and patient education in a way that encourages and empowers people to take responsibility for their own health.
Our major goals are:
1. To provide free health care services to needy areas in our mobile tented clinics and to hand deliver donated medical supplies to isolated areas.
2. To reduce child mortality by providing food safety education, nutritional counseling and clean water solutions
3. To promote awareness of the latest issues in developing world medicine through a study of health and medical care delivery.
I cannot wait to be a part of this organization and join the crew! Healh is a universal concern--we CAN help eachother!
The first voyage will run along the coast of Central America, through the Panama Canal and out through the South Pacific. Our goal is to set up a mobile tented clinic and provide free medical services. The on-board staff (including me) will treat over 15,000 patients.
Floating Doctors will also undertake a study based on the World Health organization 2000 World Health Survey to make a 2010 report on what progress has been made in improving world health, what major challenges remain, and the effextiveness of our current strategies.
We will interface with local medical providers and visually document the practices of health care delivery by local caregivers.
We will strive to create health care access to isolated communities and to promote preventative medicine and patient education in a way that encourages and empowers people to take responsibility for their own health.
Our major goals are:
1. To provide free health care services to needy areas in our mobile tented clinics and to hand deliver donated medical supplies to isolated areas.
2. To reduce child mortality by providing food safety education, nutritional counseling and clean water solutions
3. To promote awareness of the latest issues in developing world medicine through a study of health and medical care delivery.
I cannot wait to be a part of this organization and join the crew! Healh is a universal concern--we CAN help eachother!
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