We are expecting a little one on July 4, as some may already know, and mom made me attend the childbirth class put on by the local hospital. Despite my attempts to avoid the class I was awakened at 0800 hous this morning and made to go.
1. Of the several types of breathing exercises they teach, I like combat breathing, and had almost forgot all about it. Thinking back, I use it without even thinking about it on the streets when necessary. It was kinda cool re-learning the "skill".
2. An almost sure-fire cure for insommnia (other than the class itself) is the candle breathing, where moderately deep inhalations are exhaled slowly, as if blowing on a lit candle. The trick is to exhale slow and steady, to bend the imaginary flame over, and not make it go out or flicker. Amazing what several minutes of this will do.
3. Childbirth is generally disgusting.
4. Drugs are bad, mmmmkay. Toured the NCIU and the nurse practioner came out with the cutest "newborn" you would ever see. As it turns out this kid was over a month old and was still in the NCIU. Why? Drug baby. Mom was addicted to heroin, and of course started Methadone to try and get off. The kid was born addicted to methadone, and suffered all sorts of bad shit. Had to be fed by a tube. I was told mom the shitbird is a "good parent" and visitis nightly. The child has lived its entire one month in this world in an intensive care unit, because his shitty mother couldnt get off drugs. Guess what the infant gets for treatment? Morphine, daily. Fucking junkies. Damn thing made a tear in the eye of almost everyone in the group.