stream of consciousness, mid-orientation
Well, hello.
It's Wednesday, which is the halfway point of week 2 (out of three) weeks of orientation.
And that means we are actually halfway through orientation as a whole. Woohoo!
I am getting tired of so many hours of sitting in a chair, listening to presentations.
My body is not used to this, and I feel stir-crazy. I walk on breaks, I take the stairs up and down on lunch breaks but MAN, it's still a lot of sitting.
I am not the only one feeling it because one day, a fellow orientee was doing countertop pushups in the back of the classroom on break, and I joined her.
I did have time for a walk when I got home yesterday, and I found a very large mushroom.
I felt better after moving my body!
Back to the hospital...I added some cats to my name card.
More cat representation....my little cat beverage bottle (a gift from Lisey).
My Snoopy lunchbox has been catching people's eye; I even saw someone smile at it from their car when I was walking through the parking garage yesterday. Snoopy is almost universally appealing. 🙂
We had a closed-notes EKG strip exam on Monday morning, and it was an old-fashioned paper test. None of us felt great about it, but we only have to get an 80% to pass, and if we don't pass, we just have to do some remediation.
But obviously, we all would prefer not to have assigned remediation.
I think we get our exams back today, soooo...I'll let you know in tomorrow's post.
Sometimes when I take an exam, I comfort myself by thinking things like, "Well, I don't have to tell anyone if I fail to pass."
But then I remember that I absolutely, positively never move in silence, and that I will tell the whole internet how my EKG exam went, for better or for worse.
What else am I thinking about?
Pink!
You know the link from the Mean Girls movie: "On Wednesdays, we wear pink!" Well, apparently the girls on my unit have unofficially started wearing pink on Wednesdays (but without the mean girl energy!)
There are five of us in orientation together, all former techs on our unit, so we are wearing pink today. Unfortunately, I have no pink scrubs (yet!), so I am wearing a plain pink t-shirt with neutral scrub pants.
I guess I'm gonna go on the hunt for some pink scrubs soon. 😉
I love my co-workers. SERIOUSLY love them.
We do have one male new grad nurse starting on our unit with us, but I don't think he is planning to participate in the pink thing. Ha.
Who knows, though? We may wear him down in time. 😉
Today's agenda promises to cover a lot of stuff that is actually very relevant for the patient population on my unit, so I'm hoping it will be a relatively interesting day.
And that is all the stream of consciousness I have time to dump here!
Snoopy is the best! Cats also just improve everything!
I've always liked that German for Wednesday is Mittwoch (mid-week). It's been years since I studied German but that always stuck in my mind! Speaking of German, I had a friend from Germany once and she was fluent in English but couldn't master the th sound (like in think), so she said it with a hard t which sounded Irish!
I'm sure you'll ace the test but also no judgement if you have to retake!
I hope you can wear that guy down 😉 I'm rewatching Felicity and there's a character in the first season who doesn't know how to do laundry and leaves a red sock in with his whites, and you can guess the results. He then gets called Pink Guy.
I'm so tired after my trip. I always feel like I need a holiday after a holiday lol!
@Sophie in Denmark,
Felicity's Pink Guy reminds me of when I was a dorm worker in college. At the end of the school year, we would be instructed to grade the washing machines. The ones with the lowest grades got taken from the women's to the men's dorms, and the ones graded F would be put in the freshmen men's dorm. That's because a lot of the new guys had no idea how to do laundry...their mommies always did it for them, and somehow, they didn't listen to instructions on how to wash their clothes. (Assuming they were ever told in the first place.) Some boys would pour an entire container of detergent into the wash, some would pour a gallon of bleach in there, and some would stuff the washer so full that there was no room for the water. Or they'd otherwise do something wrong and ruin the machines. Our college had some kind of insurance policy on the laundry equipment. So when the guys would damage a washing machine beyond repair, its brand new replacement would go to a women's dorm. The machine that was swapped out would go to an upperclassman men's dorm, and the remaining bad machines would go to the freshman men's dorm, where they'd soon need replacing, too. The maintenance guys would do this washing machine shuffle all semester long. Usually by spring, the guys had finally figured out how to wash their clothes...or they'd go to the commercial laundry. (I imagine the latter was cheaper than constantly buying new clothes.)
Anyway, thanks for the laugh. I needed it today!
