Stream of consciousness | 16 days
Two weeks and two days until the end of the semester!
(am I counting down every day? Why, yes.)
The work left:
- One regular exam
- Two ATI exams (for these, I have to write three bullet points of information about each question I get wrong, and submit them to my school)
- Two final exams
- Two group presentations
- Twenty-one hours of sitting in an auditorium listening to presentations
- A third-semester orientation (can you believe I'm almost already in third semester??)
- One convocation
I'm actually dreading the hours in an auditorium more than I am the five exams! I am going to be feeling very twitchy by the time all of those are over.
And I feel sorry for the last group that is presenting. No one in the audience is going to have any listening skills left at that point. 😉
(Luckily, my group is one of the early groups!)
I looooove babies
We knew this already, of course.
But OB has reminded me freshly. 😉
On my last day of OB clinical, there was a little baby in the nursery waiting for a test, and she started crying so OF COURSE I had to pick her up and console her.
She stopped crying and went to sleep and my heart melted.
My baby-soothing skills are still on point even though my youngest baby is 18. 😉
I am so glad I'm learning Spanish
The rural hospital where I've been doing OB has a pretty high percentage of patients who mainly speak Spanish, and I was able to see how the nurses use even rudimentary Spanish skills to communicate with the patients.
Sometimes when I'm doing Duolingo, I think, "Ugh, it's gonna take me so long to get good at this." and I almost feel like, "What's the point in trying?"
But even being able to put together some broken sentences in Spanish and do a little explaining is helpful to patients!
So, that was encouraging to me. I'm not gonna be fluent by the time I graduate, but I'll know a little, and a little is better than none.
Someone is keeping me company while I write this post
If I had known I was going to have a desk cat, I would have chosen a larger desk. Sometimes it's hard to have room for both her and my keyboard/mouse. 😉
Which is why she sits directly on my keyboard sometimes.
(Shelley is currently downstairs happily cuddling with Zoe. Chiquita follows me around everywhere; Shelley is velcroed to Zoe.)
"I saw a skeleton on my walk today."
I said this last night to Zoe at dinner and she was like, "WHATTTTT".
And then I realized I should have clarified...a small animal (not a person) skeleton. Maybe a raccoon (that's what google suggested when I used the photo search feature!)
In all my many hours of walking in the woods these past few years, this is the first time I've seen such a thing.
But anyway, poor Zoe was thinking I'd come across some kind of crime scene. Heh.
I used my carpet cleaner on my van
I have vacuumed my van plenty of times in the 12 years that I've owned it, of course. But I'm not sure that I have EVER cleaned the carpets.
I spilled some coffee in there on Sunday, though, so when I got home, I got out the upholstery attachment and went to work.
I went over some of those floor mats so so so many times, and still, the water was not coming back clean.
And here's what the rinse water looked like when I poured it into the sink.
YIKES.
Perhaps I will do this again before another 12 years go by. 😉
It's getting light so early now!
Just a few weeks ago, it was pitch black when I left for OB clinicals in the morning, and this week, the sky was starting to get light when I walked out.
Since my drive to clinical is almost an hour away, and since it's in a rural, fewer-trees area, I got to see the sun rise on my way in this week. So beautiful!
(I did not take a picture because....I was driving. 😉 That scene will just have to live in my own brain.)
Anyway, I think it's so wild to see how quickly the hours of daylight change when we get close to each solstice. Such massive shifts even in a week or two!
Alrighty. It's time for me to get rolling on my day. 🙂
Feel like doing a a stream of consciousness? Share one in the comments!
(basically, just type whatever is rolling around in your brain at the moment)
I am not a baby-baby person, but how you described soothing the baby crying in the OB nursery touched me. Yesterday was 14 years since my twins were born, and it's brought up many memories from their newborn and baby time, many tinged with medical stress and trauma. Although we were fortunate not to have NICU time with them, there were other close calls for their first couple of years. Plus having twins, I appreciated all extra arms that could hold and sooth them!
I wish I was a morning person, enough to get up and outside to see the sunrise. I wake up earlier than when I was younger, but not to the point where I can be active in the mornings. I have high cortisol levels in the morning and my digestive system is very sensitive to morning stress. I feel weak with low blood sugar yet nauseous if I eat too quickly. Hence my mornings have to be slow and gradual. On top of that, I have now started to get evening anxiety too, and often have insomnia. Perfect storm not to be fresh and up in the mornings.
Wish you good luck on your upcoming exams and clinicals, Kristen!
@Kristina M., I'm so sorry that one, you have such hard memories of your babies' infancy. My first pregnancy is tainted by my own illness and my husband cheating on me, but my baby was very healthy, at least. And two, sorry about your health and anxiety. Sigh, I feel ya.
@Rose, thank you, and I'm very sorry for the tough time you had when first becoming a mother, which should have been a much happier time surrounded by care and love.
I keep meaning to tell you that you and I have the same keyboard. And mine is peeling off on the left wrist rest area (like I saw yours was in a past photo)
Once the irrigation water starts to flow in the acequias in early March I see a lot of raccoons. As well as a ton of birds and ducks and assorted wildlife, all drawn to the water. I did see a dead raccoon the other day, but intact, not skeletonized. We have too many predators (coyotes and others) to let a raccoon go to waste.
Um, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that Ms. Chiquita would sit on your keyboard even if your desk was the size of a football field, because, cats...
