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A friend of mine who is a Pampered Chef hostess asked me recently if I would be interested in hosting an online party. Since I love Pampered Chef products, I said sure. I have sent e mail invitations to some of you already, but if any of you out there reading this didn’t get an invitation and would like one to look at the products, just leave me a message and I’ll see that you get one. No pressure, just a fun way for us to all see some great products. 
I got to do something really great today. I got to mail off my final car payment! After five years of making those payments month after month, I’m finally done! It’s all mine. I’m really looking forward to being out from under those payments. Just thought I’d share …
“They” say one of the keys to losing weight is to determine what eating habits you need to improve and change, right? Well, I usually eat dinner around 5:30 pm and leave for work shortly after 6. I don’t usually get a chance to eat anything more until 1:30 am… some eight hours later. So by the time I do eat at 1:30 am I’m hungry and just want to run down to the cafeteria and find whatever fatty, fried, unhealthy food choices they have available. Being an intelligent girl, it took me all of five seconds to figure out this habit needs to change. The solution to changing turned out to be pretty easy to figure out, too. I cook just for myself and most recipes make three of four servings, at least. So obviously, I usually have leftovers. So it was a pretty easy leap to just carry my lunch to work with me to eat healthier choices. And to keep from being so hungry when I finally do sit down to eat at 1:3o am, I’ve been carrying healthy snacks like nuts, trail mix, and granola bars in my backpack to work with me. I can eat those on the go so that when I do eat a real meal at 1:30 am, I’m not as hungry so not eating as much. And what I am eating is healthier and I have better control over portion sizes. So this is a new healthy habit I’m working on. So far I don’t see any down sides to it at all and it’s working out very well.
I work nights, 7 pm to 7:30am. And I’ve discovered over the past almost nine years of a night shift schedule that there are some advantages to not working a “normal” 9 to 5 schedule. Sure, it can sometimes be difficult to schedule 9 to 5 appointments like doctor and dentist appointments. But there are advantages, too. I miss rush hour traffic. I leave for work after it’s over and head home in the morning before it gets heavy. I can go to the gym at 1 in the afternoon when teenagers and college aged young adults are in class and most adults are at work. And I can go to the grocery store at odd hours when it’s fairly empty and be in and out quickly. Tonight I went to the grocery store at 10pm. (Yes, mom, I went out after dark.) That’s when I was fully awake and had the most energy. It was a breeze to get in there, get a cart full of groceries for the next week or so, and get home. So I really don’t mind my odd night-owl schedule.
I’m joining my family in defecting from blogger and moving to another blog host. I chose wordpress and have my new blog set up. So feel free to come visit me here and drop me a note to let me know you made the trip there.
This one came from both my Aunt Quilly and Nessa…
1. Do you have any nicknames? My sis calls me Boo, mom calls me Brookie
2. What is your favorite drink? water, Cherry Coke
3. Tattoos? Yep… Asian symbol meaning “continuation” on my lower back… long story behind why I chose that.
4. Any piercing? Ears twice and navel. When I turned 35 I wanted to do something that no one who knows me would ever believe I would do.
5. How much do you love your job? Most nights I can’t imagine ever doing anything else, so I guess I love it quite a bit.
6. Favorite vacation spot? the Oregon Coast
7. Ever been to Africa? Not yet
8. Ever steal any traffic signs? No
9. Ever been in a car accident? Yes
10. How many doors does your car have? 4
11. Salad dressing? French or Bleu Cheese
12 Favorite number? don’t have one
13. Favorite holiday? Christmas!
4. Favorite food? mom’s shrimp or potato salad
15. Favorite day of the week? Sunday
16. Favorite brand of body soap? Ivory or Serra’s
17. Favorite Tooth Paste? Crest
18. Favorite smell? Vanilla, fresh bread baking
19. What do you do to relax? Read
21. How do you see yourself in 10 years? Hopefully still enjoying my job
22. What do you do when you are bored? read, play on the computer, watch tv
Put an X in front of all the things you have done. Remove the X from the things you have not.
In your life have you ever
(x) Smoked a cigarette
( ) Drank so much you threw up
(x ) Crashed a friend’s car
( ) Stolen a car
(x) Been in love
(x) Been dumped
(x) Been laid off/fired
( ) Been in a fist fight
(x) Been shot at – by a BB gun
( ) Been stabbed
( ) Snuck out of your parent’s house
(x) Had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back.
(x) Gone on a blind date
(x) Skipped school
( x) Seen someone die
(x) Been to Canada
(x) Been to Mexico - well, close… Guatemala
(x) Been on a plane
(x) Been lost
(x) Been on the opposite side of the country
(x) Swam in the ocean
(x) Felt like dying
(x) Cried yourself to sleep
( ) Played cops and robbers naked?
( ) Recently colored with crayons
( ) Sang karaoke
(x) Paid for a meal with only coins
(x) Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t
( ) Made prank phone calls
(x) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose - milk and soda, though not at the same time
(x) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
(x) Danced in the rain
(x) Written a letter to Santa Claus
(x) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(x) Watched the sun rise with someone you care about or love
(x) Blown bubbles
(x) Made a bonfire on the beach
( ) Crashed a party
(x) Gone roller-skating
(x) Gone ice-skating
Let me preface this by saying… I whine a lot when I’m sick. Just ask my family. And since I’ve been sick for three days now, my mom’s listened to quite a bit of whining. I’m not seriously sick, just have a mild case of the flu. I know there are people who are much more ill. And I am thankful I’m not more seriously ill. I’m also thankful I have my mom to be able to whine to. And at the moment I’m very thankful for hot tea and honey and lemon to soothe my sore throat. But I still feel crummy. Today was the first time in three days that I left the house. I only went to take care of some things that needed to be done. I needed to deposit my paycheck and mail off some bills I’d paid and get some food in the house. So I went to the bank, even went through the drive through so I didn’t have to get out of the car. Then I went to the post office where I was only out of the car for a few minutes. And then to the grocery store to grab just a few staples to last a few days until I’m feeling up to a more complete shopping trip. By the time I got home and got the groceries in the house I felt like my legs were made of jello and my arms of string cheese, I felt so weak. I’m thankful I’m feeling a little better each day, but I sure would like to be feeling completely better real soon now. I miss the gym! Needless to say, I haven’t made it there the past three days and I can’t wait to get there. And now I guess I’m done rambling and whining.
I have a problem with teenagers with manners. Well, not all of them. Just the ones who feel the need to call me ma’am. I know they’re just being polite and respectful and their intentions are good. Really. But I’m too young to be a ma’am! Ok, so I may be creeping up on 40, but am still only in my 30s. That’s just too young to be a ma’am. A ma’am is much older. Oh well, it could be worse… these teens could have no manners. If this is all I can think of to complain about at the moment then there’s nothing really wrong, is there?
