August 18, 2020

by drplasticpicker

It’s Saturday morning and it’s just starting to get light. I worked a full Friday clinic and it was busy. Twenty-six families, twenty-six developing story-lines. Supposedly the appointments are segmented into 15 minute blocks, but life does not work like that. Anyone who has ever been to the MD office knows that the entire process takes much longer from preconception to the actual visit. I know the time with me is the end of a long process for the family. So I try to take my time and sit, listen and do something that progresses my little and big patients onto better physical, mental and moral health. One can’t rush life nor rush the practice of medicine. The actual schedule I am presented each mornings is only a suggestion of how the day will go. In the end, when they come in I see them. We get something done.

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Juily 29, 2020

by drplasticpicker

It was a good day yesterday. It’s funny most of my climate work wins I posted on my actual personal facebook. They were real wins, so I wanted to share with the real people I know. I finished the Climate Reality Leadership Training and have my “Green Ring” now. And yesterday Bruce Bekkar told me that I was “putting [my] passion forward in such a powerful way, right out of the Climate Reality Training” and one of the other AAP Climate Change and Health said “AMAZZZZING” with many Zs. Twelve of us here had cosigned a letter regarding oil and gas setbacks, which is this complicated legislative process of trying to protect poor communities from oil and gas drilling sites. And our AAP Climate Change and Health Committee met for the first time, and I had the biggest smile on my face. I looked at their beautiful faces and how could I not have hope? True organic real connections between people. That is what I am trying to foster. Even if we make wins (which we will), the big win is that we are connected to eachother. It’s funny how I truly live these pithy quotes I used to just breeze through on Instagram and Facebook, leaders create more leaders.

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June 28, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Good morning pediatric climate activist! The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Chapter 3 San Diego Imperial County (CA3) Climate Change and Health Committee is alive and well. I just paid $755.17 to renew my personal AAP national membership ($676), CH Chapter 3 Membership ($66.67) and Council on Environmental Health (COEH) Fellow Package ($12.50). Although I am usually very frugal, the $755.17 is well worth it and it lends our work credibility to work within the auspices of a larger organization. Plus, now I can consistently put FAAP (Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics) – Fellow COEH (Committee of Environmental Health) in my emails. So much of life is just about showing up. Just updated my Who Is Dr. Plastic Picker Page with these credentials https://drplasticpicker.com/about-me/. Go me.

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June 13, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Blogging as Dr. Plastic Picker has helped my career. I was not looking to advance beyond Assistant Boss, but it’s amazing that being able to think aloud on the blog has helped me organize several important work projects. Above is the picture inspired by Dr. Seuss’s characters, and we finished a leadership document entitled “Thing One, Thing Two, Thing Three” about the Assistant Boss positions. The actual document was only two pages, but summed up succinctly some fundamental shifts we wanted to make in our leadership structure. Many of those ideas I pondered in three separate seemingly tangential and unrelated blogposts on leadership, “Leadership opportunities are everywhere. Don’t just go to the blue light special” https://drplasticpicker.com/leadership-opportunities-are-everywhere-dont-just-go-to-the-blue-light-special/, “Raising Leaders: Random Thoughts About Work, my Kids and my patients” https://drplasticpicker.com/raising-leaders-random-thoughts-about-work-my-kids-and-my-patients/ and “Let 2020’s Failure by a Reminder of you, You are the Leader our World Needs https://drplasticpicker.com/let-2020s-failure-be-a-reminder-for-you-you-are-a-leader-our-world-needs/. The blogs were indeed related. I’m not sure how many people read the blogposts. The blog analytics showed they were decently popular. But the best part of writing the three posts is that it helped me with several work projects. So much for running from work and picking up plastic on the beach! I’m still doing that work which is my passion, and I’m “Thing One” of the three things LOL. “Thing Two and Thing Three” are pretty amazing as well.

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March 4, 2020

by drplasticpicker

What a night! Last night was Super Tuesday and the Democratic primaries were super exciting. This is a nonpartisan blog, and trust me I have close family and friends all over the political spectrum and I heart them all. But I posted a picture of Mr. Plastic Picker and myself on Facebook from a recent wedding last night with the “I Voted” Facebook Frame. We looked like the well groomed law-abiding fiscally conservative but socially liberal couple with the caption, “We voted! Mailed in our ballot. Voted for the earth and against sprawl and for a Democratic party that has a big heart and a big tent (insert emoji picture of tent) that will embrace a common sense/common values and a return to decency.” Lots of likes. Mr. Plastic Picker eschews social media, but when I showed him the post he said, “I look really good.” And indeed Mr. Plastic Picker you do look really good and so does the world. Despite the panic regarding COVID-19, which had even me taking category of my pantry https://drplasticpicker.com/covid-19-do-we-have-enough-food-random-thoughts-on-food-supply-and-food-waste-as-the-world-panics/, there is a lot to be hopeful for.

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January 22, 2020

by drplasticpicker

Saving the world from catastrophic climate change is a monumental task. It will take billions of us mobilizing and changing our way of life. No matter what, the climate has changed and we will have to adjust to the new world. But we still have time to mitigate some of the effects of climate change. I have so much hope every day, because I now listen and notice things. I notice my fellow humans changing. People are waking up. I see others picking up litter. People ask me, what is plogging? Children are encouraging their parents to stop buying straws and single-use plastics. Colleauges have agreed to join me in activism on the AAP Climate Change and Health Committee and Climate Action Now San Diego Chapter https://drplasticpicker.com/you-have-given-me-courage-drplasticpicker-joins-in-with-the-aap-environmental-health-section-and-climate-health-now/. I think I am one of billions mobilizing and in the end this story will have a happy ending. But we have to earn that ending, by acting now and making changes and putting our time and money where it is most useful. But in the meantime, let me share with you some hope so that you do not despair. Despair never helped anyone. Remember I am not peddling false optimism, but hope that is earned if you also are taking concrete actions.

Five Reasons To Be Hopeful This Wednesday, 1-22-2022

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