To most of us the emergency room (ER) can be a foreboding place, but to the team who work here, it"s home. At times, it is just like what you see on television_hours of mundane activity interspersed with moments of terror involving life-changing, visceral emergencies. It is the never-ending struggle of life and death, and the balance can shift ever so slightly in the day-to-day. But more than that, within the walls, there are the people. The patients, who in an unknown circumstance without their normal mechanisms for control available to them, are still mostly optimistic and hopeful. The physicians continually strive toward flawless technical excellence, while attempting to maintain a human touch in the interaction. The nurses are caring, kind, and perform the proverbial acts of mercy. The ancillary staff_registration, technicians, aids, and housekeepers_are the cohesive group that gets the hard jobs done. This is their story.