@Fru-gal Lisa, Those poor girls! It doesn't seem very fair that they had to deal with boys' lack of laundry skills. I had a Pink Guy (Blue Girl?) moment in my first year of university - I didn't have a lot of laundry experience and put a pair of jeans in with a white top. I learnt the hard way haha! I hope that also gives you a laugh! It also reminds me of Rachel's laundry failure in Friends. Ironically, I recently showed a young woman how to use the washing machines in the local laundry!
@Fru-gal Lisa, When my brother went to Notre Dame, they had a laundry facility and all the male students got their laundry done for them. Mind you, you had to pay for it because...there were no laundry machines in the men's dorms. Only the women's dorms. What misogyny? 😉 (Oh, and they also had "maid service"--their garbage would get taken out of the dorm rooms for them!) My mom was fit to be tied, because she had the idea that sending my brother off to college would make him actually want to do his own laundry. Ha!
Then St. Michael's Laundry (yes, that's what they called it) burned down, and while it was being repaired, they installed machines in the men's dorms and in the student center, but until that happened, the guys would truck their laundry over to the women's dorms, which I don't think they minded at all! Eventually the laundry building got rebuilt, and they expanded available laundry service to female students as well as male. You could pay for laundry to be done, or use the machines.
@Sophie in Denmark, I LOVE Felicity and have watched it in its entirety at least a dozen times. I have the DVDs though streaming is available now as well. The Pink Guy = Brian Krakow (IYKYK).
Men wear pink all the time so maybe this male nurse will join in.
@Tammy, I have all the DVDs because they took it off streaming where I live! Oh my God, I love My So-Called Life. That's due for a rewatch soon (and another show I have on DVD for the same reason!).
@Fru-gal Lisa, that is hilarious about the washing machine system! My younger son was a high school freshman when my elder son went away to the Marine Corps. One of the first things eldest son wrote home about was how in boot camp each recruit had to wash his own laundry. Most, including son, had never done their own laundry before and just dumped everything in together on hot. Which turned everything a (quote) "piss yellow" color as the olive drab fatigues bled onto the whites.
That prompted me to decide that younger son MUST learn to do his laundry before leaving home. I wrote out charts, gave notice to all my kids (because my daughters, while still middle schoolers, were included in this mandatory learning laundry program) that I was no longer washing their clothes for them, and here's how they do their own. The girls jumped on the bandwagon right away. Younger son, however, boycotted for two weeks until he told me he was absolutely out of clothes that could be reworn without washing, and wasn't I going to help him out? I told him he needed to learn this skill, as in college he'd have to do his own laundry (he had, since Kindergarten, declared he was going to college to become an engineer). His reply: "I thought I'd find a girlfriend in college that would do my laundry for me. Like Dad did." (Me, I was that girlfriend.) Touche, son, touche. Thankfully times had changed and I countered with the fact that any female student at the engineering college he planned to attend was absolutely not going to be willing to wash her boyfriend's clothes. He caved to that logic and started doing his laundry that very day.
@Fru-gal Lisa, My son specifically asked me the summer before going to college to teach him to do laundry. He’d been gone his senior year as a foreign exchange student. He did not (his words) want to be that guy who was asking a girl how to do laundry. I obliged with a full heart! When he came home at winter break, he asked if I could work a little magic on his clothes as he didn’t do “gourmet laundry” (i.e., separate lights from darks, use bleach, etc.) like I did and some things were quite dingy. Still makes me smile!
@Fru-gal Lisa,
I can't tell you how much I love this- because I've seen those freshman guys. Life lessons can be wonderful. 🙂
School has started and I'm not there. A very small part of me kind of misses working at the school--I had to learn from my children that they have P.E. every day now, instead of telling them this when I learned it during in-service, shocking--but the larger part of me is so relieved to be home every day. Two days a week should not have had that much of an effect on my productivity at home, but I never stopped doing everything I did when I was home full-time, so I was still hanging all our laundry on the line, making all our bread (and everything else), cooking every meal . . . Quitting the part-time job so I can just have my full-time at-home job is a major quality of life booster for me. Like, I can just can apples whenever the weather is cool enough in the morning this week, whatever day works. I'm not having to do it on Tuesday even though that's the hottest day of the week and I'm exhausted from the first day of school just because that's the first day I'll be able to get to it and the apples are getting old. Small things like that make me very happy.