Just a quick note to say Merry Christmas to you all!
~Brooke
I’m going to do some shameless self promotion here… First of all, run on over to Sar the Sensational’s blog and check out my post as her featured guest for this week.
Secondly, yay me for adding five minutes to my cardio workout on the elliptical trainer this morning at the gym! And I didn’t even feel it! So I was pretty pleased about that.
I ran across a very good example of a teenage boy who had obviously been taught great manners this morning. As I was leaving the gym this young man was coming in the door. I was several feet from the door and he could have easily let the door shut and it would have been shut before I got to it, it wouldn’t have slammed on me. But he paused and held the door open for me. And when I thanked him he politely replied “You’re welcome.” What nice manners!
I really am a member of my family… As if there was ever any doubt. Three other women in the family have written posts or comments on their blogs about complete strangers wanting to talk to them. My aunt Quilly, my mom, and my big sister. Well, tonight I was at a store just idly wandering up and down aisles minding my own business and this woman, I’d guess in her 60s, starts wanting to talk to me about this jacket she’s trying on. I politely told her yes, it was pretty and yes, it fit well and went on my way as soon as I could. Then several minutes later on my way out of the store the same woman wants to tell me that she decided not to buy the jacket because if she waits until just after Christmas it will hopefully be on sale. And wants to talk about this at length. I politely told her that was a good idea and wished her luck with that and left. But why exactly did she choose me to speak to? Aunt Quilly said it was because we (the women in the family) make eye contact with strangers and that’s why they speak to us. I suppose that’s as good a theory as any I can come up with. It was just kind of funny to me to find yet another trait the women in the family share. That list just keeps getting longer and longer.
A few days after the kitten broke the artificial tree I had up, I did end up getting a live tree and a very sturdy tree stand. Almost two full weeks later it’s still standing. The kitten is getting used to it and leaving it alone, for the most part. And I actually like the way it looks much better. However, it’s been years since I’ve had a live tree and there was just one thing I forgot… Needles off the branches are all over! Not just all over the living room, but all over the entire apartment! I vacuum every single day and they just keep coming! But it smells great and looks nice and will only be up a few more weeks at most, so I suppose I can live with it.
I joined a gym (actually the local YMCA) two weeks ago. Last week I made it there three times. This week so far I’ve been three times. And I am feeling the effects already. I feel like I have more energy, feel more upbeat after my workouts, and am remembering what great stress relief exercise is. Sure, I want to lose weight and inches as I do this, but it’s mostly about being healthier. I’m even beginning to look forward to my visits to the gym, and that has to be a good thing, right?
On Sar the Sensational’s blog she recently had a guest blogger write a well written and articulate post. It had to do with the Arizona state Board of Nursing having an issue with The Heart Attack Grill in Tempe, AZ using the term “nurse” to name their waitresses, as in “Nurse (waitress’ first name)”. She also wrote about different letter and phone call campaigns by various nursing organization and associations complaining about the portrayal of nurses on television shows such as ER, Grey’s Anatomy, and House. She made the argument that these are just cases of political correctness gone overboard. And while I see her point and her post was well written and articulate, as a nurse myself I would like to tell the “other side of the story.”
As for The Heart Attack Grill attaching the label “nurse” the waitresses’ name, no, no one is going to confuse these women with real nurses. The customers at this food establishment are going to realize these women are waitresses. However, there are legal issues involved. It specifically states in the Arizona state laws that ‘only a person who holds a valid and current license to practice professional nursing in the state may use the title nurse’. There are actually laws like this in every single state in the nation. Each worded slightly differently but all boiling down to the fact if you do not have the license (RN, LPN or LVN) you do not have the right to use the label nurse. Each of us who do have that license have worked our arses off for it and it is insulting when just anyone who does not have that education and skill set calls themselves a nurse. No, I am absolutely not claiming I am any better than these waitresses. I am simply saying I had to get an education and pass a national licensing test to call myself a nurse. So it’s neither fair nor right that these women are able to use that label without a similar education and the same national licensing test.
As for television shows such as ER, Grey’s Anatomy and House portraying nurses
inaccurately, I will start by saying I happen to enjoy watching all three of those shows. Each of them is set to record weekly to my DVR. They’re a lot of fun to watch for entertainment value. But not one of them shows you accurately what a nurse does on a day to day basis. In fact, I get a kick out of watching House and seeing the physicians administer all of the medications. That just ain’t how it happens in reality. In reality the physician writes the order, it’s sent to pharmacy, pharmacy checks the order, the nurse caring for the patient checks the order, and then the nurse administers the medication. (Obviously this doesn’t apply in emergent situations.) These shows don’t give nurses nearly enough credit for what we do on a daily basis for our patients. We are a valuable part of the health care team. In reality, a physician may see a patient face to face for between five and fifteen minutes out of a day. (That’s not to say they’re not monitoring lab work, etc. the rest of the day from their office.) But the other twenty three plus hours a day, it’s a nurse watching that patient and letting the physician know when something is changing or needs their attention. We are not handmaidens to the physicians, fetching them coffee and things. We are their eyes and ears the vast majority of the day that they’re not face to face with the patient. So for one thing, it’s insulting to be portrayed as just fetchers and handmaidens for the physicians. It undermines our status as a valuable part of the health care team.
Now, of course these television shows have no obligation to portray nurses (or any other profession, for that matter) accurately. It is, after all, fiction. However, we nurses struggle to be respected and seen as professionals. To be portrayed so lowly on television shows that are viewed by literally millions of people undermines our attempts at that.
It also effects the numbers of young women (and let’s not forget the men, too) who enter the nursing profession. Let’s face it… we all know that hundreds of college students enter criminal justice programs wanting to become crime scene investigators after watching how cool the job seems on CSI shows. Right? Well, with so many more professions becoming easier and easier for women to enter, young women have more and more choices for careers than ever before. Why would they want to choose a career that appears so lowly and underrated, as well as not respected, as nursing? These are the issues that many nurses have with the incorrect portrayal of nursing on television and in the media. And now I’ll step off my soap box…
I am so angry with my kitten right now! I know this sounds silly, but I came home from work this morning to the Christmas tree being knocked over, ornaments (some whole, some broken) spread all over the living room, and the tree broken! I went to stand it back up to start cleaning the mess and it won’t stand up. When he knocked it over it snapped the top section of the tree in half. So I’m not sure what to do at the point… I’ve tried yelling no at him and squirting him when he starts playing with the tree. I could put up a real, live tree and see if it’s heavy enough he can’t knock it over. (Or worry it’ll just make even more of a mess when he does knock it over.) I could put him in my bedroom with his litter box, food, and water any time I’m not at home and awake to watch him. But I work 12 hour shifts, meaning I’m gone from home at least 13 hours, and I don’t think that’s a good decision. So for the moment I’m going with the only feasible option I can see, which is to have no tree. 