My husband has extensive, expensive periodontal work coming up, and it's been hard to focus on much else. I can't control my worries--he's not worried, for the record, despite his storied medical history--so I've been focusing on what I *CAN* do by pre-gaming for the looming week of soup. I've chopped and frozen potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, and am gradually stocking up on the few things we lack. Since several recipes from our Soup Greatest Hits (TM) list share ingredients, it's more a question of having enough to go around! In no particular order, the options are:
Cream of artichoke soup
Rosemary cream of mushroom soup with caramelized onions
Chocolate lamb chili (not technically soup, but little to no chewing required since we prefer it without beans)
Cheesy cauliflower soup
Pumpkin soup
Vegan peanut stew
Black bean/anything goes/fridge clean out soup (this is always pureed)
Zuppa Toscana (a low-salt version--slightly chewy, so end of the week)
Dental insurance is still being a butt (another appeal goes out today), so I did some extra freelancing to make sure we could cover the upcoming four digit bill; the office will reimburse us if ever insurance comes good. Related: I broke out in stress hives for the first time this past weekend. Whee! It will such a relief when we're on the other side of this.
@N, Hang in there! Sometimes life is so stressful. Will send lots of good energy your (and your husband’s) way. When my kids were teenagers, I had stress hives — not fun. BTW, that is an impressive list of soups.
@Bee, You're so incredibly sweet. HUGS Thank you.
I need to use my carpet cleaner on the carpets. Puppppiiieees! Though Rescue Pup trained himself watching the older dogs.
Did I buy too many lamps for the main house? If buying a million lamps is wrong, I don't wanna be right.
I can't believe the testing for this job opportunity. First it was cognitive ability and then English language skills, both of which I rocked, of course. Today is AI prompt engineering, whoopee. Daughter is hopeful about several jobs with costume design studios in NYC.
Making fun plans with my sister to go see Squeeze/Boy George this September. Maybe in Central Park, maybe at the Connecticut casino.
I have too much to do and not enough time. Gotta squeeze in my niece, my mother and our Craft Circle in this weekend.
I haven't held a baby in a long time. I wouldn't say I'm as magical as my mom with babies/toddlers, but I'm pretty good. Just as my dad was magic with animals and I'm pretty good.
I wish this two-week sinus headache would depart.
@Rose, Whooops! Spoke too soon, of course. My sister's husband, the Dud, did his usual. He has to work (can't possibly take a day off just 4.5 months ahead), their daughter has school the next day (can't expect a 16 year old to get herself to the bus or even walk by herself), would have to board the dogs, blah blah blah. I cannot stand him.
@Rose, it's interesting you mention AI prompt engineering...about two and a half years ago, my husband told me that I should look into that - that I would be good at it and that he thought there would be a huge need for it coming up. Why don't I ever listen to him? Good luck with the job opportunity!
@Rose,
I would so go with you to see Squeeze/Boy George at either place, if I lived near you. I don't think Squeeze in any of their band combinations is coming anywhere near me, boo hoo.
And I have no idea what AI engineering is, but it sounds....really techy and not something I want to be involved with. 😉
@Liz B.,
oops, AI prompt engineering.....
@Liz B., One of my friends literally wrote the book on machine learning so I know a good bit.
RE concert, I might go with Son instead. He's gonna think whether he'd rather go with me or his friends. (I got all his friends into 80s alternative years ago.)
@Rose,
As long as you get to go to the concert, that's the bottom line! I keep working on my son re: 80s alternative....so far, it's not sticking. I still have time. 🙂
@Liz B., Have you seen "Dare to Be Different"? Highly, highly recommended.
My stream of consciousness is waking me up worrying at 3 a.m., so this would not be a fun thing for me to do right now. I will say this, though: It's asparagus season, and it makes me very happy to go out right before dinner and cut my vegetables.
Gosh, I am having trouble concentrating this morning. I didn't really have a plan of how I was going to spend my time, so the first 2 hours of the day have been mostly wasted...alas. Now I'm snacking and will study, because I have a test on Tuesday (ick.) It's an exam with a real patient (that's not the ick part, obviously it's very kind of the patient to volunteer) where I have a certain amount of time to do my assessment, then I get quizzed by examiners for an hour afterwards. That's the ick part! It's stressful but if I fail, all I have to do is re-book and try again, so low-stakes.
I was supposed to go swimming with a friend this evening, but she's not feeling well, so instead I'll go swimming on my own, maybe over lunch.
Later this evening, I'm going to lay out the pale blue silk that I got at a garage sale years ago to see if I have enough for my not-wedding dress (short version: Mr. B and I eloped in 2020 and are having a belated reception this summer.)
Ok! Off to study! Bye!
I've been thinking about:
My sister and I visited the Lapham-Patterson house in Georgia, which I have seen, but she had not.
https://gastateparks.org/LaphamPattersonHouse
Then we visited Pebble Hill, a plantation I had also seen that she had not.
https://pebblehill.com/
I'm always conflicted. As a history and art lover, I love touring old homes and places, so I'm grateful they are left for us to enjoy. But it was a lot of money spent just to house a few well-to-do people, and sometimes, workers suffered to build and/or maintain the property. But some of these homeowners were philanthropic and helped many causes and individuals. Some never owned slaves and were generous with workers, staff, community and causes. But sometimes, that was definitely not the case. Such places as these two are often public sites now, and my visiting or not has no effect on what happened decades, or hundreds of years ago, so I go to see them, but I will usually think on it for several days after my visit.
@JD, Back in the 80s/early 90s, I visited a lot of plantations with BFF. The docents, usually local teenagers who wanted to wear a hoopskirt, were obviously trained to avoid that spot of unpleasantness during the 1860s (despite the 1860s hoopskirts). They would tell tourists about the founding of the plantation in the late 1700s or early 1800s, and then neatly skip over to about 1900 or so. I would ask questions like, "So why wasn't this plantation burned like so many others during the Civil War" and they didn't know. Sigh.