I had to fill out some paperwork last week that asked for my occupation. I put "homemaker." 🙂
Two days a week could TOTALLY throw off a routine that is already packed full. It makes sense to me.
@kristin @ going country, I'm glad for you that you were able to make this change in your life. You sound so relaxed and happy, and from reading your blog and posts here I know one of your passions is homemaking, so it's nice that it can be your focus and full time job now!
@kristin @ going country, I completely agree with K and K: in your posts lately, there is a busy-but-in a relaxed way vibe from you. It has actually soothed me and I love it for you.
@kristin @ going country,
Your occupation should be listed as Domestic Goddess!!!
@kristin @ going country,
I so love this for you. Reading all that you do in past comments over the years (PLUS working two days/week) always made me marvel at how much you managed to get done. I am so glad you can concentrate on the things that matter most to you.
(I'm looking forward to retirement in 16 months, so I too can be a Domestic Goddess. :-))
@kristin @ going country,
I always wondered how you could keep up with your routine, glad for you that you can now live at a more sensible pace!
Getting back into the school year schedule so next week's required wakeup times are easier--morning peeking through my draperies helps.
I've had to be less active this two weeks as my foot heals from surgery. I'm much better at hobbling now, but not up to long walks yet. Still, I'm enjoying indoor exercising to get some movement. Indoor because 1) ground is uneven and I also don't want to get dirt inside my bandages, and 2) all stinging and biting insects love me and the infection and rash from the mid July spider bites is just now finally fading and the itch is almost gone.
And thank goodness for family who are running all of the house errands while I can't drive.
So loving the cooler weather this week! Woke to gently dripping leaves with a light rain, and cats happily watching out the open windows. Fresh air rather than air conditioning is great!
Opened the linen closet the other day and realized that it needs a serious reorganization and thinning. Ah well, it can wait until I can safely climb on a stool.
While on vacation this summer, I realized that I had three shirts and a dress that I either wasn't wearing or found uncomfortable. I washed them and dropped them off at a reputable second hand store. They normally required appointments, but happily took the items when I explained why I just needed to pass them along so they could find new owners. I didn't get any money for them, but also didn't have to continue to lug them along and give them space in my bag (all were thrifted originally anyway). Win Win!
Oooo! The rain is picking up; leaves are rattling; drips are tapping inside the drainpipe; the occasional auto swishes past; an insect vibration is constant and birdsong drifts above it all. The cats are still in the windows 🙂
Enjoy your cozy rain!
I have a question, can you wear prints/design scrub tops (like Snoopy)? My sister when she was a tech was able to wear print/design scrub tops on holidays. Pediatrics could wear always. It was a nice change.
I'm trying to figure out how we just lost power (woke up to clocks 00:00 & kitchen flashing for 7 minutes without my built in generator coming on. If we loose power for just a few seconds the generator doesn't come on, but clocks don't stop. Strange but kind of scary because should not happen. And trust me I can't miss when generator comes on, it's right outside bedroom window & neighbor across street generator straight across from ours. So it's not quiet.
I'm hoping today is more positive & productive than last few days. I'm/we are starting to feel overwhelmed by this whole deer situation. Not my first time dealing with (but is teens & teens financial responsibility though I'm helping with because needs to get done sooner instead of later) deer collision but this one is more difficult. The level of cranky & what I feel as not very transparent challenges me a lot. Delayed shipping (without notice), items not up to par or I didn't agree to but I have to take because vendor didn't do job correctly. And not returns/refunds only exchange which at this point not interested. Mechanic upset because not going as smoothly as should & having to relay to me because it's cheaper for me to purchase (for our costs) than mechanic just do it all & charge us for everything instead of just labor. Maybe I/we are just needing more optimism.
The change in jet stream coming from Canada dropping temps below normal by about 15* today & then most of next week will be relief for many. Personally I'm not ready for mid 40s overnight because that's October/November weather. Hoping Canadian wildfire smoke does not return, but is predicted to.
Speaking of Canada, can any of Canada residents tell me if the $20,000+ fine is true for anyone caught being in forest areas? I've seen online/social media where people have received ticket/fine for being in wooded are hiking & just being in nature by Ranger station. Apparently it's an effort towards preventing wildfires? Yet more have started in these areas?