I know it’s ridiculous to give a pet so much control, but I just don’t know what else to do. Take care, all.
Well, I got my Christmas tree decorated tonight. And I’ve been fighting with the cat ever since! He thinks he should be allowed to tear it apart and I don’t agree with him. It’s going to be a long month til Christmas! This is his first Christmas and he’s never seen a tree in the house with sparkly dangly things on it before.
Anyway, about it being a very domestic kind of day … I cleaned house all day, baked a loaf of bread in my new bread machine and made a big pot of potato soup. My house smelled so yummy! I love the scent of fresh baked bread.
Anyway, that’s about it for now. I’m tired from all the domestic chores so going to go relax. Take care, all.
Last year I didn’t even put up a Christmas tree… just wasn’t in a Christmas mood. And that is just so unusual for someone who grew up with Christmas being a really big deal in our house. But this year I’m back to being my mother’s daughter. I already have the tree put together, a Christmas table runner on the entertainment center, and a wreath on the front door. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! And that makes me happy. It’s been a few years since I’ve had a white Christmas and that is the one thing I’m looking forward to about the snow here in Ohio.
Work is still going well… I’m off of orientation and had my first shift with a full patient assignment. It went great and work is good. No complaints there.
The cat had to have a bath a few nights ago. He complained about it a lot and loudly. And he wouldn’t listen when I tried to explain it was his own fault he needed a bath. I’m not the one who put the wood glue on his paws that now needed to be washed off. I was gluing a face piece on a TV stand I put together and the glue was wet and dripping a bit. He decided to play with the glue and both paws ended up covered in wood glue. I didn’t want him tracking it all over the new carpet and I didn’t want it drying on his paws or want him licking it off. So… the only thing to do was wash it off.
And I think that’s all the rambling I’ll do for now…
I stole this from my Aunt Quilly’s blog and thought it looked like fun…
Wanna play? It’s simple. Copy, paste and if you’ve done it, bold it.
This will just prove how boring I really am…
01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise (I work nights so do this all the time)
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them (Practically anyone who’s ever eaten at Moe’s on the Oregon coast has done this)
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites (The ruins of a Mayan temple in Guatemala)
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo (It’s small, tasteful, and easily hidden)
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas (One of my favorite aunties lives there, so of course I have)
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking (Do this on a regular basis)
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived (Probably wouldn’t have without my seat belt)
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback (A patient at work, and it was only his hand I held)
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart (Not intentionally, though)
111. Helped an animal give birth (Grew up with lots of different animals around)
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone (foot, thumb, and elbow)
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol (Like my Auntie, all 3 of them)
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse (Dad says I could neck-reign a horse by the time I could walk)
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school (Went back in my late 20’s)
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions (Stay in touch with the only few people I’d care to see)
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language (A lot of this while in Guatemala)
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair (There was a Ronald McDonald orange disaster in high school)
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life (As a nurse, it’s kind of part of my job)
It occurred to me today that I am truly blessed. I am in relatively good health. (Could stand to be in better physical shape but no real chronic health issues.) I have a family that as hilarious an odd as they can be at times truly love and admire and respect each other. I have a new apartment that the cat and I are getting settled into that I really like. The brighter, sunnier environment is just great. I have a job I’m still really liking very much and a career I wouldn’t trade for anything. I honestly can’t imagine doing anything else for a career. I have someone special in my life to share the ups and downs with and he recently showed me just how much I really can count on him to be there when I need him when he helped me get moved. What else does a girl need? I just feel really blessed and at peace. I just feel like I’m at a really good place in my life right now. So I just thought I’d share that thought.
I don’t consider myself a particularly political person. But as a nurse and a woman there are certain political issues I consider important to me. Health care and abortion are two that come to mind right away. And I definitely feel I’m more inclined to agree with Democratic party’s stances on those issue than the Republican party’s. So like many others I know, I am pleased today with the results of yesterday’s elections through out our country. (And yes, I did indeed vote.) The Democrats taking control of both Senate and House plus Mr. Rumsfeld’s ousting today all do make me hopeful there is a wind of change in the air bringing positive steps towards peace.
And about the getting settled in my new apartment… it’s still going slowly. Got a bit done today. All of the big stuff is put away and most of the boxes left to unpack are books that go on the bookcase or CDs to go in the entertainment center. Just small stuff. So it’s going well and I’ll be back to posting (and visiting your blogs) regularly soon now.
Well, it took two days but we did get my old apartment cleared out and everything into the new apartment. And I have the bedroom and bathroom both at least 2/3 of the way unpacked. Tomorrow I’m going to get up early and make every effort to finish the living room and kitchen. Tonight I got the microwave cart put together, bakers rack put in place, and bookcases put in the living room. (Like everyone in my family, I too am a reader.) So I am making good progress. This afternoon I got my cable connection hooked back up so I will be blogging again. And visiting your blogs more often. I was thrilled to be home from work in only 10 minutes this morning. And I’m back on night shift at work, so I’m happy to be back to my regular schedule. So, things are going all right. Take care!
Well, it seems that plans are moving along more quickly than I expected, but since I have two other people with busy schedules moving my heavy things for me, I have to work around their schedules a bit. That means we’ll be moving my things into the new apartment Saturday! Yes, the day after tomorrow. Which, yes, means I need to get off here and get my butt busy packing. I’m only about 2/3 of the way done.
And I found out today I get a new stove in my new apartment! I knew I was getting new carpet, but yesterday the apartment manager told me she started cleaning the stove and decided it wasn’t even worth cleaning and they’re replacing it … actually, did replace it today. Yay!
I’m taking down the computer tomorrow evening and have an appointment for my cable to be hooked back up on Monday afternoon. I’ll check in with you all then. Miss me and be well in my absence.
Happy Halloween to all of you. And I got some great news today. I checked my cell phone for voice mail messages at lunch at work and there was a message from the manager at the apartment building I’m moving into telling me my rental application is approved, the new carpet is down, and when I called her back we agreed I’m picking up the keys on Saturday! Yay! I’m really looking forward to this. I will probably be moving my things the following weekend, and since I work full time most of my free time until then will be spent packing. But I will be visiting all of your blogs still.
I may be moving to a new apartment. Haven’t completely made up my mind but am leaning towards it. The new apartment is much closer to work. Right now I drive almost 25 miles to work. The new apartment is only three miles away. And it’s much brighter, with a full size sliding glass door looking over the yard. Right now I have just a window in my living room. There isn’t as much storage space as I have now, but as my wise sis and mom both put it, if I need to store it, do I really need it that badly? With some reorganization I could make the storage space I will have work. And the new apartment has a dishwasher! An automatic one instead of my two hands. And that’s my exciting news for the day… hope your day is going well.
