South of San Francisco, as the funeral procession for Vince Perez and Tony Valerio weaved along, countless thousands of people took time out of their day to say goodbye.

I recently posted a video of the procession, but a video making the rounds on facebook stopped me dead in my tracks and made me cry like a…well…six year old.

It is another video of the funeral procession, but has a very important story to tell all it’s own.

I’m sure this young man’s parents had no idea they would be inspiring those who had lost a lot of momentum in life, just shooting some video to remember how their son reacted to a firefighter’s funeral. How did he react?

Well, he got his coat and helmet and stood at attention and saluted the engines as they passed by.

My brother from another mother, MotorCop, messaged me soon after sharing it and told me we needed to reach out to whoever posted the video and let them know what an impact it was having. So we did. And we heard back today:

Hello MC & Justin,

Thank you so much for your comments on my Youtube video of the SFFD funeral procession with the little boy & for reaching out to us. That is such a thoughtful and generous thing you would like to do but I have to tell you, his father (my husband) is a firefighter who was on a post that day and I am a police officer and the little boy is our son. We felt it would be a learning experience for him to be a part of the funeral and to understand what those men sacrificed for people they didn’t even know. We wanted him to pay his respects, to experience the brotherhood, love and support for those real life heroes and their families. He is six years old and aspires to be a firefighter, then he wants to be on “mom’s team” and aspires to be a police officer then a medic on the ambulance so he can save and help people. Of course, we would be thrilled and honored with either.

We were equally moved by the overwhelming number of firefighters who saluted and waved at our son as well as the family members of the fallen firefighters who opened their windows to smile and take a photo. To know for that moment they were able to divert their thoughts away from their grief and feel the love, support and admiration we all have for their loved ones, is why we were there. To honor and support the fallen firefighters, their families and extended families of first responders.

We thank you all for your dedicated service and for reaching out to us. Words cannot express our sympathies and sadness for the San Francisco Fire Department and the families of the fallen firefighters. Thank you ALL!!!!!

No. No, thank you. I was having a hell of a time coming to terms with what has happened recently. Suddenly my thoughts would shift to how Vince and Tony died and I’d be frozen, unable to speak, unable to feel, unable to express myself.
The video of the procession gave me some closure, but then I saw this.

And I felt better.

I saw the honor you have taught your son, and at a young age to understand it and stay waving that flag, salute never wavering…
I saw myself to be honest, and I’d imagine MC did too. Both our fathers were firemen and I’m sure he felt the same connection to this young man that I did.

They say some children have a wisdom beyond their years and it is seldom by accident or by chance. No, this child is an inspiration because he is more respectful than half the adults I know and that is a direct reflection on the quality parenting he is receiving.

I, like MC, wish more people took the time to share with their children the importance of family, honor and tradition.

I was ready to make this young man an honorary San Francisco FireFighter, but there is no need. Not only because of his family being already in the business, but because he already is. I’m sure that was handled by Vince and Tony on Friday.

Well gentle readers, you may have noticed a slight change in the blog in the last few days.

OK, a touch more than slight.

Happy Medic is no longer linked into the Fire EMS Blogs Network, but settling in here at the new First Responders Network.

The guys at Fire EMS Blogs invited me in at the very beginning and being a part of their network was awesome. There I was amongst some of the best bloggers out there, my little link popping up on the pages of AmboDriver, FireGeezer, Statter911, Life Under the Lights…the list goes on and on and on. They have added literally dozens of bloggers since the beginning and it was a tough decision to step away.

It turns out the TV and Film industry is suspect when someone else “controls” your content. Even though the FireEMSBlogs folks never once edited, redacted or guided my posting (other than some really great links and suggestions, thanks) the powers that be outside our close knit blogging family saw my blog outside our network as a liability rather than an opportunity.
Countless times I have explained to folks the relationship between me the writer and the guys managing the network, but repeatedly I would get a blank look, a “huh…” and then no word.