I hope everyone has a good hump day. 🙂
I am allowed to wear printed scrub tops, but my own personal style preference is for solids rather than prints. Soooo, that's why I have my Snoopy badge holder....a slightly more subtle way of bringing Snoopy to work. 🙂
@Kristen, I'm also a solids vs prints person, and on a whim at a garage sale I picked up a cat-shaped badge holder. I may not use it (it is a little sparkly, and I'm not a sparkly person). I might give it to a classmate who I know a) likes cats and b) would definitely wear sparkles.
@Regina, I live on the west coast of Canada in British Columbia. I have not heard of a fine for being caught in a forested area. Recreationally we spend a lot of time hiking our mountains. We do have fire bans though so perhaps that speaks to a fine for starting a fire? But that would be a cheap fine considering the cost of fighting those fires.
@Regina, Hi Regina, here's a news story that addresses your question. I think we'd probably better not get into more discussion about it, because this a politics-free space. There are obviously some people who agree and some who disagree with the restrictions, but regardless I don't think people posting about it on TikTok are providing a balanced view.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/n-s-man-purposely-violates-ban-on-entering-woods-gets-handed-28k-fine-1.7606766
@Kristen,
Can you wear any color solid scrubs? Just curious. The nurses in the hospital where I work wear navy blue scrubs (can add white t shirt underneath if desired, or wear navy bottoms and "Hospital Name" branded t shirt that our gift shop sells). Surgical nurses wear the "standard" pale blue scrubs that everyone who works in surgery wears. Every discipline has a designated "scrub color", such as PT/PT/Speech wears black, dietitians wear dark green, etc.
Yep! We have a lot of freedom in terms of dress on my unit.
However, if you work in surgery or in L&D, you wear the hospital issue sterilized scrubs, so those are all the same color.
@Kristen, i like prints because they hide my imperfections. but i have read that prints make a person older. but heck i am ancient.
Pink scrubs almost make me think of my University of Maryland Shock Trauma colleagues of all genders, who do amazing intense lifesaving work while wearing pale pink scrubs from head to toe.
@Katie, you and your colleagues do the work of angels, saving lives that have experienced the worst of the worse.
@Book Club Elaine,
I second that.
Thank you, Katie and the Shock Trauma team members.
Real men wear pink. If they are fathers of girls, they also wear things like My Little Pony t shirts completely unironically. That is all.
@Becca, I am trying to imagine my husband wearing anything pink or a My Little Pony t-shirt and failing. Of course, he's the father of only one girl, and three boys. Maybe that's why. 🙂
@Becca, Gender, such a drag 😉 I totally agree btw!
@Becca, Absolutely they do. Color has no gender. My husband wore pink & my firefighter/Navy vet son does, too!!!
@Becca, I came here to say the same! Plenty of men and boys in my community wear pink. Let's please stop assigning gender to colors.
I work from home. I think I'll start wearing pink on Wednesdays too 🙂 FUN!
Do the nurses wear pink in support of breast cancer. I own a small business. My branding primarily uses the color pink. I wear a pink apron when I work, and the women who work with me also do. I want people to know that it is a business owned by a woman. It's a girl power thing... think pink.
We took our youngest son to college yesterday which gives me a bit of pause to be entering this phase of life. He is happy and totally ready for his career path. We will miss both of our sons around the house. I agree with Kristen that Snoopy does make people smile. We were shopping at American Eagle for my son and noticed lots of Snoopy socks. This mom may have to go back to buy a pair:) In other news we lost our beloved cat this summer to an infected tick (best guess) although he was treated with the flea/tick medication. So we were on our way with empty nest status in June! We plan to get another kitten in the spring….please keep Chiquita and Miss S pics coming! Thinking good thoughts for all of the students and teachers who are now back in the classroom:)
@JDS, wishing you peace with the empty nest transition <3
@JDS, so sorry about your cat. losing a pet is so hard.
One of my favorite versions of Snoopy is Joe Cool.
It's busy season at work and I had one of those nights where you don't sleep well and wake up the wrong way and just feel off all day. Fortunately, I have a healthy breakfast and plenty of strong English tea to help me get back on track.
Twice I got bleach on a black t-shirt at the hair salon when I used to get highlights. I tried all the same tricks to no avail. The Sharpie didn't really help so they are now my housecleaning shirts. If I get bleach on them now it doesn't matter.
Happy that it's cooler now and the other day I could almost smell Autumn in the air! So looking forward to my time off in October after the busy season is over.
