Dateline: Denver …..Hick Governor Conquers all.

Here in Denver we have a governor by the unstately name of John Hickenlooper. Not to worry his appearance matches his name. In the eighties he was a geologist…got laid off. Became a developer. Then mayor of Denver. Now the top spot.

He is a strange one. He foregoes pomp for simplicity. Ties are worn only if they have to be. The governor’s mansion was vacated for his suburban home. He actually goes out without bodyguards. They are all attributes of living in a state of 5 million citizens and probably an equal number of livestock.

He went down in front of his capitol office last week to address the Wall Street protesters. They were on his front lawn so to speak. He didn’t yell or scream. He said they couldn’t stay there. Extolling the first amendment  he also simply stated that if the tent city burned down and killed people he was liable. Made perfect sense. They left.

But his down home diplomacy really hit home when Arrow Electronics, a Fortune 150 company decided to move from New York where they were founded to, you guessed it, Colorado. They are bringing 1500 employees.

The crazy part is how it came to be. Last May he assembled Arrow’s CEO, as well as  DaVita’s, Western Union’s and their wives at dinner…in his wonderful but simple house in Park Hill. There they sat in down home surroundings around the dinner table  and just talked about business as we all might on a Saturday night. No backdoor meetings. No falderall. Just talking.

We also got GE to build a $300 million solar panel facility in Aurora. My son in law who is in commercial real estate has a variety of deals either cooking or in the process of closing. I spoke with a wonderful young lady on Saturday who is in retail. Things are cooking. Twofold moral: Keep it simple east and left coast. The world is not coming to an end.

Are We Watching The Same Game?

The paper and pundits a week ago Friday described the market as a rally stalled. The market for the week was up about 700. On Friday it was down 30. Doesn‘t sound cataclysmic to me. Last week it kept climbing. We seem to be intent on giving nothing but bad news. As a readership we seem to gobble that up. Let the bad times roll.

Once again why do we get mired in sadness? Nothing like a four car fatal accident to spice up your evening. One mass murderer coming right up. Puppy mills. For desert let’s have Mitch, Harry and John and Barak come on stage as the Depression Ensemble doing Gloom and Doom in A minor. I am sticking with Hick.

Live and Let Die.

I speak of hospice. The other night I worked a shift at the Johnson Center in southeast Denver. We have 19 beds and a waiting list. Those amazing people were facing one of life’s progressions. For those that had family, they were at their sides. Some would probably go that night. Some would linger. They were all consenting adults.

I am not allowed to speak of specifics but suffice to say there were enough poignant moments to really get the tears going. Sometimes sad but always fulfilling. And in a crazy way a celebration of life.

The great part about the work is that you are really giving. It has nothing to do with you. You are a bit player and only if called upon. Our primary emphasis is on the patient. In every way he or she calls the shot. If they want you there that is cool. If not, you wait outside. You do not try to manage the situation. You are not a know it all. You are just there to serve.

The transient nature of hospice bespeaks life. I am always taken when I go back a week later to see rooms empty or with a new resident. The blackboard shifts like a lineup card in baseball. Life goes on. In a very surreal way it reminds me of a maternity ward. Women give birth. The family gathers around the bed to say hello. Here it is the end of the process we call life. We say good bye. We all love.

Travel

Kath and I are off for a bit but will I check in from time to time. I have stored up Ted’s Head. The great Megan Kane will transmit on Wednesdays and I hope it all works out okay. Thanks for listening. Thanks for reading. Most of all thanks for thinking. We need those creative juices going full bore.

As always

Ted The Great

Factoids:

Incredibly, hospice and other palliative care facilities were unheard of  anywhere in the world before the late 60’s. There are now over 10,000 programs.

Fully one third of people dying in the US last year took advantage of hospice. On that same note for some reason Canada makes hospice available to only 10% of their population. Not sure why but it is not taught in but a few nursing or medical schools there.

There is still a distinct disconnect when it comes to doctors discussing death with a patient. It could come from the Hippocratic Oath. It could come from the superman status attributed to doctors.They have egos and they have to while making instantaneous calls in many cases. It seems they have to grapple with the concept that they can do no more. It is counterintuitive.