Is common sense.......uncommon?!

I have written about this topic before, but something happened last week that I just have to share. This past week I wrote a prescription for a patient, whose last name was "Veerakallinambipoona"-- (I have changed the name to protect patient privacy, but it had exactly the same number of alphabets and sounds similar).
About a couple of hours later, I got a call from the patient.
"Hey doc, they won't fill my prescription. Can you please talk to the pharmacist?"
"Sure," I said. "I'll hold." After a few moments, the pharmacist came on line.
"Hi doctor," he started. "We have a problem filling the prescription for this patient."
"So what's the problem?" I asked.
"His name does not match the one on the prescription."
"Really? What's the name on the prescription?" I was confused. Had I given this patient somebody else's prescription?
"The last letter of the last name is not the same," he said.
Now I was even more confused. "What do you mean?"
'Well, the prescription you wrote is for Veerakallinambipooni, and the patient here is Veerakallinambipoona. So I can't fill the prescription. It could be somebody else."
I burst out laughing. "Somebody else? You can't be serious! How many patients do you have with names even remotely similar to this guy?"
"None. But I have to follow rules," the pharmacist replied.
Well, I couldn't fault him for that. We sorted that one out and the patient got his prescription.

I know we should all follow rules. That makes the world so orderly and easy to negotiate. But when rules are formulated, one cannot predict all the variables and scenarios. But in a situation like the one above, you think one can bend the rules a bit? You decide!

"To act with common sense according to the moment, is the best wisdom I know." ~ Leonardo da Vinci

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The "Valentine" bug !

Well, February 14th is here again, like every year. There will be a lot of flowers and chocolate making rounds. Romance will be alive and well on this day. What are the origins of Valentine's day?

There are a number of theories, but the most likely dates back to ancient Rome in the fifth century A.D. The Roman Emperor at that time, Claudius II, banned marriages as he wanted single men to join the Roman army. A priest named Valentine continued to perform marriages secretly. As per historians, he was jailed when the Emperor found out, on Feb 14th.

Over the years, this day is associated with the celebration of love. Hence the flowers, candy, chocolate, lovey-dovey cards etc. According to The Marriage Bureau statistics, a lot more couples tie the knot on this day than on any other day of the year. This year the special day falls on a Monday, so all of you who are not ready--- there's no excuse. You had the whole weekend to prepare!

But looking at the bigger picture, relationships do not depend on a bouquet or candy on one particular day, however important, sweet or cute it may be. Its the numerous little things that we can do for the person we care about, day in and day out. Not everyone is born a traditional romantic. Trying to create a fictionalized version of romance does not always work. Being thoughtful and making each other laugh will make every day special.

But above all, sincerity and trust are the foundations of any relationship and lead to love. Love is a condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.

"You know you are in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams." ~ Dr. Seuss
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