mood: resigned

last night's sleep rating: C-

rounds: wasn't there

I'm in ACLS today. It's not too bad; nobody's giving us the evil eye about having coffee in class. There are a few other doctors in the class, none of them willing to sit next to me, which is fine. I did get a couple of -- I don't want to say "friendly," but maybe "approving"? -- nods as we sat down. They probably haven't heard the whole story of how I screwed up this whole thing with Vogler, and how Wilson and Cameron -- and almost Cuddy -- paid the price.

I glance over to the side of the room. The equipment's stacked up, all ready for the practicals this afternoon, including two manikins. And they're both on gurneys. Whom should I thank for that? The instructor? God? Please let it not be Cuddy, though I wouldn't put it past her to have called ahead.

The last time I had to renew -- this was back before Chase was hired -- the manikins were both on the floor and the idiot instructor expected me to kneel to demonstrate compressions and intubation. I told them to put Annie on a table; he didn't want to -- "what if the patient doesn't happen to collapse on a table?" Telling him that the patient would be out of luck because there was no way I was kneeling on the floor didn't convince him. Neither did raising my voice. Neither did one of the other docs yelling would you put the damn manikin on the table already so we can get out of here. It was... it was horrible. I was already tired from the week's work and stiff from sitting all morning, and I just wasn't in the mood to have to spell it out to him, in front of everyone else: because I can't kneel.

I was standing there, leaning hard on my cane and yelling something about pettiness and power trips and the instructor's credentials and schooling, and the instructor was yelling something back, and the others in the class were standing around with their arms crossed and various looks of exasperation and disgust on their faces.

Suddenly one of the other docs -- a surgeon -- swept back in the room, followed by the head of the Education Committee. "What the hell is going on here?" he demanded.

Cuddy was hot on his heels -- she'd only recently become the new Dean of Medicine. She pushed past the Ed guy, looked at the the instructor, looked at me, and hauled Annie up and threw her on the table. She looked back at me. "Start your scenario. You're the first responder. Go."

I stared at her.

"You heard me, Dr House. Go."

I stepped over to the table and got started. Cuddy looked around at the instructor, at the others in the class. "Was this really so difficult?" To me: "I'll talk to you later." She clicked out of the room. That was actually one of the first times I'd seen Cuddy in action; I'd only met her a couple of times in meetings.


I glance at my watch. Another couple of hours till lunch -- I'm going to meet Chase and Foreman -- and then practicals, the exam, and then I'm outta here.