So, I just finished my second week of orientation at my new job. While I still like it very much and am happy with my choice, I have to say that I am not a morning person and this getting up at 5am is killing me! I come home from work and I’m so tired all I want to do is eat something and get to sleep. (It doesn’t help that I work 12 hour shifts.) But I only have to do that for one more week, then I get back to a night shift schedule. As odd as it sounds to you morning people, I actually have more energy when I’m working nights. So I’ll have more energy to tell you funny stories… or bore you with drivel… lol
My cat and I have a new game we play. If I’m taking a bubble bath he comes and sits on the edge of the tub. I lift a handful of bubbles and let them drop off of my hand and he bats at them and knocks them off my hand. Silly, I know, but we enjoy it.
Speaking of cats (as I often do), that reminds me to share with you all something I heard recently. My neighbor across the hall is an older gentleman, in his 70s, at least. A very nice man. When I first moved in here about seven months ago I noticed a beautiful white cat often sitting in his window. Then a few months ago the cat seemed to just vanish. A few weeks ago my Sylvester ran out into the front hallway as this man was leaving his apartment and he petted Sylvester and told me what happened to his cat. Apparently a few months ago his apartment was broken into and he didn’t say if they peron/s who broke in took the cat or left the front door open and the cat got out and got lost, but when he came home after the break in, his cat was gone. He’d had the cat for 15 years, he told me. That just seemed so sad to me.
I think that’s about enough rambling for now. I’ll write more soon…
I’m going to preface this post with the statement that this post may get a little verbose and personal. So I won’t be offended if anyone doesn’t read it in it’s entirety.
October is breast cancer awareness month. As an oncology nurse and a person with a strong family history of cancers, and breast cancer in particular, you would think I would have already written a post on the topic. But it’s something heavy and serious and I wanted to make sure I knew what I wanted to say before I sat down to type this.
I have lost a grandmother and a cousin to breast cancer. Both were only in their 30s. I have an aunt who is a breast cancer survivor. And a grandfather and uncle both lost battles to different types of cancer. What made one of my past family doctors just stare at me for a minute is the fact these family members aren’t on just one side of the family tree. Some are on mom’s side, some are on dad’s. To say the least, cancer has touched my life personally.
And professionally. I’ve been a nurse for eight and a half years now and six and a half of those have been in oncology. I fell into oncology nursing not with any intention. I had been doing pediatric home care and loved the kids but needed to get some hospital experience. I went to work on busy medical floor at a local hospital. It was actually a medical/oncology floor. I quickly fell in love with oncology side of things.
Some people have asked me “How can you do that? Isn’t it depressing?” Well, sure, there are hard moments. But what keeps me doing it day after day and year after year is the fact I get to meet some of the bravest, strongest, most courageous people you could ever imagine in my work. I see these people going on this long and difficult journey through their diagnosis and treatment with grace and strength and I admire them.
I also learn from them. I have learned a few important lessons from my patients over the years. I have learned that no matter how important my petty little problems may seem, there are always people facing even bigger challenges. I have learned that life is precious. I mean, really learned what that means. It means you never know when your life is going to be totally and completely changed in a matter of seconds with just one word. I’ve learned not to take my health for granted. I don’t think my patients have any idea that they give to me every bit as much as I give to them.
Now if I may take just a moment to climb on my soapbox and do some quick teaching… Breast cancer, with early detection, is highly survivable. The survival rates for breast cancer caught early are very, very high. 98% of women diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer are alive 5 yearslater. It is not a death sentence. That’s not to say women don’t still die as a result of breast cancer. They do. But when women use the early screening tools they have available to them, it can be caught early enough for treatment to be be very successful. Those early screening tools are a yearly mammogram and monthly breast self-exams. They may seem silly, you may feel silly doing them, but they do save lives. Please use them. And everyone, please support any programs in your area that help women without insurance pay for mammograms.
About three years ago now my uncle died of cancer. He was a sweet, caring, generous man. The morning after he lost his battle I was in a class at work that was to teach nurses new to oncology about giving chemotherapy. It was also required for me as a refresher course. I remember sitting in that class that morning and watching a video that talked about how a cancer diagnosis affects family members of the patient. I remember saying to my mom and my aunt Quilly both later that I didn’t need to see that video, I was living it. I also commented to both of them that I felt at that moment like my entire life was nothing but cancer, cancer, everywhere. I couldn’t get away from it. It’s a part of my personal life, and a huge part of my professional life. In six and a half years of working in oncology, that moment is the only time I’ve ever wanted to get away from it. I’ve had nurses say to me “With that family history, how can you do this?” My standard answer is “It’s because of that family history I do this.” Cancer has touched my life in so many ways that of course I love to be a part of helping people with their journey through their treatment. And I love to keep on top of new treatments and see how far we’re coming with getting cancers into longer and longer remissions. Nothing would make me happier than to be put out of a job because we’d found a way to eradicate cancer.
My auntie asked if my new job has me too exhausted to type. Actually, it’s been a great week but I have been really exhausted in the evenings. Having taken a four week hiatus from work, my first whole week back has worn me out.
But I am really liking my new job! The first four days of this week were spent in classes and kind of on the boring side. It was all information that the regulating body that accredits hospitals requires new employees to be given and there’s just not an easy way to make it interesting. But today was my first day on the floor actually caring for patients. I left work smiling and in a good mood. And not because it was an easy day… it was actually a pretty fast paced and busy day but I enjoyed it. The staff I was working with were all very friendly and truly cared about their patients. And every employee I’ve talked to from all the various departments of the hospital all seem to truly like their jobs. I’m quickly becoming convinced more and more I made the right choice.
And I learned something today. Teaching apparently runs in the family. As most of you know, one of my favorite aunties is a 5th grade teacher. There have also been several other teachers in the family. Teaching does seem to come naturally to me when I’m talking to my patients. I’ve always felt that but someone else noticed that today. The nurse I was working with and I discharged a patient together today. As we were talking to him about two new medications he was being sent home on she had me do the teaching about the medications, side effects, what they’re for, things like that. She said I was good at it. In one day of working together she noticed that. I warned her early in the day that I am incapable of being asked a question by a patient and not answering it, so if I started answering a patient’s question that she wanted to answer herself to just tell me to shut up. She laughed and said that was fine. I love it when patients ask me questions about their medications or treatments or diseases. I love to teach them.
I think that’s all the rambling for now. I ordered some lovely, delicious smelling hand made soaps from Serra and they arrived today. I can’t wait to go take a nice long bubble bath and use my new soap!
I’m still working on designing what will be a fun challenge… So here’s a new variation to try. I’m going to type a sentence having to do with medical terminology and there will be blanks in the sentence. Your mission, should you accept it, is to fill in the blanks with the funniest, most off the wall things you can think of. Please post your submissions in the comment section and if there are enough takers in a few days I’ll post a poll letting you vote for the funniest one. Sounds like a plan? So here we go… If a patient is alert and is oriented only to two things and not completely oriented to three (person, place, and time) I might chart “Patient a&o x2, to (blank) and (blank).”
