CPR, AED, Heimlich, Grief, and then Steak for Dinner

Yesterday afternoon, I went through a two-hour refresher course on CPR. It included how to use an AED. Until yesterday, I had NO idea what an AED was. The letters stand for automatic external defibrillator. What an incredible machine! Although my last CPR refresher course was just a few years ago, the AED has changed the process. CPR is still done the same way, but if you have an AED, it makes it much easier. The machine literally tells you how to use it. Another part of yesterday's training was to go over the Heimlich maneuver, and that made me think of Roger who died last week from choking on a sandwich. As I did the maneuver on the mannequin yesterday, I kept thinking of Roger's death - what an absolute fluke that he was all alone at the time - and how it has changed Patti's life. Patti called soon after I got home, and we talked for awhile. I feel so helpless that I can't do anything to help her except listen when her grief gets too much to bear. I grilled myself a steak for dinner -- and after watching the video in the class that showed a man choking on a steak, I ate more carefully than I ever have.