Just finished reading Dave Barry's memoir. (For those who don't know, he's a humorist from the newspaper days of yore. 😉 ) He ended his book with an apt quote:
If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be 'meetings.'
**My husband has (and wears) lots of pink shirts!
@Bobi, I just read that recently and enjoyed it a lot! I always liked his humor.
@Bobi, Especially meetings that could have been an email...the bane of my work existence!
@AnnieH, A guy I know has a shirt which says I Survived Another Meeting Which Could Have Been An Email. I love it so much!
Ha, DS#2 is one of the few guys in our nursing program and I am highly doubtful he could be peer pressured into wearing pink! Maybe pink socks or something.
I am pretty good about keeping secrets, but one thing I have to work on is sharing plans before they're achieved. I have one plan/goal in particular that I have told DH I am not sharing with anyone but him, and it's been hard! But I should be able to share by the end of December, if I accomplish it.
DH is over the moon lately because he convinced three of the boys to try out riding on the back of his tandem bike he just got. Our kids were very, very reluctant to learn to ride bicycles, so we didn't push them (my parents pushed me for three miserable summers, lots of tears, until I learned). But they have gotten over their reluctance, and today we're taking DS#4 down with the bike to the park to do some tennis, and DS#1 is talking about ordering his own helmet and learning to ride a bike on his own. I'm so thrilled. It's the best exercise, IMO.
I predict you will have no trouble at all winning over your guy colleague to wear pink. First, because you all sound like such a jolly bunch, who could deny you? Secondly, even football players wear pink for a whole month for breast cancer awareness to honor their mothers and other female relatives who have had to deal with that dreaded illness.
Growing up, I was not a girly girl so as an adult, I shied away from pink. Until my daughter was born - then I delighted in this wonderful color. My husband was a bit of a macho man, but he proudly wore a pink shirt and purple tie to her high school graduation.
@Book Club Elaine, What's ironic is that in the early twentieth century pink was considered a boys' colour and blue for girls!
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/12/health/colorscope-pink-boy-girl-gender
The problem is not the colour itself - the problem is saying that it's automatically for girls and automatically not for boys.
@Sophie in Denmark, love this! Thank you for stating it so clearly! I have always wondered why we do that with color.
@Price Chopper shopper, Thank you! Another part is also capitalism - if you say blue is for boys and pink is for girls, you can sell twice as many products.
@Sophie in Denmark, THIS! I cannot believe how gendered children's clothes and toys are. It's much worse than it was when I was a kid. Going into toy stores feels like there are two genders: aggression and pink. Yuck. It's so silly. Men wore ruffles and pink and flowers until the 19th century! Anyone can play with dolls or cars.
@Meira@meirathebear, It's all so depressing. I don't understand why we are leaning into the binary with 'jokes' such as 'girl dinner' and 'girl math'. I mean, the 90s 'girl power' movement had its faults, but at least it promoted equality! I don't remember clothes and toys being as strongly divided.
This is an older article but still interesting. It goes into how Lego advertised products for boys and girls in a more unisex way in the 80s. When I was a kid, Lego didn't have to be pink for girls to play with.
https://www.themarysue.com/girl-in-old-lego-ad/
There's also internalised sexism bound up in all this...when I was little I loved pink and dresses and then fiercely rejected them, probably because I realised society sees femininity as weak. Not that any of it should be assigned to gender in the first place.
@Sophie in Denmark, it figures that clothing manufacturers created the "need" to differentiate colors for children. You identified the problem perfectly.
I'm used to pink as the color for breast cancer awareness. This was a problem for my male co-worker at my old job who had estrogen-based breast cancer and went through some brutal chemo treatments for it. He said making everything pink and feminine about breast cancer made him feel ignored. He wasn't grumpy about it, he just stated it as a fact.
Random thought: I was chopping onions and mushrooms the other night and suddenly thought about how, now that so many people are working all day then coming home to cook, compared to 60 years ago when there was usually a homemaker at home all day, we seemed to have moved to making more work out of cooking, for those (male or female) who cook at home but who have a lot less available time. For example, home cooks frequently used to buy a can of mushrooms to add to a dish. Now cooks seem to be expected to buy fresh mushrooms and clean and chop them. To peel and chop, sometimes caramelize fresh onions instead of using dried minced onion. To not only bake bread, but often grind the grain first and make sourdough starter instead of just grab a loaf of Wonder Bread. To cook sauces from scratch, not packets. To use more fresh vegetables that have to be prepped, instead of frozen or canned. To grow their own vegetables. To make their own broths instead of use bouillon cubes. To sometimes grind their own coffee beans, maybe even roast them.