And now for the 5×5 my auntie tagged me to do…
Five Minutes to yourself. How would you spend them ideally?
1. On the phone probably with family
2. Reading
3. Petting my brat-cat, Sylvester
4. Being thankful I’m not at work
5. Reading any one of my family member’s or friend’s blogs
Five Dollars to spend right now. How or where would you spend it?
1. Handel’s raspberry truffle ice cream cone (Can you say YUM?)
2. Book
3. Some great thrift store treasure
4. Another book
5. A new calendar to write down the birthdays of all my nieces and nephews
Five Items in your house you could part with right now?
1. The wilted lettuce in the refrigerator
2. The ugly floral print pants in my closet that I’m not sure why I ever bought and not sure why I haven’t gotten rid of them yet
3. The stack of old read newspapers I haven’t gotten around to discarding yet
4. The candles on the kitchen table (need to replace them)
5. The throw pillows on my sofa that always just seem to be in the way
Five Items in your house you absolutely, positively could never part with?
1. Sylvester the cat
2. My cell phone
3. My computer (until it needs to be replaced)
4. The new super soft and cozy robe I got at Old Navy this morning
5. My photographs
Five Words (or phrases) you love?
1. I love you
2. Loveyoubye (that’s how Cindra and I end phone conversations)
3. Hi Brookie (that’s how mom answers the phone when she sees it’s me calling)
4. God is great
5. It’s on sale
As you know, today was my first day of orientation at my new job. It’s a faith-based, Catholic owned and run hospital. The only faith-based hospital in the county it’s located in, actually. During my interview I was told there are morning and evening prayers said over the intercom every day. That impressed me. And then today I was simply amazed. In this age of political correctness, we actually started the day of orientation with a prayer and then listening to a hymn. (A beautiful hymn I’d not heard before I’ll try to find to share with you.) But then at the end of the day we ended with the group of us walking to the lovely hospital chapel together and having what was termed a “missioning service.” It consisted of us praying together and then each having our hands anointed with oil that had been blessed while an individual prayer was said and the same beautiful hymn was playing in the background. We were told it was the administration’s way of sending us on our “mission” to be part of the staff there and provide compassionate and holistic care to all of our patients. I was amazed that this was done in today’s culture of everyone being so politically correct and so careful not to offend anyone. As my mom pointed out, they could “get away” with this because it’s privately own, not publicly. But still. I’ve worked at another faith-based, Catholic run hospital where we did have a morning prayer over the intercom every morning but nothing close to what we did together today was ever done. This hospital doesn’t just talk the talk… they walk the walk.
As I was sitting in the chapel I had a strong sense of “coming home.” I felt, as I have since my interview there, that this is the job I was meant to have. This is the job I was guided towards. I haven’t had that strong a feeling that I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing with my life since the last two times I went to Guatemala. So it was a pretty great day!
**I couldn’t find an mp3 file or video, but I did find the lyrics.*
Holy Ground
When I walked through the doors I sensed his presence
And I knew this was a place where love abounds
For this is a temple
the God we love abides here
And we are standing in his presence
On holy ground
We are standing on holy ground
And I know there are angels all around
Let us praise, praise God now, praise him anyhow
For we are standing in his sweet presence
On holy ground
In his presence
I know there is joy beyond all measure
And at his feet sweet peace of mind can still be found
For when we have a need he is still the answer
Reach out and claim it
for we are standing
On holy ground
We are standing on holy ground
And I know there are angels all around
Let us praise, praise God now, praise him anyhow
For we are standing in his sweet presence
On holy ground
I’m going to try a different approach to this challenge to make it more fun for us all. I’m going to post a medical term and want you all to make up your own goofy definition and put it in the comment section. Then on Sunday I’m going to choose some finalists (number of finalists chosen to be determined by number of entries) and post a poll for you to vote on the funniest. So here we go… the word is phalanx.
And now I’m off to get a good nights rest before I start my first day of orientation at my new job tomorrow!
So, this challenge ended up being harder than I expected it to be. I apologize for that. There was a winner, though. My own clever aunt Quilly came up with the right answer last night.
Adjuvant
Ad·ju·vant n.
1) A pharmacological agent added to a drug to increase or aid its effect.
2) An immunological agent that increases the antigenic response.
Now wasn’t that fun? lol Or not. I do have an idea for a more fun challenge, though, that I’ll post shortly. It’s actually an idea my clever brother-in-law came up with and I added to. So, congratulations auntie!
Ok, so for this 2nd challenge it’s going to be fairly easy. The word I am looking for is eight letters. It completes the following sentence. “When a medication is added to a medication regime for the purpose of enhancing or assisting another medication it is considered (blank) therapy.” Please e-mail your answers to me using the e-mail link located to the right of this page under the About Me section. The deadline is 10pm EST on Thursday and I will post the correct answer then. So, have fun!
This story has been on my mind for the past few days. I’m not quite sure why, but thought I would share it. Some background I need to share first is that Christmas is always a very big deal at my mom’s house. It always has been. Mom raised three kids as a single mom and it always meant a lot to her to give us a nice, magical Christmas. But as we got older rarely did she surprise us with our gifts. She would ask us earlier what we wanted and that was always what we got, with a few smaller things we hadn’t asked for thrown in. Correct me if I’m wrong, mom, but I think it was her way of making sure Christmas was special, by making sure we got the gifts we asked for. And we just inherently knew what was too outrageous to ask for so what was asked for was always reasonable. Well, on this particular year I was in college, finished with my pre-requisite classes and actually going onto my nursing major classes in January and knew I was going to have even more papers to write for school. I commented to my sister, Cindra, that I would love to have a word processor for Christmas to make my papers easier to write. (At that time PCs were still pretty expensive for the average joe to have in his house.) But I knew at that time even word processors weren’t cheap, so I never expected to actually get it and asked mom for something else, something smaller, I forget now exactly what. And now on with the story…
The setting is Christmas morning 12 years ago, the whole family gathered in mom’s living room around the Christmas tree eating our traditional Christmas morning breakfast of oven omelet and croissants and taking our time opening presents one by one. My niece, CL, was 3 and was “playing Santa Claus” handing out presents. My nephew, R, was only six months old and spent most of the day sleeping. CL said to her Grandma, “Gramma, Auntie Brooke doesn’t have very many presents under the tree.” Grandma replied that auntie Brooke could just help R open his gifts since he was too small to be opening them himself. As everyone has opened a few presents and we’re all having a wonderful time mom suggests to CL that auntie Brooke help R open this large square box she’d told me earlier contained a rocking chair for him.