When my son was in his Jefferson phase in his early teens, we visited Monticello several times, and thank goodness, there was a huge change in acknowledging chattel slavery and the people who worked there.
@JD, Back when my parents were still speaking to me and my brother was alive, they were agitating for us to come down to visit them in Atlanta the first Christmas after they moved there. My mom sent a whole itemized agenda, detailing everything we'd be doing, from 7:30 am (Get up and eat breakfast) until dinner. On the agenda was a visit to an antebellum home or two.
I sent an email to my brother saying, "I wonder if the slave cabins will be on the tour?" He thought it was funny and told my mom, who was SO peeved. Worth it. 😉 And no, we didn't go down there for Christmas; DH was working on finishing his dissertation along with holding a full time teaching position; we had a new baby and he had some special needs and traveling would have been difficult.
@JD, As did I after trips to Monticello, Ash Lawn, Mount Vernon, Louisiana plantation homes, etc. The list goes on and on....
@JDinNM, And then you can go to Gettysburg for the next chapter in a continuing story.
@JD, I clicked on the links you provided, and was greatly entertained "touring" the Lapham Patterson house, and also seeing the slides of Pebble Hill. I felt like I was on a mini-vacation seeing the first one, and the rooms in both were just spectacular. Oh, how I wish I had such a fine home! (Hopefully, one that was built by free people who were well-paid, craftsmen who were recognized/honored for their incredible skills.) It boggles the mind to think about poor Mr. Lapham, as a youngster, being trapped in a house on fire during the Chicago tragedy. Therefore, I find it odd that he'd allow the staircase to be intertwined with the chimneys. You might compare his home with the Bishop's Palace in Galveston, Texas, which was originally built by a railroad baron around the same time. It, too, has unusual fireplaces and stained glass windows, among its many elegant Victorian features, and it even survived the deadly 1900 hurricane.
@Rose, DH and I visited Monticello back in the mid-80s (before the folks there had gotten around to acknowledging the Sally Hemings part of TJ's story), and they clammed up when I asked a few embarrassing questions too. I'm glad to hear that things there have changed.
@Rose,
Many years ago - it must have been the year 2000 or so - hubby and I took a vacation to Charleston, South Carolina. It was a wonderful trip, full of history, sightseeing, great food, and some time on the beach (we were actually staying on one of the nearby islands). We went on a tour of the city, and my husband asked about the site of the historic slave market in town. Our tour guide looked baffled, and insisted "there were NEVER any slave markets in Charleston". Eye ball roll. There's a podcast by Southern writer Tommy Tomlinson via Charlotte's NPR station called SouthBound - he had a recent episode where he said (paraphrasing here) that Southerners have a bad case of amnesia related to their history, though it is gradually getting better.
@Fru-gal Lisa,
The guides said both the Lapham-Patterson house and the current Pebble Hill house were built using mostly local craftsman, well after the Civil War. I don't know how well they were paid, but Pebble Hill employees of the last family were provided schools, a medical facility and and homes on the grounds. Staff's kids who did well at school got a free ride to college, provided by the employers. When I took my granddaughter there three years ago, our guide said she personally knew the last person who was provided a free education by the owner.
@Liz B., "Oh, so the Old Slave Mart Museum doesn't exist, then?"
@JD,
In North Florida, there is a small rice plantation, Kingsley Plantation. Zephaniah Kingsley was married to a woman of African descent named Anna, and they had several children. After Zephaniah died, Anna continued to run the plantation herself using slave labor. Eventually she was forced to leave the US for Haiti as sentiments towards African Americans continued its declined. Our history is terribly complex.
https://www.nps.gov/timu/learn/historyculture/kp_history.htm
@JD, Re: touring big houses. In 1974 my husband and I took a vacation in our VW bug down South. As we approached North Carolina, we saw billboards advertising Biltmore and decided to tour it. When we got to the gate, we balked because I think the ticket price was $4. I said that I wasn't going to spend 4 whole dollars touring some rich person's house, so we passed on it. Fast forward to 2020, we were visiting our son's family in eastern Tennessee and I told that story. My DIL promptly bought tickets for all of us and we went. It was wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The price? She paid $65 each (that level of ticket included touring the display of costumes from Downton Abbey. Also worth it.)
I also thoroughly enjoy touring small older houses at Christmas in Weatherford, Texas, or at least I did until the arthritis got worse.
Today is overcast outside and doing its usual number on my psyche. But I have groceries to buy and a phone consult at lunchtime, so I have to perk up and get moving. I would love to have a cuddle kitty, but I am not ready for the set up. I want to go by my favorite thrift store today and look for some new books. Looking forward to pulled pork on baked sweet potatoes for dinner. I cannot believe it is May. Seriously.
Oh man...last time I held a baby I thought my ovaries were going to explode...and then she sicked up on me...lol.
Kids.
Rando thoughts:
Well, the sun is out which is a welcome change from the rainy gloom we've been experiencing.
Our daughter will be home for two weeks next month (she's in the army and currently in Texas) so I'm busy planning treats and she's got a laundry list of stuff to do together so making arrangements for all that.
The novel I'm currently working on has sent me down some very interesting research rabbit holes. I hope to be finished with the rough draft by the end of the month...fingers crossed.
Just grateful for the good things in my life.
@April, When your novel is published, pls. let us know its title, publisher, etc., and where we can obtain a copy to read. Sounds exciting! And tell your DD thanks for her service. Is she at Fort Cavazos?
@Fru-gal Lisa,
Hi and to answer your question, yes, she's at Fort Cavazos, before it was known as Fort Hood (others here might not realize they changed the name) and I will thank her for you.
