NCLEX, internet acquaintances, and the fun of fabric shaving
Yep, we are having some miscellany today!
What is the NCLEX?
I can't believe I didn't add this to the nursing/pinning FAQs (I'll go back and add it!)
The NCLEX is the national licensing exam for nurses and it's separate from getting a nursing degree. I currently have my nursing degree, but I haven't taken the NCLEX yet.
I did submit all the paperwork and pay all the fees, but my school says it will take 4-6 weeks to get approved to test.
I'm not in a terrible rush, but I would kind of like to get this off my back. So as soon as I'm approved, I'll go in and get it done.
There is an NCLEX for LPNs (Licensed Practical Nurses) and one for RNs (Registered Nurses). People who have a bachelor's of nursing and an associate degree in nursing both take the NCLEX for RNs.
And when I finish my online bachelor's program, I will not have to take another NCLEX, because I'll already be a full-fledged RN!
Thank you!
I know I have said this before but I want to say it again: I really appreciate all the encouragement and support and cheering from you guys. Thank you!!! I have read every single comment here and on my social media and they all made me smile. 🙂
And it really made me smile to see so many of you de-lurking to leave a comment for the first time, just to encourage me. I wish I could give all of you a hug to say thank you.
It's not weird to say you're proud of an internet person
So many of you have said something like, "I hope this isn't weird, but I'm so proud of you!"
And I just want to say that it is totally not weird to me because I have felt this too.
For instance, I have an online acquaintance who was a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom, became widowed, then picked up the pieces of her life and went back to school to get her CPA. I followed along as she did math class after math class and then took really hard licensing exams, and my goodness, when she passed, I was cheering at my house.
I felt so proud of her, even though I've never met her in person. Her life took a really unexpected turn, she got knocked down, but she got back up again and she did it so well! Woohoo!
As another example, I follow an Instagram account run by two guys who are first-generation college students in medical school. They grew up working low-paying manual labor jobs, and now they're working towards their medical degrees.
When they graduate, I know I'm gonna feel so proud of them even though I will never make their acquaintance.
Suffice it to say: I completely understand the feeling of being proud of someone you've only known through the internet. 🙂
Fabric shaving: really fun
Yesterday in the comments I said something about it being kind of fun to suck the air out of a ziploc bag with a straw (kind of a DIY vacuum seal). And I said this might be evidence that my ideas of fun are a little bit...off.
So, I need to tell you: when my friend Mia was visiting, she was picking pills off her sweater, so I told her about my fabric shaver and how it's really fun to use it on pilled clothes.
She thought to herself, "Ok, that's a weird kind of fun!" but she gamely gave mine a try and now she understands! In fact, she ordered one for herself within five minutes.
So, take it from Mia, the fabric shaver skeptic: get one! It's surprisingly enjoyable to use. 😉
I bought mine from Aldi years ago, but this one is almost identical and it comes with extra blades too.
If you buy one, you need to let me know if you think it's fun to use. 😉
I bought my fabric shaver after you talked about yours. And yes, it is strangely satisfying to make something look almost new again. I feel the same way about painting things.
Yes! It’s the same type of satisfying.
@Darlene Too, I'm afraid I'll ruin sweaters with a shaver.
Here's a fun miscellany for you: I bought some chorizo sausage for dinner on Friday because my mother-in-law is visiting and loves it. I rarely buy it, and so spent some time looking at the different brands. I noticed there was only one "premium" brand. It was a few dollars more than the cheap kinds. Curious, I read the ingredients on both kinds. The premium chorizo listed pork as the first ingredients. The cheaper ones listed salivary glands and lymph nodes. I for sure did a double-take at that. All of the cheap brands actually listed those as the primary meat product.
I am hard to gross out when it comes to food, but that did it. I bought the premium kind. It's entirely possible that the "pork" listed in its ingredients is a euphemism for equally unappealing parts of a pig, but at least it wasn't listed right on the package.
Oh, interesting! I buy mine from the local Hispanic grocery store and I don’t know if they list the ingredients in such detail. I’ll check next time.
I love chorizo and potato tacos, and the leftovers are so good mixed with scrambled eggs!
@kristin @ going country,
Yuck! That grosses me out, too. In fact, I may never buy sausage again without reading the ingredients.
@kristin @ going country, I understand the waste-not, want-not part of it, but sometimes ignorance truly is bliss. And don't even get me started on tongue as deli meat!...
Most things that have chorizo in them is broken up anyway so make your own. There are a ton of recipes to play with and then you control the ingredients and it’s a ton cheaper. You can do that with any kind of sausages. If you must have casing on them, look into a sausage stuffer. If you have a kitchen mixer you can get an attachment for it. Usually sausages are like hot dogs, let’s use up the scraps and garbage. It’s easier than you think
@kristin @ going country,
I remember from my history class in 9th grade that the muckrakers reported that in those meatpacking plants back then, they included "everything but the oink" in pork sausage. Think about that for a minute.....GROSS!
@kristin @ going country, consider soyrizo. IMO, it's surprisingly good.