Not thinking much of the fact R isn’t even in the room, he’s sleeping in Grandma’s room, I begin to unwrap this gift. Within a moment or two it became apparent mom had finally been able to surprise me. The box was actually my new word processor! I couldn’t stop smiling and giggling with glee and surprise. I really couldn’t believe mom had splurged so much on one single present. I later found out after Cindra told her what I would really like to have she spoke with Cindra and our brother and they agreed it was fine with them if she did that for me. I was thrilled to know just how supportive my family was of my education. Their support was as much of a gift as the word processor. That word processor got me through the last 2 and a half years of college and countless papers. I treasured it and treasure the memory of that Christmas.
First, I finally got around to remembering to post the correct answer to the medical terminology challenge. The correct word was “micturate.” It is just a synonym for urinate. There was only one correct answer and it was from my mom. Way to go mom… but I realized after you answered it I knew you knew the answer… lol
Now, for the list of 7 songs… (got tagged by Cindra…)
1. My favorite hymn - Amazing Grace
2. My favorite piece of classical music - Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet
3. My favorite contemporary country music song - Findin’ a Good Man by Danielle Peck
4. My favorite classis country music song - Harper Valley PTA by Jeannie C. Riley
5. My favorite song to ask my sister to sing to me when we were kids - Actually a tie between Da Do Ron Ron (the Shaun Cassidy version) and Let me be There by Olivia Newton John
6. My favorite song for my mom to sing to me - Happy Birthday, of course! lol
7. Favorite TV theme song I know all the lyrics to - The Brady Bunch (And don’t laugh too much, Cindra, ’cause I happen to know you remember all the lyrics to it, too.)
Change isn’t always a negative thing. Some change can be good, positive. But that doesn’t make it any easier or less frightening. Over the past decade I’ve seemed to make a large change in my life every few years. None of them have been easy changes, all have been stressful, and all have been positive in the long run.
Just less than ten years ago I became a homeowner, got engaged, turned 30, graduated from college, started my first nursing job, and got married all in the space of five months. That started the cycle of change.
Two years into my first my first nursing job I felt it was time for a change professionally. I was working in pediatric home care and working with the same children night after night in their homes. While I loved the work and loved the kids, I felt like I was boxing myself in and needed more varied experiences. So I stretched my wings a bit and pushed back the fear that was almost choking me and made the move to a busy floor at a local hospital. It was indeed a great place to gain experience and I learned most of the skills I use at work daily now from that experience.
About a year after that I needed to make a difficult change personally and divorced my husband. I felt like a failure for a while and got depressed for a while and then was eventually able to move on and see that we both were happier in the end.
Moving on in my case meant moving 500 miles away from where I had lived for the better part of 20 years. This was a change personally and professionally as it meant making a new network of friends and also starting a new job. But I was living near my sister and her family, so that was a strong positive to the situation.
Then after about two years there it was time for another move which brought me 2600 miles away from my family. To say I was stretching my wings a bit is an understatement. But I proved something to myself with this move. I proved to myself I could pack up and drive myself across the country alone and start a new chapter of my life.
Each of these changes was scary. And each of them made me leave my comfort zone. Sure, in each case I could have stayed where I was and remained just “comfortable”. Or I could do what I did and take the more difficult road that did end up being the right one for me at the time in each case.
I guess the point I am leading to with this rambling is that change isn’t always easy… and the right thing to do is rarely the easiest. In fact, it’s usually the hardest. I don’t know right now what change will be next on the horizon. Well, I’m beginning a new job next Friday, but after that… I have no idea. I just know I will be prepared for it to be a little uncomfortable, a little difficult, and a little scary.
Happiness is… finding a steal of deal when you’re out shopping! Let me explain: I was shopping yesterday at a store that sells surplus and discontinued inventory from departments stores at discount prices. I love this store! I happened to find a great nice neutral tan colored blazer that fit perfectly. It’s a well known brand name and the tag on it said the manufacturer suggested retail price was $109. It was originally selling in this discount store for $24.99. Then marked to clearance for $12. And there was a sale going on where all clearance items were 50% off. So it ended up costing me only $6! What an awesome find.
And now for a serious piece…
A few years ago I was at work on night shift taking care of a patient who was actively dying. She had been admitted to the hospital for us to keep her from being in pain. She had no family except for a sister in Belgium. That sister and her husband had arrived from Belgium just that day and were at her bedside as I cared for her that night. Neither of them spoke English and I don’t speak French, so we communicated through sign language and body language as well as we could.
At one point towards the middle of the shift in the wee hours of the morning the patient’s sister came to get me. She motioned for me to come into the room and communicated to me that she thought her sister was towards her last moments. I entered the room, took the patient’s hand in mind as her sister stood across the bed from me holding her other hand, and within a few moments with both of us holding her hands, the patient did take her final breath.
A while later as phone calls were being made and paperwork was being filled out we did find another employee in the hospital who spoke fluent French who came to translate for us. With the help of this translator the patient’s sister said to me “Thank you. You didn’t leave her.” As she looked at me with tears in her eyes we hugged and I had tears in my eyes, as well. It was an emotional moment.
To me, that moment has always been an example of how we don’t always see our actions the same way others see them. This woman was thanking for me for doing something I hadn’t thought was all that special. I didn’t leave the room of a dying patient? That was her first thought when thanking me for doing my job? Well, of course I didn’t leave. The patient and her family needed me to be there. What was going on those few moments was precious and special and more important that any thing else I might need to do that entire shift. I truly didn’t see my actions as being anything special. It was just the right thing to do. But the patient’s sister did think it was something to be commented on and thankful for. I was the one who was honored to be a part of such a very sacred event in a person’s life.
I have recently quit a job I was at for only six months. I know that’s not very long to stay at a job. I didn’t make the decision to leave lightly. But I truly felt I had to leave. It was becoming an unhealthy situation for me. Staffing was beyond horrible and far into the realm of unsafe. This medical facility is for-profit and run very much as a money making business, as opposed to not-for-profit run hospitals. The money was never in the budget to pay for enough staff to care for the patients safely. I felt strongly that it was only a matter of time until something unfortunate happens to a patient because of the staff not being able to monitor them adequately and the hospital will be sued. I chose not to stick around to have my nursing license drug into that when it does happen. I did, of course, make efforts to improve the situation before I just left. And I ran out of options.
Now, the lesson I learned here was that it is important to follow your convictions and stand up for what you believe. Sure, I could have found some way to stay there and stick it out being miserable every day but knowing I was employed. And I would have spent every day compromising myself both professionally and personally. I was not able to give the quality of nursing care I know I am capable of in that environment. I thankfully had the support of my family and friends who all stood behind my decision to quit that job even before I had another job to go to. They knew what I was doing was for the right reasons.