Oh, and thank you for your enthusiasm. Like I said I'm currently working on the rough (first) draft, so I have a long way to go. It takes a lot of polishing to get a book ready to be released on the unsuspecting public...lol.
It's a bit (ok, a lot) scary to think about getting published under my own name (I've only done content and ghost writing) but I'll do a little announcement here when the time comes...that is if Kristen doesn't mind.
Eventually I know I'll need to set up my own web site.
Anyway, thanks again!
Totally ok by me!
I have a lot jumbling around my brain right now. My two boys will start summer activities soon. My youngest started baseball already. I need to do an audit of March/April spending and adjust my budget going into the summer. With the two of them home I tend to spend more in groceries. I will have to utilize my Sams membership and of course shopping at Aldi. I have to have a partial thyroidectomy next week. Not looking forward to it, but it needs to be done and I hit my insurance out of pocket, so it will be covered. So, putting my summer calendar together for my boys, meal planning and cleaning out my office is a huge priority for me. Luckily with next week off after my procedure I should be able to at least get my book read in time for book club:)
A larger desk does not help with my desk cat. My keyboard is tucked under the screen when not in use - he’s gotten me to screens I had no idea existed! He just wants to lie down close to me and get lots of pets which is awkward when I want to crochet or knit.
I love to hear that you have enjoyed your time with babies. I gave birth last fall and the nurses in the maternity ward had a huge impact on us. It was our first baby and we had major feeding issues. Those nurses taught us so much and were so gracious and helpful.
It cheers my heart to think of your positive and sensitive person interacting with postpartum mamas and their raw emotions and exhausted bodies.
@Rebekah in SoCal,
I hope that makes sense I'm rushing this morning .
Clark has perfected the art of walking on people's laptops and deleting important things or even turning off the computer. Cats know when people are paying attention to the wrong things! He will also get right in my way when I'm cleaning the tub, for whatever strange reason.
Today should be the day DS #1 gets discharged. It's been eight days since his second operation to fix the hole that opened up in his small bowel after the first operation (to find a bowel obstruction caused by a Meckel's Diverticulum). The doctors have been fighting the discharge, despite his improvements, and I suspect it's because they're nervous about things going south after they botched the first operation. Their reasons for wanting him to stay was to monitor his white blood cell count, which is low but trending upwards, and DH pointed out that we could take him for daily blood labs if that was all it was. One of the doctors claimed DS "wasn't up to that." But in the end they agreed to prepare release orders. DH is not leaving the hospital without DS, lets put it that way.
DS is SO READY to come home. Emotionally this has been the hardest thing he's ever been through, let alone physically awful. He misses us, and we all miss him. Clark in particular has been aggrieved at the changes in the home.
That's pretty much all that is on my mind right now!
@Karen A., Get well wishes to DS#1. Praying he has a speedy recovery once he's back home. I'm sure Clark will be purrfectly happy to see him!
@Karen A., I hope that DS's condition will improve by leaps and bounds once he's home. (And I hope that you and your family are considering Rose's and my earlier suggestions that you might consider a lawsuit. At the least, you might consult with an attorney and consider your options.)
@Karen A., Sending all the best wishes for recovery for your boy and some peaceful recovery for your family and Clark. This ordeal does beg to be addressed legally somehow, perhaps beginning with a talk to an attorney.
@A. Marie, DS is an adult so it would be up to him if he wants to pursue that. We of course will support him in whatever decision he makes. I think at this point, and he's expressed this, he just wants to focus all his energies on getting home and recovering. As a Christian he wants to forgive and not harbor resentment, at the same time we would like to warn others of the care that he received at the hands of that particular surgeon and that particular hospital campus. So there's a lot to think over. I appreciate all the support from the Commentariat! 🙂
@Fru-gal Lisa, Clark is beside himself with the room switching (youngest swapped rooms with oldest DS after the first surgery so he could have a room closer to the bathroom), and then the two oldest not being around at all, and DH and I being gone at random times...how is a cat supposed to get his 20 hours of shut-eye a day?
He suffers greatly. 😉
@Erika JS, As I said to A. Marie, I am of two minds about suing. We will see what DS wants to do once he is back on his feet, physically and emotionally--a collective 12 days in the hospital and 2 back to back surgeries has been hard on both counts. He is very much looking forward to just being home and seeing us and Clark--while he was in the hospital and on pain meds he said he kept having little dreams where he would see Clark's tail at the edge of his field of view, and think "What is my cat doing in the hospital?"
Oh, and an update: they finally put in the discharge orders and I have been told the nurse is getting them so hopefully DS will be home by dinnertime. Eight hours after talking to the doctors.
@Karen A.,
Exactly! It's all about Clark getting in his 23.5 hours of sleep per day. 🙂
@Karen A., I’m thrilled that he is back with his family by now and with Clark. That kitty is super important to him to appear in his dreams in the hospital. Here’s to all of you for the most outstanding support of a family I’ve heard in a long time. I would love to be a part of a family such as yours. Your faith shines through all of your actions. Of course, he must do exactly as he feels comfortable regarding the surgeon.
As someone who is still dealing with the loss of multiple babies and being told that was no longer possible or prudent to try for more babies, I am missing baby time. It also doesn't help that other family members on my wife's side are having more babies with no issues.
I'm back to a lot of the nightmares that I've been dealing with on and off for years.
I am happy about the more sunshine and better weather at least.
@Battra92, I'm sorry you're dealing with all that. Hoping the sunshine helps a bit!
@Battra92,
I hope the sunny days help you heal from the losses.