@CrunchyCake,
Could I do a soyrizo and pan fried potato breakfast burrito?
@CrunchyCake, Agreed. TJ's Vegan Chorizo is delicious!
@AnnieH,
LOL, growing up in southern California as a kid (50ish years ago), we would go grocery shopping with my mom at our local grocery store (I think it was Alpha Beta?) in a heavily Latin part of town. My sisters and I would always grab a raw, whole cow's tongue from the meat case, and "lick" my mom's arm with it. My mom always laughed, and (of course) told us to put it back. 🙂
@Liz B., That made me laugh so hard because every time I hear someone mention beef tongue that is what I picture happening!
I have never used or owned a fabric shaver, but I think you may have convinced me!!
Yes yes, you will love it, especially with all the thrifting you do!
I think I have the same one from Aldi that you do and yes... it is fun!
Yes, I DO love shaving pills off fabric. I also would quite happily assemble IKEA furniture for hours...it's just like LEGO for grownups.
@Meira@meirathebear, Can you assemble all of my furniture? I have the opposite of that skill lol!
@Meira@meirathebear,
Building IKEA furniture would be a great side gig for you! In your spare time, of course. Ha.
@Meira@meirathebear, who says adults can't use actual Lego? No reason to have to grow out of Lego, right?
Ha! I’ll have to try a fabric shaver. I can add it to my list of satisfying things to use.
First, I love using my bamboo toast tongs to get my bread from the toaster, I find them oddly fun to use.
Second I find using a swiffer (using my own washable microfiber cloth of course!)
To be excellent fun.
Clearly I am easily amused!
I relate to this situation of being easily entertained. Ha.
I used to have the cutest little fabric shaver that I kept in my makeup drawer of all places, and it finally gave out after years of use. I need to order another one! They also make manual ones that you simply swipe across the fabric, and those work well, too. That is on my short list of things to do today!
I have a sweater shaver much like yours. I use often in the winter months. My lightweight sweaters have a tendency to pill.
On another note, I thin it is wonderful when online friendships blossom. They reflect the love, compassion, and empathy that we have for one another.
By sharing your ups and downs, Kristen, you have encouraged others to reach for the stars.
@Bee, I agree completely about the online friendships--especially when I think about all the online friends I've made both here and at the NCA.
Yes, I love my fabric shaver! Very satisfying to use. I call this having a Low Delight Threshold. Doesn’t take much to make me happy, and I enjoy the little things in life as well as the big ones!
A co-worker told me about fabric shavers years ago, and I've had one ever since. They really make an improvement in the garment's appearance! I enjoy using it, too. I agree that painting is also satisfying, and I'll add that things like sewing up hems on towels, repairing tears and holes in clothes, and putting buttons back on are very satisfying. Oh, and polishing shoes.
I don't think it's odd to have an internet "friend." I would recommend that people have physical friends, too, if possible. But both are great!
I think a big problem with the whole internet relationships is that you don't want it to be something parasocial. Feeling proud of someone online can feel real (and they are a real person) but then I tend to doubt my intentions and wonder if it's not just me feeling the same way I'd feel proud of a movie or TV or book character.
But then I fully acknowledge that I overthink things a lot.
If it helps at all: as someone on the receiving end of internet support, it does feel real and wonderful. 🙂
@Battra92, I’m with you on the “overthinking” (except I just call it “thinking”) because I have also wondered if it is the same as caring about a character in a book. But Kristen is definitely real, and several others I’ve “met” online have turned into real friends. It’s always through blogs for me rather than FB or IG, people who write authentically (not using a formula) and consistently and who respond to comments, or are commenters who get in touch. It’s great fun to get to know people from all over!
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, Battra92,
What a Jana said…but also, real-life friends can become online friends, too. Consider how in the olden days, when friends moved a plane flight away, you kind of lost contact, barring a phone call once in a while. Now, with FaceTime and Zoom etc., we “see” them often. My DH has a Zoom group made up of friends he grew up with, all living states apart, and they have jolly good times together regularly ( and almost daily in their group texts, another way that dear real friends can become dear online ones).
@Battra92, I met one of my RL best friends online, as part of an early food and recipe site. Funny thing is, her husband is as suspicious online people as I am. Now we're friends as well.
I've been using a pair of super sharp sewing scissors to remove pills, but the fabric shaver would be better since if I'm not really careful, I can easily cut the fabric with my scissors. I do find it satisfying to remove them though...
On that note, I enjoy using up the very last bits of things, especially when I cut open a tube to get the rest out. It's oddly satisfying to the cheapskate in me.
Oh yes, I'm sure I would have made some holes with the sharp scissor method! I like that the fabric shaver makes it almost impossible to cut the fabric.
lol!! I am proud of you and i only know you over the internet! I tell my husband about you sometimes.
However, I am not interested in fabric shaving. 🙂
Hehe, it's ok. You can still hang around here even if you skip the delights of fabric shaving. 😉
I rarely comment, but congratulations! I've followed your blog for many years and truly enjoy it. I shared it with our oldest granddaughter, who was just accepted into nursing school and she, too, is thrilled for you!