After much prayer and stress and worry, I did get a new job at a not-for-profit hospital. I felt as I walked out of the interview that day that it was the job I was supposed to have. And it turned out that feeling was right. It did work out just the way it was supposed to. In the words of my Aunt Quilly, “God is great”.
Another lesson I learned is that I don’t particularly ever want to work at a for-profit hospital again. I know one should never say never, but it was a real eye opener how different working conditions are.
I did learn from the experience. And that makes the six months I spent at a job I was miserable at not wasted time at all. Any time you can learn something from an experience, no matter how hard of a lesson it is to learn, the time was not wasted.
Okay, so my sister and brother-in-law are both doing these very fun challenges on their blogs. Tonight my aunt Quilly suggested I do some kind of challenge/contest related to odd diseases or medical terms. I will try to stay away from anything too terribly “gross,” but feel free to ignore these posts if you’re easily grossed out. So, to start with I’m going to give you a sentence and you have to figure out the word. You will have until Friday at midnight EST and then I will post the answer and the winner. At this point the only prize will be public praise and attention. You can send your answers to me by e-mailing me. I have placed an “e mail me” link on the right side of the page just below the About Me section. Or you can use this link here .
On to the challenge… What is a nine letter word relating to the act of emptying the bladder?
Not much new today to talk about… Just relaxing and looking forward to starting my new job next week. The last song I shared with you all was a musician I came by my love for from my dad. This song I’m sharing today is definitely one I got my love for from my mom. I don’t remember this, of course, but she used to sing it to my sister and I as a lullabye. To this day it makes me think of mom. So this one’s for you, ma. And thanks Aunt Quilly for helping me find the video! This was the best of the choices.
My sister Cindra recently mentioned her love of Johnny Cash’s music on her blog. It’s a love I share; something I, too, got from dad. And since I read that post I’ve been humming my favorite song by the man in black. So I thought I would share my “earworm,” as my sis would call it.
Why oh why are there Christmas decorations in the stores a full month before Halloween even? I know this point has been belabored over and over so I won’t say much. It just makes the holiday so crass and commercial! I long for the days when I was a kid and Christmas decorations didn’t show up in the stores until the day after Thanskgiving… maybe the week before but certainly never in October! And the Christmas shows on tv were wholesome and taught about the magic of the season, the true reason behind the holiday. You know, the ones like the Peanuts gang holiday special and Frosty the Snowman. They weren’t just half hour or hour long commercials for whatever children’s toy is “in” this year. Ok, stepping off my soap box now.
I was thinking today about holidays spent with my family. I’ve been blessed to have many wonderful holiday memories. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories was Thanksgiving spent at the beach. Really. It was wonderful! Two or three years ago now my sister and brother-in-law rented a house on the beach on the Oregon coast for the holiday weekend. The sun shone most of the weekend and it was a beautiful late fall weekend with temperatures in the 50s. I had a lovely walk on the beach with Grace, my sister’s family’s wonderful dog. And we had a great time visiting with everyone. We had quite a gathering of family there. And by family I mean those related by blood, by marriage, and those we call family by choice. It was a gathering of all of Tom and Cindra’s kids, myself, and a house full of assorted other eclectic, fun, and wonderful close friends. It was very laid back and relaxed. There was lots of laughter and joy and love in the house that holiday. After a delicious dinner we sat in the living room in front of the fireplace and guests sang and played guitar. We had such a good time! I truly treasure the memory of that Thanksgiving.
This is a picture of a lake in southern Guatemala, Lake Atitlan, or Lago de Atitlan. This lake is very, very large and is surrounded by three volcanoes. On my last medical mission to Guatemala in April 2005 I was able to take a boat tour of this beautiful lake. It was a slightly overcast day and a big foggy, particularly near the middle of the lake. You couldn’t see the shoreline and it almost felt like you were in the middle of the ocean. I had a wonderful day on the lake.
Now, the something I have to look forward to as I mentioned in the title of this post is a trip back to this beautiful lake and wonderful country! I was able to find an organization, Christian Medical Mission, Inc., that is leading a team to a small town at the edge of the lake for a medical mission next July. I haven’t yet but plan to soon fill out my application and get the paperwork process started.
As some of you may or may not know, this will be my third medical mission trip to Guatemala. The first one was in August 2003 with a team led by a pastor my auntie CB was acquainted with and I was invited to join them. My aunt and I spent twelve days together, shared a hotel room for I believe all of that time, and came home closer than ever. We had some wonderful bonding time when we weren’t both too busy being amazed at being so far away from home in such a different culture. And I don’t think she’ll mind too much me speaking for her when I say we both fell in love with the country and the culture. I knew on the airplane home from Guatemala City that I would one day be returning to visit these wonderfully friendly, polite, and grateful people. (As an aside, I have to mention this… one of the first things my mom asked when I returned home was “Are you and CB still speaking after spending that much time together?” I just laughed and said of course we are.)
Two years later, in April 2005, I did return with another team put together by Cascade Medical Team. I’d heard about the opportunity from some coworkers of mine, two of them who had gone before with this team. I again had another wonderful experience. I only wish I’d been able to share the second experience with my aunt, as well.
Approximately three months ago I started feeling very called to return to Guatemala, for lack of a better way to phrase that. I started looking into returning with the Cascade Medical Team and in the meantime ended up leaving my previous job for the new one I’m going to be starting in two weeks. The Cascade Medical Team trip is in February so I won’t have the time off work available. So this morning I did some research online and found this new opportunity. I’m very excited!
I know it’s “Wordless Wednesday” but I just have to share this… It is with a light and happy heart and a smile on my face I sit down to write this. I have a job! Yay! The nurse recruiter came into his office today instead of tomorrow and called me a bit ago with the good news. We’ve set up my pre-employment visit with the occupational health office and a few pieces of paperwork to get out of the way and I’m set for my orientation on October 13. So that will give me time to enjoy the rest of my break before I get back to work. Thanks so much to all of you for the prayers and positive thoughts and kind words.
These are just a few more zoo pictures from today… See my post below for more details. These were taken with black and white film. Again, I hope you enjoy!
Today was another lovely sunny fall day with temperatures in the high 60’s and nary a cloud in the sky. I decided it was high time I make it to the local zoo to explore some more of my new corner of the world. It’s actually only a 10 minute drive from my house and I feel badly that I haven’t made it there yet. So today was the day. As far as zoos go, it’s on the small side. But I spoke with several staff as I was wandering around looking at the different animals and it was quickly apparent they all take caring for these animals very seriously and love the animals. The animals all seemed friendly and comfortable in their environment. I had a great time being out in a beautiful setting in the fresh air seeing interesting and beautiful animals. And watching the small children with their parents as their eyes lit up when they saw an animal they’d probably never seen before! That was a joy. I had my camera out, my “real” film camera, and had a blast taking pictures of the animals. Some of them seemed to pose for me and others seemed to ignore me. I just wanted to share some of these pictures. I hope you enjoy!