So with a number of exciting projects on the horizon, I’m stepping away from FireEMSBlogs and parking my therapy experiment here at FRN. We’re not as flashy or dialed in as the old network or EMSBlogs.com, another successful network worth following, but this removes the only road block that has been voiced to us regarding other projects. Projects bigger than my ramblings about annoying clients but, rest assured, you have not seen the last of ol’ HM.

The site has changed, both the look and feel, but the crappy content will keep coming. In just a few minutes I’ll be adding another edition of the Crossover Podcast and things are right back to normal.

So keep your links to HappyMedic.com pointed right where they need to be, but perhaps check that RSS reader to make sure you have the new feed dialed in. Check the link at the top of the page.

Updates as they come…thanks for sticking around.  And if you think THIS is a big change…

I give you Justin Schorr on bass, Ted Setla on drums and Motorcop on lead guitar!

You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

My Brother from another Mother, Motor Cop, spent another day at his “duck pond” monitoring facebook and scouring youtube for something to ridicule the FD.

He found a video you can watch at THIS LINK and proves that Fireman have all the moves down.

Don’t believe me?  Just compare that video to this one, featuring the REAL Motor Cop.

Village People – YMCA (version originale)
Uploaded by scorpiomusic. – Watch more music videos, in HD!

*No Indians, Manly bikers, cowboys or construction workers were injured in this posting, the Soldier, I’m not so sure.

e4, e6

Rogue Medic could tear the science apart on this one, but I can attest it is true:

I learn and recall memories linked to music.

You can play me a song and I can tell you things I was doing, sometimes in odd detail, when that song was playing.

Some folks have dabbled into the science on this but it stands that it works for me.  So with that in mind I have been studying listening to a certain kind of music that gets easily stuck in my head and is easy to hum over and over in my head during the exam.

I was wondering if you might sing along to this and send the good vibes my way.

My study buddy and I had the mock test earlier this week and both chose the same two scenarios to challenge each other with, a botched refusal form and a complaint about an esophogeal ET placement, let’s see how well we guessed.

I’ll be recovering later this afternoon and spending tomorrow gathering the call sheet for our next round of A Seat at the Table episodes to be filmed in San Jose, CA in June.  We’re bringing in some industry folks this time to talk about equipment, upcoming conferences and the like, so stay tuned for details on that.

And does anyone else know what on earth Mark and Ted have planned for June 4th in relation to Chronicles?  This image seems to leave a lot of questions unanswered.

Steve Whitehead’s EMT Spot is the host of the latest edition of the Handover Blog Carnival.  This month’s theme was a moment when things came together, clicked, worked, made sense.  He was kind enough to include your truly and a memory from the old days when a partner I hated proved to be a great caregiver, then went right back to being her normal larger than life self.  head over and read the other great submissions.

In other news, the first part of the test is tomorrow.  Thanks to all of your support, I won’t let you down.  The test might, but I won’t

The San Francisco Paramedic Association, in an attempt to improve bystander CPR in the City, is sponsoring free CPR training on the steps of City Hall on June 1st.  I will be there and hope to bring along the Chronicles cameras to capture such a neat idea.  Happy 50th birthday CPR!

Ambo Driver needs our clicky clicky skills in keeping a bad review of a local vendor in the number one spot on google.  Do your part.  I expect each of you to click the link at least 5 times over the next 24 hours.

And over on Facebook Ms Paramedic mentioned calling her work conveyance the “hamberlance.”  I prefer to call it the Amber Lamps after we watched this video featured on Tosh.0.

Amber Lamps sounds like Mark Glencorse’s Senior Prom Date…no?

FDNY EMS Paramedic Farooq Muhammed, the man behind the Call 911 music video last year has done it again.

This new song, EMS Anthem, was premiered at the FDNY’s 9th annual EMT and Paramedic games to rave reviews from Chief of EMS John Perrugia and Emergency!’s Randy Mantooth, who was on hand at the games.

Being the fanboi that I am I immediately went to Farooq’s facebook page and became a “fan” (liked it).  No less than 30 minutes later he has sent me a friend request and a personal comment thanking me for supporting him.

Nice guy.  I sent him a link to Chronicles and I’d love to get him a Seat at the Table before long.

