Christopher Murray, MD

A post I’ve been deeply regretting, my grandma passed away peacefully in her own home this morning. She was 96 years and 10 months old. This was the last photo my mom took of her and I yesterday. Nearly every single day for the past 7 years, seeing her was a part of my daily routine. She took care of me when I was little , and it was only right for me to take care of her once her independence started to wean. Yesterday I spent a lot of time by her bedside and I knew that the end was very near. I told her that I was okay, and that everyone is okay, and she doesn’t have to worry about anything. Today was also my last official day of medical school, so I have a feeling that she wanted to see me through to the end of my education. Her comfort and love made even the hardest days become easy. I wanted her to not have an ounce of stress or concern on her mind so she can pass worry free. When I said goodbye to her yesterday I knew it was going to be the last time. Despite making a recovery from her ICU stay a few weeks ago, her kidneys unfortunately stopped working again and we decided to initiate at home hospice care to ensure maximum comfort as any further medical care would have been futile. From her cerebral amyloid angiopathy which is a form of multi infarct dementia, stroke, and chronic kidney disease, she unfortunately passed due to the complications of those. This morning, she died very peacefully, surrounded by all five of her children, and not with any pain or suffering. She simply closed her eyes and her breathing slowed and eventually stopped until the life left her. She has taught me an unbelievable amount about walking the moral tightrope between negligence and futility, among many other things. Of course, I’ll also miss her incredible Syrian cooking. Her family was from Damascus, Syria so that is where I get my Arab roots. Most importantly , hugging her and talking to her every day was one of the best parts of my day, it is so sad I won’t be able to do that anymore. I will miss her so so so much and her impact on my life will never fade. I love you forever gram. #grandma #family #love #rip #ripgrandma

The last video I ever took of my buddy just 3 days before his passing 💔. One minute you think you are okay, and the next you get hit with a wave of grief. Talking to many people as well as just talking out his illness and making sense of it’s likely timeline has helped me cope. It’s tough because when I got him, I wasn’t even the person I am right now. That sounds hyperbolic but it’s sort of true. I was merely 10 years old, and I can just vaguely remember life before him. What’s really tricky with veterinary medicine is that standard , non invasive imaging tests like CT scans, and MRI’s are actually high risk because the animals need to be anesthetized. So the risk assessment in actually seeking further treatment is really wonky compared to humans. Additionally, even if they do well with the diagnostic studies, the management options are profoundly limited. Targeted immunotherapies, chemotherapies, and other means of managing cancer in dogs are just not really available, heck even dog oncologists are rare. Jac’s initial symptoms were really vague and several vets just attributed it to the natural aging process. It makes you realize on the human side of things how valuable a good history from the patient is. It was believed that his primary malignancy was of the thyroid before it metastasized to the brain, lungs and stomach. What’s even harder for me to understand is that just 4 days before his passing, his bloodwork was completely normal. Chemistry, complete blood count, and thyroid studies were within normal limits. I read several papers and believe it or not nearly 80% of dogs with thyroid malignancies have normal thyroid labs, which doesn’t make sense to me. How can an organ function normally if it’s been replaced with abnormal tissue? Anyways , I’m clearly demonstrating the “intellectualizing” aspect of grief. The aspect of not being able to actually do anything at all is quite foreign to me, as it’s the opposite of my approach to human medicine. Sorry for rambling, it’s just a coping mechanism of mine. Thank you guys again for everything. Each and every one of you I’m thankful for. #dog #puppy #cockapoo #love #rip #loss #petloss

To say my heart is broken would be an understatement. Jac passed away peacefully this afternoon after a relatively quick progression of presumed metastatic cancer. He started to lose his balance a bit back in late April, to the point where he couldn’t walk straight. However, by late June he actually recovered significantly and seemed to be fine. The last week or so he started vomiting more, so we took him to the vet and they found a mass in his neck, stomach, and possibly lungs. Today he started breathing rapidly , and my parents rushed him to the vet. By the time they got him there he was near the end, but not whimpering or crying. While wrapped in a blanket, in my moms arms, the vet gave him midazolam, to calm any nerves he may have, propofol to put him to sleep, and phenobarbital to ultimately get him to a peaceful end. My biggest fear had always been making the decision when to help him cross the bridge, however he somehow must have known that, and made the decision for me. You guys have always been fans of his as I posted him regularly since stories became a thing, and even before that. I got him when I was at the beginning of 5th grade, and he remained with me until basically the end of my 4th year of medical school. 10/05/2006-07/31/2023. Jac, I will l love you for the rest of my life. #dog #puppy #sad #cockapoo #love #rip

Two EA-18’s collided today at Mountain Home Air Force Base, luckily all 4 crew were able to safely eject. Such a strange crash sequence. #planes #aviation #ea18 video from r/aviation

