McFreakin’ Good

(Drop Jaws) Yes I wrote that! Too strong? I suppose. But it’s only because I feel that way about the show which has been the source of my Mc-ness... drumroll…Enter Grey’s Anatomy.

A medical drama unlike no other? Nah…not really. It runs alongside ER, House and Scrubs and it wins (in my opinion).

Some info courtesy Wikipedia:

The story revolves around Dr. Meredith Grey who began the show as a surgical intern at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital. She and the other former interns became residents at the end of Season 3. The show features an ensemble cast, though Meredith is featured as the central character, providing voice-over narration at the beginning and end of most episodes. The title of the show is an allusion to the anatomy textbook Gray's Anatomy, and play on the central character's (Meredith Grey's) name. Every episode title comes from the title of a song. The characters of the series include a group of surgical interns who later become residents, the various physicians who serve as mentors to the interns, and additional people in their professional and personal lives.

From the very first mention of ‘McDreamy’, I was hooked. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the show; McDreamy’s the name that the central character, Meredith Grey, gives to one of the leading male characters. And they keep faithfully to the McNaming throughout the episodes; from McYummy to McSexy, McSteamy to McVomit and most recently McVet. Maybe it’s just me but I think it’s those little creative repetitive bits that scream ‘Keep Watching’.

For me, Grey’s strikes the perfect balance between emotion and intrigue and is funny in all the right parts. While ER and House might hit the medical mark, Grey’s is technical enough to avoid being tagged ‘fake’. The characters are a real mix of personalities and the casting for each for these roles could not have been better. They really get to you with the make-or-break theme song and opening credits which show you the two sides to the show: medicine and relationships.

‘Nobody knows where they might end up.

Nobody knows.

Nobody knows where they might wake up.

Nobody knows’

A perfect fit!

I suppose the undertone of the show, just like with all the medical dramas, is, that it’s hard being a doctor and doctors are human too. It showcases, what I truly believe, are the only two frames of mind of a doctor; neurotic and calm. But what I get really enthusiastic about is the script! Kudos to the script writers of Grey’s Anatomy because Meredith’s monologues are right on target and possibly the biggest reason I wrote this post. I just had to have all her ‘life's truths’ written down somewhere… and here they are…

“A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today. This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, and sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo?”

“The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant; that knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying. “

“Maybe we like the pain. Maybe we're wired that way. Because without it, I don't know; maybe we just wouldn't feel real. What's that saying? Why do I keep hitting myself with a hammer? Because it feels so good when I stop.”

“Pain, you just have to ride it out, hope it goes away on its own, hope the wound that caused it heals. There are no solutions, no easy answers, you just breathe deep and wait for it to subside. Most of the time pain can be managed but sometimes the pain gets you where you least expect it. Hits way below the belt and doesn't let up. Pain, you just have to fight through, because the truth is you can't outrun it and life always makes more.”

“Four hundred years ago, another well-known English guy had an opinion about being alone. John Donne. He thought we were never alone. Of course, it was fancier when he said it. "No man is an island entire unto himself." Boil down that island talk, and he just meant that all anyone needs is someone to step in and let us know we're not alone.”


“Communication. It's the first thing we really learn in life. Funny thing is, once we grow up, learn our words and really start talking the harder it becomes to know what to say. Or how to ask for what we really need.”


“The fantasy is simple. Pleasure is good. And twice as much pleasure is better. That pain is bad. And no pain is better. But the reality is different. The reality is that pain is there to tell us something. And there is only so much pleasure we can take without getting a stomachache. And maybe that's okay. Maybe some fantasies are only supposed to live in our dreams.”

“At some point you have to make a decision. Barriers don't keep others out. They fence you in. Life is messy, that's how we're made. So you can waste your life drawing lines or you can live your life crossing them. But there are some lines that are way too dangerous to cross. Here's what I know. If you're willing to throw caution to the wind and take a chance, the view from the other side is spectacular.”

"What’s worse? New wounds, which are so horribly painful, or old wounds, which should have healed years ago, and never did? Maybe our old wounds teach us something. They remind us where we’ve been, and what we’ve overcome. They teach us lessons about what to avoid in the future. That’s what we like to think. But that’s not the way it is, is it? Some things we just have to learn over and over and over… again. "

"At the end of the day, when it comes down to it, all we really want is to be close to somebody. So this thing, where we all keep our distance and pretend not to care about each other, is usually a load of bull. So we pick and choose who we want to remain close to, and once we've chosen those people, we tend to stick close by. No matter how much we hurt them, the people that are still with you at the end of the day - those are the ones worth keeping. And sure, sometimes close can be too close. But sometimes, that invasion of personal space, it can be exactly what you need. "