I had a particular nightmare haunt me for over a decade, until one day I suddenly had a flash of insight on what it meant, and then I stopped having it. You may already know what yours mean, but here's hoping they go away, fast.
@Battra92, I am sorry for nights tormented by nightmares. It is a misery.
Oh Battra, I am so sorry for your losses. And yes, it is so hard to see someone easily get what you so desperately want. I think that is such a normal feeling to have; you don't begrudge other people the happiness, but you DO wish that you also had that happiness.
Sending you love.
@Battra92,
I am so sorry that your nightmares have come back. I missed reading about the loss of your babies when it happened, but that's okay. I've had a sense of what happened, and hope you can eventually find some measure of peace. You're dealing with a lot. Be gentle with yourself.
@Battra92, May the sunshine banish your nightmares once and for all.
My streams of thought have been around how I've been choosing to fill the space in my life...so if I'm not busy at work, or if I'm in the car line waiting to pick up my daughter or if dinner is done and no one needs anything...i've been wasting a lot of time lately and I'm kind of ok with it for a little while - I've been busy working hard for years so a little breather is A-OK. BUT I don't want to get caught in the habit of mindlessly playing sodoku and MarioKart and word games. I'd like to be more intentional. Not every moment has to be productive but I could allocate some time and thought to how to make my days more satisfying.
Cats are always there to help, and keep an eye out for the mouse 😉
I'm so glad it's finally getting warm here! I went to the beach after work and had a swim.
I'm wondering if I can motivate myself to get up earlier to see the sunrise. I would like to but my morning self is pretty grumpy. I need coffee before anything else 😛
I'm so impressed with you learning Spanish. I firmly believe that we all have the capacity to learn anything, but my numerous attempts to learn Spanish and French have convinced me that my brain is just not wired to easily learn languages. It will be such an important service to your future patients.
I'm feeling hopeful today. I think a good night's sleep last night helped. I started radiation on Monday, and I have been all in my feels about it. I went into chemo and then surgery with a cautiously hopeful attitude and then both were even harder than I thought they would be. So I have been really apprehensive. They tell me radiation will be by far the easiest of the three. But what if it is really, really hard again? What if the spot showing up on the PET scan is more of this same cancer? I have two friends currently fighting recurrences of their past breast cancers--what if I'm next? Last night I slept well, this morning I took a bike ride, so I am thinking I will just deal with what comes next and not stress about it now.
I bought a dress at Goodwill a couple weeks ago. I really like it, but it shrank up just a little in the wash, and now I think it is too short. Then Sunday I realized I could artfully add a third layer to what is already a tiered dress. I found a fabric I like at Joann's on Monday (which was 40% off!), and I have been working on it a little each night. We'll see when I am done, but I am thinking the shrinking might have been a happy accident.
I zoomed with a friend yesterday, and he told me I am a rockstar in our profession. I normally see right through flattery, but then I got to thinking that he sort of has a point. I am very well positioned for this year's job market. I actually have a chance to go out and get exactly the job I want. What a blessing.
@Amanda in VA,
Each person is different, of course, but DH took 45 radiation treatments in 9 weeks, and he had no problem with them. A friend of mine with breast cancer took them for 6 weeks and she did well. Hopefully yours will be easy.
@Amanda in VA, If it is really hard again, you have shown that you can make it through that. You are almost done with the whole ordeal! Good luck on Monday; I am sure many folks on here will be cheering you on.
@Amanda in VA,
My mom had radiation for breast cancer - geez, 30-something years ago, following a lumpectomy. She did just fine with it, minimal side effects, and just turned 90 years old last week. Hoping there is smooth sailing ahead for you.
@Amanda in VA,
Sending you wishes for peace, strength and healing.
@Amanda in VA, my oncologist told me I would feel better amazingly fast after I finished chemo and he was right, radiation was a breeze in comparison. Sending hugs.
My version of finding a "skeleton":
While approaching the final of a geocache I discoverd a corpse (male) hanging from a tree! That was in a bushy corner of a public park in Berlin in June 2022. While walking towards the goal I noticed a strange smell which I thought came from horses I just passed. Then I realised what I discovered and where the stench came from. I left the spot immediately and called police. They showed up in less than 10 minutes - and I was "trapped" several hours and not allowed to leave the scenery till everything was investigated and cleared up. Turned out it was a person who had been missing for 5 weeks and committed suicide.
The next day I got a phone call from police to let me know and thank me that by my discovery the agony for the widow had finally come to an end.
Oh well.....
@Lea, What a horrifying experience!
Oh my word, what an experience!!
@Lea, thank goodness that a compassionate person like you made the discovery, horrible though it was.
@Lea, Oh my goodness! What an ordeal for you.
@Lea,
Oh wow, so heart breaking!
I can't imagine what his poor widow went and is still going through. We had a suicide in our family and It's beyond anything imaginable. So many question marks and things you (well I at any rate) can't wrap your mind around.
I'm glad he was found though so he could be brought home. If it's any comfort to you at least you had a part of his family getting closure and they don't have to wonder where he is.
Best to you.
@Lea,
Yikes! You did the right thing, but holy cow!
I'm a little late to the party, but that's because I just got back from having a repeat EKG at my PCP's office. She has concluded that the weird heart action she found last week was due to the various OTC medications (Alka-Seltzer Plus and high-octane cough medicine) I'd been taking for my bronchitis. So I won't be getting the referral to a cardiologist she'd been hinting at, and I'm almost over the bronchitis. Loud cheers. (Of course, she didn't let me go without a short lecture about the lipid levels on my most recent bloodwork. Killjoy.)
