Ethical dilemma?

Is it unethical for a vegetarian to eat a carnivorous plant?

Feared medical procedures

Last night, I caught most of a show on ABC called "Boston Med." It's one of those reality hospital shows, kind of like "Trauma, Life in the ER," or those similar-type shows that run on TLC and Discovery Health a lot. I do like watching medical shows, as the cases can be really interesting. Last night, one of the patients featured was a teenage girl that was getting a heart transplant.

I thought, "wow, that sounds like just about the scariest surgery anyone could every have." I mean, let's think about what happens here. They cut you open, they hook you up to a heart-lung machine, they TAKE OUT YOUR HEART, they stick a new one in there, they reattach stuff, and hopefully the new heart starts beating again, and I guess at that point they disconnect you from all the machines. I mean, I know people survive these procedures on a regular basis, but still, for a little while there, YOU DON'T HAVE A HEART. It's like you're kind of not all the way alive. Yikes!

Next to a heart transplant, open heart surgery sounds pretty scary to me too. Again, lots of people survive open heart surgery and bypass surgery. I personally know several people who have had this procedure. But still, for a while there, YOUR HEART IS NOT BEATING. I mean, there is a possibility that you might not be here after the procedure if your heart doesn't restart.

Okay, so I really really hope I never have to have heart surgery. But there is one other surgery I really really hope I never have to have either. Brain surgery. The idea of someone opening up my skull and rooting around in there is just weird. Okay, I know they don't actually "root around" as they have finely calibrated instruments and microscopes and stuff. But still, you have to admit that it's still a bit scary.

Okay, so those are pretty big medical procedures, and honestly, I don't think I'm scared of anything else, medical-procedure-wise. But seriously, even a trip to the dentist can be a terrifying experience for some.

So out of curiosity, what are your feared medical procedures?

Bowser vs. Mario (and Luigi). And the winner is. . .

Mario (and Luigi). We finally did it. Last night, we got up the courage to beat Bowser in the final castle of World 8 in the new Super Mario Wii game. We had attempted this a few weeks ago, but we kept dying in hot lava, so we left it alone for a while in order to collect the remaining star coins in the lower worlds. But last night, about the only thing left for us to do was to defeat Bowser. I will admit, we were a little nervous about it at first. But it only took 3 tries to send Bowser to his demise in a sink hole of hot lava. Our next endeavor is to make it through the secret World 9, although unfortunately the only prize for making it through World 9 is personal satisfaction.

An interesting side note: If you look around on Ebay and Amazon, you can find a great many of the characters and charms from Super Mario in plush form, and some for very cheap. Seriously, you could probably buy all of the Super Mario cast for a very small sum of money and stage your own Super Mario adventure (maybe something to keep in mind as children's presents for birthdays and holidays in the future). Also, when you see Bowser as a 10 inch tall plush figure, he doesn't seem so scary; in fact, he's almost cute!