I get it, of course - homemakers used to be excited to use those new-fangled instant and processed foods, back in my childhood, but of course they still cooked from scratch as well. I confess I prefer to cook from scratch for health and taste reasons, so a lot of this is simply preference. It just struck me as humorous that the less free time cooks have to get food on the table, the more we seem to be going back to the time-consuming ways.
@JD, I suppose one of the reasons was that homemakers back then (almost always female) also had to clean the house and take care of children. Another factor would be excitement as you said; in The Feminine Mystique Betty Friedan does an analysis on how men were able to complete chores in half the time because it wasn't expected to take up their whole day and/or be wowed by new gadgets. It's been years since I've read it, so this is from memory and I may have a few details wrong, but I think that was the main point.
I also prefer cooking from scratch but don't find it the most exciting thing in the world so I always have a podcast on in the background!
@JD, my mother was one of those homemakers who were excited to use the new foods--in fact, so excited that she rarely made anything else. (As I've noted previously, all four of her otherwise very different children loved her dearly, but it wasn't for the cuisine.) So, as an adult, I've gone the other way and prefer to slice and dice whenever possible. I do use a few convenience products (such as canned tomatoes in the winter when the only fresh tomatoes available here are pink tennis balls), but only when I have to.
I am really depressed. Mostly over the things going on in our country. (This is nothing new, dating back to Election Day.) To that end, I changed radio stations from a [NPR and BBC] news station over to Christian music. It didn't help. Still feel blue.
Meanwhile, I have a mouth full of dental problems and another filling came out so I can't sub today; I have to go to the dentist. I was already scheduled to go tomorrow. The guy said I have gum disease and a lot of cavities around all my crowns. This will cost a fortune, even with dental insurance! He told me to floss the area where the filling flew out, it already was missing part of the filling, so I feel it's his fault, too. I have half a mind to cancel with him and then go somewhere cheap and get 'em all pulled. To H#** with it! Oh, and I'm supposed to go to an oral surgeon. Something about a potential tumor on the roof of my mouth. We have only 2 oral surgeons in the insurance network: one is 90 miles away and one is 45 miles away. 🙁
Then, the roofer called at 7:45 to say he's coming over this morning to get the (very large) leftover metal panels he left in my backyard. They needed a flat bed trailer to handle the panels and will have to drive into the back driveway. By then, Snuggles was out on the back patio; I tried to get him to come in -- but he took off running around the yard. Chased him for 20 minutes, and to say I was not happy is an understatement. Snug finally came up to me for a tummy rub, thinking what a great joke it was, and I dragged him indoors by his collar. I was furious!
This is a recurring problem and I don't know how to solve it. But it cannot continue!
I HAD to get Snuggy Dog indoors so that they can drive into the back yard, and I need to have him come indoors every morning so I can park the car in the garage (which, like the back driveway, is inside the fenced area) and still be able to go to work on time. Snug only obeys when HE wants to, and this is not going to work. He's gained weight and is strong enough to pull me down, not good for a 70 y.o. lady...and I am not a small person. I want to cry, I miss my old, gentle Miss Lucy Dog so much!
Parked my car in front (so they can get into the backyard) and noticed vandalism in my front yard. Someone ripped up my yard signs. They were well within the front yard, a few feet from the front door, not in the right of way, so we're talking both trespassing and criminal mischief. That does not make me happy. In fact, it scares me.
I'm just a little bundle of joy today, so I apologize for venting. I am enjoying my cup of coffee and the sun is out. Maybe by the time I finish at the dentist, I will have some good news.
@Fru-gal Lisa, I'm sorry you're having a hard day. Those things are really hard to deal with (especially the state of the country). I can't offer advice but it makes sense to be feeling this way.
@Fru-gal Lisa, Sometimes, you just need to vent. I’m sorry you are going through so much right now. My family has also been very stressed since November. More so every day. My husband is a non-native born citizen so we have many many new worries I’d never thought we’d have. I’m still having a hard time accepting this is our reality in the US and that so many people support what is going on. Just when I think nothing can surprise me, it does. I’m very afraid of what’s coming for all of us.