As a treat, I stopped in afterward at the nearby small thrift shop that's run in aid of our local symphony. I'd only been here once before and hadn't bought anything then, but I had better luck this time: two Chico's shirts and eight Colonial Williamsburg notecards. (JASNA BFF adores Colonial Williamsburg, so these will be ideal for our occasional hard-copy correspondence.)
SO glad your EKG was ok! Yay!!!!
@A. Marie, Loud huzzahs for bronchitis finally clearing up and the good news @ the heart issue! (or gentle ones so you don't wake the cough)
@A. Marie,
I'm right there with you on the lipids. Sometimes I wonder how much our lab work can reflect what's normal and yet not take individual homeostasis in to account.
@Chrissy,
But then, I do like my carbs...
@A. Marie, What a relief you must feel about the heart stuff. You are a tough woman!
@A. Marie, @me too on your EKG and perhaps you should ask your PCP what *her* lipid numbers are. Better half got an earful about his really not high glucose and saw his PCP getting a donut on his way out of the clinic. I don't have her as my PCP any more (I refuse to use any medical provider the better half uses) but I'm a tiger in the tall grass if she ever mentions his weight (he's spot on for his height build - her not so much).
I can’t believe it’s hot already. I understand that the El Niño which is responsible for the heat this spring will soon be a thing of the past. This summer is not supposed to be as hot as summer of 2023. This makes me very happy! I just want it to be sunny and 72 every day.
I also love babies. I am enjoying having grandchildren because I get to hold them so much. I realize how much time was wasted when they were young. I was busy worrying about keeping the house clean, the laundry done, and dinner cooked. I should have just held my babies and played with them all day long.
I’m a bit tired. Life has been very busy. What I did at 40 is a little bit harder 20 years later. My husband and I always say, “Never slow down, never grow old.” I’m beginning to wonder if we’re just plain dumb. Anyway I hope everyone has a wonderful week. Wishing you all peace, good health, and prosperity.
@Bee, Oh one more thing! My calico kitty who is 16 years-old has fallen in love with a potato. She lays beside it and sleeps constantly. I’m not sure what to do about this. I wish I could post a photo.
@Bee, go to https://imgbb.com/ , upload your pic, then copy the pic's URL and post it here.
@Bee, Of all the things I have read today, nothing has made me laugh as much as "My kitty has fallen in love with a potato." And I am picturing it and I keep laughing. Thank you for that!
@Bee,
Laughing just thinking about your kitty with her potato! Lol!
I sometimes feel like I am the only person on the planet who does not care at all for babies. Give me a teenager any day of the week. We are gaining another 8 minutes of daylight every single day and anyone who has read my comments may remember that I detest the longer days. Soon we will have daylight 24 hours a day, which even some plants don't like. It is snowing as I write this, so at least there is that compensation today...
Wow, I sound crabby. I am crabby. I need to sit by the window and read and watch the snow fall.
@Lindsey,
Somebody's gotta deal with the teenagers, and I say better you than me. 😉
Haha, I always think about you when I feel happy the sun is rising sooner.
And it is totally ok to not be into babies; we need people who are gifted at loving teenagers!
@Lindsey, re: babies, you're not the only one. I am frankly terrified of babies, which was one of the approximately 287 reasons DH and I didn't even pursue adoption after we learned there was a medical reason for our not having kids. I always just considered our infertility as a case of "I wanted just what I got." (DH was subject to occasional wistfulness when we'd walk past a cute little girl in a stroller, but all regrets would vanish on the occasions when he was required to spend more than 10 minutes with an actual child.)
And for those of you out there (Battra92 and others) who have wanted more children and haven't gotten them, please don't consider my personal response as insensitivity to your sadness. I'm sorry beyond words for your pain. My reaction is mine alone.
@A. Marie, People who don't like or are afraid of babies haven't spent much time with them, I find. And parents aren't necessarily enchanted by other people's kids either.
I love teenagers, especially teen boys. They get a bum rap.
I dunno...not that babies and dogs are at all the same, but no matter how much time I spend around dogs, it just confirms even more for me that I do not, in fact, enjoy being around dogs.
The more exposure to them I have, the more entrenched I become. lol
@Rose, I was put off babies by two early experiences.
First, my aunt came visiting with her 4-month-old firstborn when I was almost 5, and in the endless photographic session of "cousins holding the baby" that both my mother and my aunt deemed necessary, I came last as the youngest of the cousins. By the time the baby got around to me, she was screaming and I was in tears. Although I couldn't have put it in words at the time, the impression I came away with was this: "I can't live a life where this happens all the time."
Second, my one and only attempt at babysitting (at age 13) ended equally disastrously: Neither the 2-year-old nor the 4-month-old would stop crying for a minute. This only confirmed my first impression. And various innocent children have been spared having me for a mother.
@A. Marie, Ha!
I remember when either of my younger brothers was going to be born, cannot remember which, so I was either 5 or 6, I cried when Mom told me she was going to have another baby. We'd been visiting a friend of the family just before then who had a small baby and the house STANK of urine. I told Mom babies smelled and I didn't want one in our house. She said babies smell good and there were too many dirty diapers in that house and not to worry. And yeah, my little brother smelled good although I asked if we could trade him for my baby cousin who was a girl. Mom declined.
It's funny (heeeeeeeeeeeere comes another boring stream of consciousness) that when I started babysitting around 12 or 13, people assumed I knew everything about babies by having younger sibs. I did not. I read the other day about Eldest Daughter (me) Syndrome in which women don't want to have children of their own since they spent so much time taking care of younger sibs. I never took care of younger sibs. I had no idea parentification was such a thing.
I like other people's dogs more than other people's children, generally. Dogs tend not to have whiny tantrums or are rude to their owners, etc. But then, when I say I prefer dogs to people, I mean it.
