I started practicing Critical Care in the previous millennium, an era when we actually used pulmonary artery catheters, we only knew of two interleukins, and we were faced with bed shortages and budget issues in healthcare. I created an ICU for animal studies of sepsis, using a Rat Ganz to measure hemodynamics. During this period, we have seen 3 definitions of sepsis, none of which has actually helped us to understand it or develop better treatments. Eventually I realized that improving patient care and outcomes required getting outside the lab. Thus, I became involved in quality improvement and clinical trials, which has contributed the most to my own learning. The greatest pleasure has been to work with colleagues and teams from across the country. My motto is to have fun at work and work at having fun, which for me is sailboat racing and downhill skiing – and believe me those both take a lot of work for me!