@Fru-gal Lisa, Vent all you like. I am sorry you're dealing with tooth problems--those are awful, and I will be praying the potential tumor is benign or maybe even nothing!
Would it be possible to train Snuggy by giving him a very nice treat when he comes to you voluntarily? I don't know how food-motivated he is, but I know our cat will happily (usually) come when we offer a treat.
As for the vandalism, that is scary. Maybe ask your neighbors if they saw anything, or get a little camera to monitor the area?
@Fru-gal Lisa,
That's a lot at once, and who can blame you for venting? The dentist thing - we went through a ton of that with DH, and I sympathize! You might want to switch dentists, actually, or at least get some second opinions. The first dental practice we talked to about DH's increasingly worse teeth quoted us $12,000. The second practice quoted less than half that amount. That was still a lot of money, but it beat the first price by a lot.
DH's great-niece is a positive reinforcement dog trainer in Ohio; maybe you could look up trainers around you, for classes or video suggestions. Not much (petwise) is more aggravating than a dog that will not come when called and it is really important that he or she comes.
And I'd say take down your yard signs. I refuse to put up any, for any reason, unless it's one that says "Yard Sale today."
You will get through this!
@Fru-gal Lisa, I struggle with the news too. I believe as a citizen I need to be informed, but it seems the media is hell bent on making us angry and politicians are misbehaving.
Thanks, everyone, for your support!
@Karen A.,
I give Snuggy a nice juicy bone every time he comes in, but he comes in when he wants to come in and ignores me the rest of the time. That dog is as stubborn as I am!
Meanwhile, my neighbors across the street have a Ring doorbell. I will ask them tonight if it showed anything. I've put the sign in the front window, and plan to order a much bigger sign saying the same thing. Actually, I think I'll order a bunch of signs. My neighbors D. and A. down the street have a whole garden of those signs out front, and I think I'll do this as well.
The dentist gave me laughing gas and it made the filling seem to happen much quicker than I'd expected. Sadly, I had to pay a copay for the filling. (Another one beside the $$$$$ I've already paid for the gum disease treatment tomorrow.) I told the money lady, "oh well, I suppose I didn't really need a kitchen stove that worked." Because the money I was saving toward the oven is what I used to pay the dentist.
Afterwards, I went and got a flu shot at a competing drug store (the one where I work at night has not gotten their vaccines in, and is usually quite slow to do so. But I want the shot ASAP, as I'm around kids and drug store customers, many of whom may be sick.) The shot was free via Medicare. While there, I saw some school spirit shirts for the district I work in, including a tie-dyed shirt...I've always wanted a tie-dyed shirt but never had one before. It wasn't frugal but I bought it. That made me smile.
Then I went by Ollie's Outlet and used my latest 10% off O.O. coupon, stocking up on grocery items. I had a shopping cart full, and I used a credit card that gives you 5% off your purchases = 15% off, all total. (Of course, I will pay off the card completely when I get the next bill!)
At O.O., I saw a tabletop-sized air fryer and oven (larger than a regular toaster oven), and am going to research it; if it has good reviews, I'll go back and use my latest Ollie's coupon -- yes, I have one more -- and employ the above-described tightwad tactic to shave some $$ off the price. Maybe that will solve the oven problem. (Few places sell 24-inch wide built-in ovens anymore.)
@Fru-gal Lisa, I once read a story about a couple with a big dog who had doggy breath. They used to give the dog breath mints in the car. One trip the dog escaped. In a panic, the woman yelled, “who wants a breath mint?” The dog turned on a dime and came running back.
I do second a dog trainer who uses behavioral techniques.
@Fru-gal Lisa,
For the periodontal health issues, look into the use so a sulcabrush. A former roommate (just post-college years) was able to to turn the disease around with it's use. I still use a sulca brush and though I have few real teeth (8 actually) I have very little tartar buildup and my gums are healthy. Also, an upper denture plate is not so bad, but if there is anyway you can keep some of your lower teeth and use a partial plate, it will be to your advantage in the long run.
@Fru-gal Lisa, sorry for all your dental issues. as a diabetic for 40 years i have the mouth of a 90 year old. i was blessed that my kid's orthodontist did some pro-bono work on me. who knew that dentists do pro bono work. anyway, my smile is much improved and i am so grateful.