So please to enjoy another positive voice for EMS – Farooq Muhammed and EMS Anthem.

From the story behind the Witches of Oz.  The wife and I saw this in the City before it hit Broadway and it blew us away.  If you ever get a chance to make it to SF, get tickets.

On The Rocks sings Bad Romance by Lady Gaga. On the Rocks is the University of Oregon’s premiere all male a cappella ensemble. Official Website: www.uoontherocks.com On The Rocks on iTunes: http://bit.ly/9aEfVs Check out more On The Rocks videos, as well as their sister group, Divisi: www.youtube.com/yankeessuck8991

Let it go, this too shall pass

I heard this song on the satellite radio a few years back and always seem to come back to it when I need to scream at the world.

I give you Scroobius Pip vs Dan le Sac

And here are the lyrics, my favorite being, “Thou shall not pimp my ride. Thou shall not scream if you want to go faster.”

Thou shalt not steal if there is direct victim.
Thou shalt not worship pop idols or follow lost prophets.
Thou shalt not take the names of Johnny Cash, Joe Strummer, Johnny Hartman, Desmond Decker, Jim Morrison, Jimmy Hendrix or Syd Barret in vain.
Thou shalt not think that any male over the age of 30 that plays with a child that is not their own is a pedophile. Some people are just nice.
Thou shalt not read NME.
Thou shalt not stop liking a band just because they’ve become popular.
Thou shalt not question Stephen Fry.
Thou shalt not judge a book by it’s cover.
Thou shalt not judge Lethal Weapon by Danny Glover.
Thou shalt not buy Coca-Cola products.
Thou shalt not buy Nestle products.
Thou shalt not go into the woods with your boyfriend’s best friend, take drugs and cheat on him.
Thou shalt not fall in love so easily.
Thou shalt not use poetry, art or music to get into girls’ pants.
Use it to get into their heads.
Thou shalt not watch Holyoke’s.
Thou shalt not attend an open mic and leave before it’s done just because you’ve finished your shitty little poem or song you self-righteous prick.
Thou shalt not return to the same club or bar week in, week out just ’cause you once saw a girl there that you fancied but you’re never gonna fucking talk to.
Thou shalt not put musicians and recording artists on ridiculous pedestals no matter how great they are or were.
The Beatles? Were just a band.
Led Zeppelin? Just a band.
The Beach Boys? Just a band.
The Sex Pistols? Just a band.
The Clash? Just a band.
Crass? Just a band.
Minor Threat? Just a band.
The Cure? Just a band.
The Smiths? Just a band.
Nirvana? Just a band.
The Pixies? Just a band.
Oasis? Just a band.
Radiohead? Just a band.
Bloc Party? Just a band.
The Arctic Monkeys? Just a band.
The Next Big Thing.. JUST A BAND.

Thou shalt give equal worth to tragedies that occur in non-English speaking countries as to those that occur in English speaking countries.
Thou shalt remember that guns, bitches and bling were never part of the four elements and never will be.
Thou shalt not make repetitive generic music,
thou shalt not make repetitive generic music,
thou shalt not make repetitive generic music,
thou shalt not make repetitive generic music.

Thou shalt not pimp my ride.
Thou shalt not scream if you wanna go faster.
Thou shalt not move to the sound of the wickedness.
Thou shalt not make some noise for Detroit.
When I say ‘Hey’ thou shalt not say ‘Ho’.
When I say ‘Hip’ thou shalt not say ‘Hop’.
When I say, he say, she say, we say, make some noise kill me.
Thou shalt not quote me happy.
Thou shalt not shake it like a Polaroid picture.
Thou shalt not wish you girlfriend was a freak like me.
Thou shalt spell the word ‘Pheonix’ P-H-E-O-N-I-X not P-H-O-E-N-I-X, regardless of what the Oxford English Dictionary tells you.
Thou shalt not express your shock at the fact that Sharon got off with Bradley at the club last night by saying ‘Is it’
Thou shalt think for yourselves.
And thou shalt always, Thou shalt always kill.