Crisis averted

I generally try to not to get in the way of doctors who are obviously preoccupied or who are not nice or who are just dragged out of bed and kind of grouchy. Since I'm still relatively new and don't know them well, it's best not to antagonize them. There are some who I can joke around with a lot though, and it's a measure of how much I've grown this past year when I feel comfy enough to call them by first name or just simply insult them.

Segue...
Take, for instance, this morning. We all carry department cell phones, so that no matter wherever you are or whatever you are doing you have no excuse to not come see or do something right this second. There are a bank of phone chargers on the corner of the desk, which during night shift has a few extra phones since we're awesome enough to work with less staff.

I'm minding my own business, and walking back from my patients room. I round the corner and hear a ring, so I check my own phone. Nope. Oh, now I see the unclaimed phone ringing. I turn and walk towards it. It stops ringing. I walk away. It rings again. I walk towards it. It stops again. The charge doc is holding a phone. I mockingly glare at him and tell him to stop calling the phone, because I'm not going to pick it up. He blankly looks at me and states he's not calling me. I walk away. The phone rings again, and I turn and pick it up - and answer it. Sucker! I fell for it! Hook line and sinker. He can't keep the giggles in.

This is a time when I'm not afraid to insult the doctor. I do everything I can to be snarky and harass him because he's doing it first. This is generally accepted behavior.

aaand segue back to the featured topic...
I'm jogging at an extremely brisk clip on the way to the cath lab with a patient. We're all pushing the stretcher past the max speed as tested by guys wearing nerdy glasses and pocket protectors. The cardiologist has very long legs, so he's taking more of a leisurely walk. I'm taking these super fast little baby steps behind him. He's grilling the patient on history, symptoms, what's going on, and he's also sort of grouchy from being dragged out during the wee hours of the morning. This is a "stay out of the way" situation.

Which I'm accomplishing pretty well, until it happens. Without warning. Mid step. I gave him the most massive flat tire I have ever given someone, ever, in my entire life. It was earth shaking.

I thought he was going to smash face first into the tile floor. He stops the stretcher. Stops. the. stretcher. With a heart attack-in-progress patient. And looks at me. I'm thinking shitshitshitshit and then man, he's going to be a jerk to me the rest of my career because we all know people hold grudges...

And then he starts laughing. Hysterically. And through his laughter goes "I haven't gotten a flat tire since fifth grade! What a flashback!" And then leisurely continues the pace towards the cath lab.

Utterly dumbfounding. I had to scrape my jaw off the floor on the way back to the ER.