You deserve EVERY congratulations!!!
lol, I bought a fabric shaver after humming and hawing about it for A Long Time and then seeing your post about it. and what can I say, I Love It! and so does my 17y.o. What can I say, we live dangerously over here hehe
Fabric shaving wasn't very thrilling for me but I love getting sauce out of the bottom of a jar with a flexible spatula! Haha!
I have not yet joined the fabric shaving club, but I’d like to! My random miscellany is from this weekend. I participated in a 10k race and noticed so many of the snack bag/beer tags littering the course. I wasn’t going for time so I stopped to pick up (almost) all that I spotted. I wound up with 11 extra tickets! I redeemed 3 snack bags- 1 for me and then 2 for my kids and then passed out the rest to college kids who could use some extra snacks
I haven't commented until today, but I have enjoyed your graduation festivities, and I am also proud of you! I love what you put on your cap, and your smiles say it all! Well done! I also laughed out loud about the muumuu and weird hat comment, so that I had to explain it to my 20-year-old son. He got a kick out of it too. You are going to be such a blessing to your patients, as you are to us, your readers. Congratulations!
@Sherri in GA,
Wait, what? I missed the comment about the muumuu and weird hat!
Oh, that was in this blog post: https://www.thefrugalgirl.com/so-i-graduated/
Like Darlene Too, I bought my fabric shaver after you told us about yours. However, I keep forgetting about it—thanks for the reminder!
Thank you also for letting us know it isn’t weird to feel proud of an internet person. You are more of a real person because you interact with your commenters and even answer emails. I have really appreciated our email conversations!
That do-it-yourself vacuum seal process just cracks me up because my sister taught me that a few years ago. I never use straws, so I kept the straw she gave me for the purpose and it lives in a kitchen tool drawer. (Is there any greater symbol of being outright cheap??)
Yes to fabric shavers! Been using one for years.
I've been thinking about pulling out the fabric shaver and going to town on couch cushions - I think the fun will wear off quickly given the amount that needs to be done, but it will be satisfying when it's over.
My very dear Mother-In-Law passed away a few years ago, and I inherited her fabric shaver. I mean, I also received her sewing machine and a few other things, but I got the fabric shaver because she *knew* I'd want that thing! It's just so satisfying (and easy), and it 100% improves whatever you're depilling.
Um, I never commented on your social media, but I've been cheering you on the whole way! And...I might have to get a fabric shaver now...
I bought the fabric shaver that you recommended and I think it is absolutely fun and very satisfying to use.
So proud of you! I'm enjoying your journey, thanks for sharing.
i bought one that is not quite a shave but it is for pills on sweaters and i really liked it, thanks for mentioning it again. i still hope to meet you irl someday.
I love FoosInMedicine too! Glad to see the love for these guys.
Aging myself. I had a fabric shaver way back in college. Used it to lovingly shave the pills off my izod cardigan sweater. Still have the sweater and battery ok shaver.
I buy my chorizo fresh from a local restaurant. They teach classes on tortilla making and they have margarita classes as well.
I love tongue, especially since the instant pot came into my life. I grow custom organic beef and offer up the tongue , liver and heart as well as marrow bones and none of my usual customers take them.
Have a happy day everyone!
@Blue Gate Farmgirl, I'd love to be able to take the lights from you.
@Blue Gate Farmgirl,
My mother's father who was an immigrant from Poland worked in the stockyards of chicago. So my mother grew up eating all kinds of meat that we don't usually eat now, like liver and tongue. When I was a child she cookef tongue once and and nobody in our family of 6 like it so it never appeared again. But liver was a regular thing and I hated it. I didn't care how many sauteed onions were piled on it or how it's disguised, liver was was just not for me. It took years of me being forced to sit at the table until I ate my liver (which I never did) before mom finally gave up. And I still hate liver to this day and don't eat it.
The test is also for diploma RN students
I was an original diploma grad and now have an MSN
So glad I did it that way
Getting an AS is like that
I was one of the ones that asked if it was "weird" to be proud of someone on the internet ........HaHa!
I am intrigued by the Fabric Shaver discussion. I do not have one, nor do i own many sweaters as I am in Florida. I might have to check one out if I see in the Aldi Aisle of Shame! I do get quite a bit of satisfaction when trimming the hairs of my fluffernutter of a cat!
I am so very proud of you and all of your hard work! I know that you have worked so hard and raised a wonderful family!
I'm right there with you on the fabric shaver - it has saved so many of my clothes. The way it makes me feel when I've finished shaving a piece of clothing and it suddenly looks new! It's an amazing thing - LOL!
Yes! You mentioned it, I was sceptical, I caved and bought one.
So yes to the fabric shaving. Our cat is really great, but when he feels lonely/bored and no one is there to let him outside, there is one particular side of the couch that he works on. I shaved the fabric, it looks like new - multiple times. Oh well, there might be some reupholstering some day, but I can do that myself .
Still sweaters, knitted clothes = big improvement.
I like it, but wouldn`t go that far to say it´s fun. But the results are worth it.
I love that last picture of you, and I said for you but I too am proud OF you!