@Lindsey, I didn't like children when I was one. Couldn't wait to grow up and live on my own.
@JDinNM,
Ha! This is how I feel about teenagers...didn't like them when I was one...and Kristen, I'm with you on dogs too. They always like me and I'm always thinking "ok, enough, go away now." Cats and I are a better personality match.
@Rose, I babysat from my early teens on- all ages from babies to 11 year olds. I did nursery at church. I was "nanny" for a very short time for a couple. I still am not a fan of babies and whenever a coworker comes in with their new baby, I will happily congratulate them and find out how they are doing, but don't hand me that baby. No thank you. 🙂
Maybe if I had children of my own, I would feel differently.
Now puppies! I am a cat person, but I love me some puppies. I'll pet puppies as long as I'm allowed.
@Rose, I spent time working in a receiving home for babies and toddlers. Sometimes we got kids only a few days old because the foster homes were full. I did not come to appreciate babies at all. The only one I ever fell for was a little boy who was left out on the ice to die and lost some fingers and toes as a result, and that was because he was so injured not because he was a baby. I called it fury love---furious at his parents so I sublimated it to loving him. He was a toddler who had been so starved that if he saw food he would shove any excess into his diaper for later. I got a new job working with teens as soon as I could.
@Lindsey, Poor little thing. I remember my dad (NYPD) telling me about some crack den he entered where there was a filthy, neglected baby like something out of Trainspotters or Breaking Bad. The poor little thing was covered in diaper sores (and there's more like rat bites) so Dad couldn't stand it. He took the baby, bought some diapers and baby soap (our family was always broke), and bathed him in the precinct house instead of waiting for social workers. But Dad loved all kids.
And newborns are challenging even when they're your own.
@Rose,
Hmmm, "parentification." What a concept! Eldest of six here, but I said that already...
The picture of you holding the baby is beautiful. You would make the best labor and delivery nurse. I still remember mine from 29 & 26 years ago. I had the same one both times and wrote her a thank you note afterwards. She was wonderful.
Okay the skeleton. Am I the only one who pictured a Halloween prop on one of your trails? Then I was thinking how freaked out I would be to see one staged slightly off in the woods while out hiking. That reminded me of the time I was hiking and no one was around, but in an are known for bears. I was looking ahead and suddenly felt animal fur under my hand. I screamed. It was a large dog very quietly running way ahead of his owners. Whew.
@Sandy Beach, That actually happened. A suicide was mistaken for a Halloween decoration. 2005, Delaware.
@Sandy Beach, Your fur under the hand scream reminded me when I was living in a wolf infested area up north. I had just arrived and saw this lovely grey dog. I reached out my hand and made cooing noises. In the distance I heard someone scream at me and the dog took off. I thought he was yelling because it was his dog.
Turns out it was a wolf I was inviting to come closer, undoubtedly so he could bite off my face.
My stream of consciousness for today is COVID. COOOOVIIIIID ugh why.
It's my first time. I guess it's something that I got this far without catching it... but I could have lived happily my whole life without ever doing so.
Kristin, congrats on doing so well in college (not that I'm surprised at all, you've always been awesome)!
The best way for me to see a sunrise is not to get up for it (unless, I'm at the beach) but to view it on the way home from work, The hardest thing for me to do any time of the day is get out of bed for the day (or night).
I "assumed" as a child growing up, I would have a big family like I was born into. I did learn a lot from taking care of siblings as the oldest of six. But it was not to be. My niece is closest thing to mine now and after she was/is responsible for her Mom's affairs after her death (which were handled prior to her death from ALS) and her dying, I don't wish for her to go through anything remotely like that with me. As far as the responsibility, I mean.
We had a major storm north of our region last night, but after the gullywasher we got earlier in the week, we did not get nearly as much rain as was expected. I worked hard to get the yard mowed yesterday and even mowed through a "slough" in the backyard. I was much behind everyone else in the neighborhood and behind for myself, even though my point of mowing late is to let the pollinators and other insects wake up for the season. I was almost finished when mowing came to an abrupt halt because I hit a piece of a brick. Was fearful I had bent the blade d/t the scraping sound. Turned it to it's side to find the house was just a shy out of circle and for once a hammer actually fixed it. Whew! So glad I was able to finish. I can hardly move today, but at least I'm no longer the only one with tall grass in the neighborhood.
Re: babies: I found out today that an acquaintance who's had a whole lotta miscarriages gave birth to her first child today. That made me happy for her. I will likely never hold that baby, but I am very, very happy for her. (For the record, I am a baby lover.)
And I am loving the warmer temperatures and flowers and all the spring things.
And now I need to stop avoiding work and work on supper.
I’ve never done a stream of consciousness! Let’s see…
Our oldest grandchild is 15 years old today. He quickly became the love of my life. I kept him for two days a week from age 6 months to kindergarten. He’s now over six feet tall. ( his daddy, my son, is 6’4” so no telling where this will top out!)
I’m laying a vinyl-plank floor in my entire downstairs. Years ago, I emailed Kristen before and after photos of my dirty ceramic tile grout, which I had painted. This is the same floor. I gave up on the grout. The application this time is quite a bit more expensive. But still frugal! Since I’m doing it myself. I have to say, while a lot of work, it’s easier than I thought it would be. And it’s turning out so nice.
Tonight is my night off from cooking. It’s a fend-for-yourself situation. I feed my mom every night, so on Tuesdays I take her enough for two meals. So she’s all set.
Much to my sorrow (which can border on hysteria) it’s getting to be summer in Houston. I had a moment of sheer panic when I got in my car and flipped on the a/c and it blew hot air. No. Can’t be happening. Thankfully it must have just gotten switched to the wrong mode when I wiped my dash yesterday. Whew!