Incredible video of a SR-71 flying over Edward’s Air Force Base in 1990. This was specifically at the Dryden Flight Research Center, which is NASA’s primary center for high-risk, atmospheric flight research. To this day, 60 years later, the stats of the SR-71 are inconceivable. Sustained flight above Mach 3 is really REALLY hard to imagine. Speed was its greatest asset. Even under ideal Soviet conditions, a fully fueled and fully armed MiG-25 already airborne with perfect radar guidance and positioned exactly where it needed to be intercepting an SR-71 was extraordinarily difficult because the timing margins were so small. An SR-71 cruising at Mach 3.2 around 80–85,000 feet was traveling roughly 36 miles per minute, and its true emergency dash speed was likely closer to Mach 3.5+, or about 40 miles per minute. The MiG-25 could briefly exceed Mach 3.0(which is insane), but only for short periods, and reaching the Blackbird’s altitude and velocity required a carefully timed climb profile that rapidly consumed fuel. Even in a favorable head-on intercept, the engagement window might last well under a minute because the SR-71 would cross hundreds of miles of in only a few minutes. In a tail-chase scenario the problem became nearly impossible, since the Foxbat had no speed advantage. Missile systems faced the same issue, by the time radar tracks were confirmed, firing solutions generated, and missiles climbed to altitude, the SR-71 had often moved tens of miles beyond the predicted intercept point. At Mach 3.5, even a 15-second targeting error could translate into a miss distance of roughly 10 miles. It’s a marvel. #sr71 #lockheed #planes #aviation video from r/planes

My e46 m3 sounded so good with eBay headers and muffler lmao. Major throwback vid. #bmw #e46 #m3

Task Failed Successfully. Thank you pilot for making my anti air job easier. Tbh Golmud Railway plays INCREDIBLY on BF6. Made me love the game again. All they have to do is keep bringing back legacy maps and BF6 can become one of the all time great FPS. I need BF2 maps. #battlefield #gaming #fun

I may have driven into the wrong neighborhood. I thought this was green territory 😂. #gaming #gta #gtav

Frenzy kill in MW2019, I have no clue what the other team was doing lmao. The M13B rate of fire + hit marker sound in this game is a really addicting combo. Also, for more authentic voice lines I sometimes put the game in Russian to give me MW2 nostalgia lol. #gaming #fps #pov #callofduty

One of the sketchier drifts in my former Crown Vic lol. It’s always tricky when the gearbox auto upshifts😂. #ford #crownvictoria #drift

This is definitely my favorite custom zombies map of all time. It’s called Rust/Dome. Some map maker on steam workshop seamlessly merged the beloved Rust and Dome maps and used MW2019 guns and it’s just a perfect zombies experience. Plus there’s a separate arena you can teleport to for tough challenges (you can see at the end). Black Ops III is really the best of the best for zombies experiences, @anniezhanng and I probably have 400 hours on this map alone lol. #gaming #games #bo3

Price: $22,500. 2006 BMW M5 (VIN: WBSNB935X6CX06212) with 122,606 miles. Recently serviced with rear pads/rotors, 2 front tires, and oil change. Rod bearings were done at 85k and inspected again at 120k. At 120k it received a new OEM VANOS pump, new aftermarket VANOS solenoids, OEM VANOS hose, and new battery. At 108k: steering rack input shaft seal, front control arms, rear tires, throttle actuator gears, 60c thermostat, 2 lambda sensors, starter, oil pan drain plug mod, and AC compressor drive plate. Front tires also replaced at 93k. Mods include Dinan lowering springs, RPI race exhaust, Supersprint headers, underdrive crank pulley, MaxxECU Pro, Audi R8 coils, Ferrari 599 injectors, dual Hellcat fuel pump modules, dual AEM 340 pumps, E90 M3 3.15 diff, E90 M3 DCT trans + flywheel, 30-row trans cooler, Bosch knock sensors, NGK 97312 ILKR9Q7G plugs, GM flex fuel sensor, Speedsty wake-up module, modified idle actuators with VW diesel throttle body module, VANOS oil pressure sensor, custom e-box fan, extended driveshaft for DCT swap, Android CIC screen, velocity stack intakes, and GM IAT sensor. Air pump, PCV, EVAP, and brake pad sensors have been deleted/bypassed. Known quirks: oil level doesn’t display on cluster but works in CCC, adaptive headlight ride height sensor needs attention, Android unit audio doesn’t work (OEM radio works fine). DCT can occasionally have aggressive rev-match downshifts at high speed, shift knob isn’t wired for manual up/down shifting but neutral/reverse work normally. CEL may appear on very cold starts until VANOS warms up but clears easily through onboard diagnostics after a minute. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto included. #bmw #m5 #v10