Learn something new everyday.....

This is not advice so much, but rather the way I live my life. I've used this one so often, you could almost say it's my mantra. I like learning stuff. I like knowing the answer when somebody asks a question.

I sometimes even go out of my way to learn. I've been known to open the dictionary (or the encyclopedia) to a random page and just start reading. I watch National Geographic and The Learning Channel.

Trivia? I'm your man.

Today, however, I learned something I could have happily lived out my life without knowing. This knowledge came to me as a direct result of my job. We have a lot of accounts, as I think I've said, ranging from tow companies to realty companies; rental agencies to doctor's offices.

It's strange, really. One minute you're booking a showing appointment for a house, the next you're telling a doctor that a patient is having a reaction to his meds.

Today's call went something like this:

"Random Health Company, this it T.J., how may I help you?"

"Anonymous patient had a clostomy, and the bag has been working fine, but he's experiencing a large flow of mucus from his anus. Is this normal?"

"Actually, I have no idea, as I'm the answering service, but I can get a message to my on-call and have them give you a call back."

After getting all the pertinent info, I call H, the on-call nurse.

"This is Random Nurse."

"Hi, Random Nurse, this is T.J."

"Oh, hi, T.J. how are you?"

"Not bad, and yourself?"

"Pretty good. Just out on a walk with the dogs. What's up?"

I tell her, and she says, and I quote:

"Well, just for your edification, that's perfectly normal. What's their number?"

After which, I'm confident that she called them back. Now while I'm sure she had the best of intentions, that is the information I could have lived without.

But there you have it: If you ever have to shit into a plastic bag, expect your body to rebel by expelling copious amounts of mucus out your anus.

Is there such a thing as too much knowledge? If there is, I think I'm getting dangerously near the saturation point.

My brain hurts,

T.