The past few days have been pretty productive for me. Yesterday I cleaned out a storage closet I have off the laundry room that right now has mostly luggage, camping gear, and Christmas things stored in there. When I moved here and the moving truck was in a fire I unpacked things pretty hastily since I was working full time at the time, too. I set the boxes in the storage closet without really sorting through them to see what was left after the fire. Surprisingly, most of my Christmas ornaments were fine and just a few camping things were gone. So the boxes got unloaded and sorted and things packed neatly in plastic storage bins.
Then today I went out on my patio and swept it off. And cleaned the grill and brought it inside to store it. And I also cleaned the table and folded it up and brought it in to store it. So the patio is ready for winter.
After the patio was completed, I felt like some relaxation and wanted to enjoy the lovely fall day so I went to a hiking trail about 10 miles from my house I’ve been wanting to go see. It is beautiful, as you can see in the photo above. It was very green and quiet and peaceful. And yes, mom, I did have pepper spray with me and it was broad daylight. (I knew you were going to ask.) So I had a very nice hour long hike. And that’s what I’ve been doing with my day. How ’bout all of you?
Really, she does. Well, not anymore, but she used to lie to me shamelessly when we were children. Then she would say it was my own fault because she only did it because I was so gullible I would believe anything she told me. And the truth is, she was right. I was awfully gullible.
She once told me I was adopted. She even showed me a picture of myself as a newborn in a carrier seat on the front porch of our house and told me mom and dad found me there. (Poor scan of picture seen above.) Now, as an adult I realize how ridiculous this is. I am so very much my mother’s daughter it’s almost scary sometimes. And if you put all of the women on mom’s side of the family together the family resemblance is so strong that strangers notice it. Cindra and I have always had the exact same nose and always looked a lot alike as children. In fact, I would be a rich woman if I had a nickel for every time during our school years I had someone say to me “You must be Cindra’s little sister.” So the thought that I’m adopted is pretty funny, actually. But I believed it at the time. My big sister was telling me this, so it must be true. Well, not so much. Mom laughed about me believing that and explained I was only on the front porch in my carrier seat to get some sun and assured me I am most certainly not adopted. By the way, I have actually seen my official birth certificate issued by the state of Idaho and I am indeed very much my parent’s biological daughter.
When I was about five she lied and told me the Easter bunny lived at the top of a small sand dune near our house. She told me that so I would try and try to climb up that sand dune to see him. And keep falling and falling right back down because, well, sand is hard to climb. (Later I learned there was a trail around the other side of the dune that went right to the top.) It never dawned on me to ask why the Easter bunny would live on top of a sand dune. Why would I question my very wise older sister?
There was also the time Cindra told me she was dying. I forget exactly what she was supposedly dying of. Something strange and exotic, I think it was. And, again, I believed her! For some unkown reason I asked her if I could have her eyeglasses after she died. Something to do with the fact I thought they made her look smart (which she always has been) and I wanted to look as smart as my big sister.
It wasn’t that my sister was being malicious. She simply thought it was great sport to see what outrageous lies she could get me to believe. I’m still pretty gullible, I suppose, but she’s stopped teasing me about it quite so much.
**Correction**
It has come to my attention that apparently the picture above is not of me but of Cindra. It somehow got placed in my baby book by error. I find this pretty funny. And I have corrected the spelling of the word dying, for those who saw the post before I corrected it.
So, the nurse recruiter did call me late this afternoon. And the bottom line is I still don’t know if I have a job there or not. He said the team of senior management that need to release the position to be filled only decided to meet again Tuesday. I guess that means it wasn’t a flat out no. I’m very much frustrated and anxious and worried. And kicking myself a lot right now for having quit my job before I had another one for sure. But like I told my mom earlier, staying would have made me just as miserable as I am now so there was no good decision. And what’s done is done. I feel slightly better since I cuddled with my cat, vented to my mom, and went out for a “comfort food” dinner (a waffle breakfast at a nearby waffle house.) I’m sending out two more cover letters and resumes tomorrow just to be be on the safe side. It’s going to be a very stressful next four days and I’m afraid I may not be posting much. Be assured I am fine, and will return as soon as I have something interesting to say. In the meantime, be well.
The topic of what I’m going to do with my time off work has come up lately. I do have a few plans… My aunt suggested getting out and taking some pictures of my city. That is actually on my list. Along with taking a nice long bubble bath as my aunt also suggested. I also want to visit the zoo, take another day trip to Lake Erie before it gets colder, and there’s a bike path I want to go check out. I went out this afternoon to find the bike path which is about five miles from my house and discovered a hiking path, as well. The picture above is a quick shot I took with my small point and shoot digital camera at the head of the hiking path. It’s so green! Seeing this much green makes me a little less homesick for the west coast.
Something my sister wrote in her blog (which can be seen here ) got me thinking. She commented on how well we know each other and how we can push each other’s buttons like no one else can. I’ve long said no one can make me angry the way my sister can. No one can push my buttons the way she can. And she’s said the same about me. It makes sense that we can push each other’s buttons like no one else in our lives can. After all, we were there with each other when those buttons came to be. We know the whole history behind those buttons and triggers, each of us. We share a lifelong history, along with our brother, that we could never share with anyone else. We understand each other, the good and the bad, completely. It actually is a little scary sometimes how well she knows me. But not surprising. We share a history that led each of us to be the women we are today.
And on the employment front, I got a phone call today that I think is good news. It was from the nurse recruiter at the hospital I very much want to be employed at. It seems there is now a “holding pattern,” he called it, in place. No new positions are being filled. But it seems the position I applied and interviewed for was actually created to be able to get me to the hospital, as he put it was created for me. The director of nursing approved the creation of that position. And that same director of nursing can now approve my being hired despite the holding pattern. The nurse recruiter said that my references were very positive and they’re ready to make me an offer of employment as soon as they get the approval from the director of nursing. A meeting is going to take place with the nurse manager I will be working under and the director of nursing on Friday and I will hear soon after that meeting. The nurse recruiter said he is “very confident” that approval will be given. So I took that as a good sign. And I’m happy just to have heard some word.
Okay, okay, this is the last post about the stray cat. Just an update, actually. S/he has been taken by one of my neighbors to the local humane society so s/he could get some medical attention for his or her injuries. This neighbor left a note of the door to the entryway of the apartment building this morning.
Two other neighbors added notes on the bottom of this note saying they were glad to know this information, they’d also been caring for the cat the past few days. It made me feel good to know there are other people who care and were willing to help care for this abandoned animal.
As for the rest of things in my little world, I’m just trying now to get used to sleeping at night again since I’m off work for a while. For eight years now I’ve worked night shift and gotten so used to being awake overnight that it’s always difficult for me at first when I have to switch to a day shift schedule for any length of time. So it may take me an