My thoughts: how do I change the garage door code on the new house? I need more house keys made. Where are my pickleball shoes? Why did this make the move? It's trash - throw it out - oh wait, trash is full. Yay! Found a place to recycle my dead computers. I should call my bestie and we could go out to eat since I'm going to be in her neighborhood. I need a new bike lock so I can ride my bike to work. Put it on the wishlist. And a new dish drainer or something. And a shower caddy. And a cleaning caddy. Leftovers for dinner, thank goodness. Oops, better get ready for my Zoom meeting!
Growing up, I was never a baby person....I had zero plans to have any children, and really didn't like them. That is, until I was in my late 30s/early 40s, and got to spend some time with my brand new niece. I was smitten, to say the least, and my DH was, too. We decided to adopt, and after 4 years of waiting, ended up with our amazing son. While the sleep deprivation was tough, I have no regrets, and I agree with Rose - teen boys get a bad rap. My son and his friends are delightful.
Other stream of consciousness thoughts....
I have to download my photos from, uhhh, Easter....and see if any of my photos of the dogwood blossoms on our tree turned out. (I have a new to me macro lens for my camera, so that's been fun!).
Son has a school band concert on Friday, and a school trip to Washington, DC, next week. I know he'll have a blast. I have to remember to leave work a little early on Friday.
I saw a downy woodpecker at my bird feeder this evening!
Why is the soundtrack to the musical Hamilton in my head?
Kristen, I love the way Chiquita follows you around. One of our cats, Lafayette, is a lap cat, but he moves back and forth between my lap and DH's lap. Pretty much whoever feeds him is the lap of choice.
I'm obsessed with Aldi's dark chocolate covered freeze-dried strawberries. So, so yummy.
Off to clean up the kitchen....
Even if you weren't in nursing school, learning Spanish is a good thing. Between the Mexican restaurant we frequent and my amigos at work, more and more is coming back to me. At the restaurant, I attempt Espanol and some respond in English - helps us both. And at work, I occasionally state what I typed might be Spanglish. All in good humor when I get the correct words.
Some of us are baby people, some of us (including me) are not. Thankfully the time between labor (I so looked forward to labor) and ability to verbally communicate (albeit rudimentary at first) is short.
But I will say if you cannot handle having a pet, please, please don't have a child.
If you love babies, are you going to do the NICU? That's babies AND massively stressed moms who need your level of constant kindness. PLUS you get to have a relationship with them because you see them over and over! My son's primary NICU nurse has sent him a birthday card every year for 14 years! We adore her (and we have little in common outside of that shared time). It's a beautiful bond.
NICU is definitely on my short list of areas where I might like to work. But I would be very surprised if I am allowed to work there right after graduation; I'm guessing they want nurses with more experience. So, maybe down the road?
I love early mornings, birds singing, sunrises, sunsets. Daddy lived by the principle that road trips begin at 4:30 a.m.; one of the blessings for me was seeing the sunrise and one of my travel goals is still to leave before dawn, although closer to 6:00. This is a beautiful time of year in Texas - the wildflowers are gorgeous. Mostly everyone talks about the Bluebonnets, which are lovely, but they've faded; the Indian paint brush has, as well. Right now we have lots and lots of evening primrose, winecups, thistle, vetch, Indian Blankets, pinks, Queen Anne's Lace, the yellow flowers that turn their faces to the sun and many more. Yet to come: coreopsis, purple coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, sunflowers and more. Lady Bird Johnson convinced the Texas Department of Highways to budget 1/10 of 1% of their budget to seeding the roadsides with wildflower seed. It is truly a blessing every spring.
I put the mats in my car in my washing machine. They come out looking great.
Late to the comment party, but wanted to mention your Spanish duolingo practice. Consistent practice is indeed the key! duolingo sometimes gets shade for different reasons, but it is overall great and I love it. They're constantly working to improve, and, of course, it's FREE, which we all value here. If you want to progress conversational skills more quickly, I recommend Pimsleur. WAY back in the day I borrowed their Russian tapes(!) from the library and still remember some. At the beginning of COVID times, I completed 2 months of Eastern Arabic (30 minutes/day) and I still remember a lot of that despite not using it much. I believe it's about $20/month, which to me is VERY frugal for effective daily language practice, and you can cancel as soon as you're done. Each account also allows 3 different learner profiles, so the cost could be split among a family or friends.
https://www.pimsleur.com/learn-spanish-latin-american/#comparison-grid
Not sure if it's been discussed in comments before, but I am bilingual (English/Spanish) and have also worked in both residential (detention) and healthcare settings. FAR too often, these settings do not provide adequate care by not ensuring qualified interpreters. Bilingual children often end up interpreting for parents, which can result in family stress and limited quality in medical care. There is an EXCELLENT short film on HBO Max that illustrates this scenario called Doble Cultura.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt16862076/plotsummary/?ref_=tt_ov_pl
I feel like any world language background helps IMMENSELY in building the care relationship between nurse and patient when the situation presents itself, and know that you, Kristen, are competent and conscious of all aspects of caregiving! Just wanted to share my 2 cents from so many unfortunate experiences. Honestly, I think that short film should be part of the nursing curriculum!
Just Thank You! You really are a light!
Que bueno que está aprendiendo Español!
Your skeletton history remind me of when I named one of my chickens after my best friends mom. A while later I found that chicken dead after what I can only presume was a hawk attack. Since I was a bit stressed och and sad I told my son ”NAME is dead” but forgot to tell him it was the chicken, not the person. We laugh about it now though…