@Fru-gal Lisa, My sympathy for the dental work. It is nobody’s idea of fun, financially or medically. It might be a really good idea to get a second opinion, or to discuss the cost. There may be a cheaper way to get to the same better place, health wise.
SINGIN' IN THE RAINNNNN!!! Edition:
For the first time in weeks, we've had more than three drops of rain at a time. About 2 am, it finally started: the good soaking downpour we've desperately needed. It's slacked off a bit at the moment, but it's supposed to continue off and on for most of the day. I filled all my buckets and watering cans (I had four 5-gallon buckets parked under NDN2's downspout) and then went for a wet but very enjoyable walk. It was all I could do to keep from breaking into the Gene Kelly umbrella routine in the middle of the street. (JASNA BFF and I watched my DVD of "Singin' in the Rain" while she was here, and BFF maintains that this was what finally broke the drought.)
@A. Marie,
Gene Kelly's dancing! I need to watch that again. He was my absolute favorite!
@A. Marie, So jealous. Last time we were told to expect rain, my friend's raindrop app (didn't even know there was such a thing) said we got ... drum roll please ... 0.01 inches.
I just ordered a pair of pink shorts for my son's back to school clothes at his request. He has a couple of pink items and they look amazing on him.
I'm on day two of a headache, but today is much better than yesterday (so far). It's hard when a headache happens at work because I never know if I should wait for the pain killers to start working to drive home, or if I should drive home right away just in case it gets worse. Oddly, the reason I usually wait it out is because my ex-husband lives/works two blocks from my office and I know he would drive me home if I needed it.
My two dogs were so sweet yesterday when I got home. I crawled into bed with an ice pack and tried to sleep. They stayed by my side until dinnertime and the old dog, who typically sleeps in the living room now, curled up with me all night. It's amazing how our pets know when we aren't feeling our best.
Stream of consciousness: Your post about the male nurse made me remember when we had ONE male nurse on my Labor and Delivery unit at a large city hospital.John.He was short in stature,around 5’4. Smart, easy going, eperienced. He had a very kind face and demeanor, and wow, women got upset when he walked into their room and was introduced as their L and D nurse! But one of us “gals” would go in and reassured the patient that John was such a superb,kind,supportive and loving nurse…that they were LUCKY! We let them know John was a husband and dad to three boys of his own. He cradled those newborns with such tenderness.John had found his calling in labor and delivery.It was a heartwarming experience to be attended by John!! GOOD MEMORIES from my nursing years.
As you know, you will NEVER SIT AGAIN once you get back to your unit and start your nursing duties! So enjoy your classroom days just a bit longer…
That EKG strip—I don’t remember how to read them!!! But I can still interpret fetal monitoring!!!!
I do have a lot of experience with the never-sitting shifts due to my work as a tech and honestly, I prefer them! Sitting still for hours on end is worse torture for me.
I LOVE that!! The person responsible for spilling the tea about ME is Me!!
I’m carrying that with me today 🙂
That’s a very non-shame based perspective 🙂 and I love it and needed to hear it. Thanks!
No one can spill the tea if you beat them to it. 😉
Today my stream looks like:
*empty nest syndrome is real
*I probably should shower after my walk and go to the grocery store
*a nap will happen today
*at 5 p.m. I will order dinner for my Firstborn and go see his new apartment
Does your hospital not do scrub color assignments? My employer (several area hospitals) has navy for nurses, black for imaging, green for pharmacy, maroon for PCT's, gray for respiratory, etc. At a glance you know who's who. And yes, I have done that Sharpie trick many times!
@Gina from The Cannary Family,
At my hospital nurses wear royal blue and black, techs wear light gray, physical therapy wears navy, maroon for pct's, Kelly green for rapid response, teal for respiratory and ceil blue for surgery team. Pharmacy wears white. Imaging dark slate gray. We are allowed to wear any color on our footwear.
@Gina from The Cannary Family, Our local hospital assigned colors awhile back. Thankfully I don't go often enough to know who wears what, but I do know they banned all the print tops because they said it was too distracting.
I kind of wish we did have assignments but nope, most floors can have free choice of scrub colors and designs.
Maybe you could let your male nurse co-worker pick an additional color that you all wear on a separate day, also? Perhaps he has a fave scrub color and that would be fun to do that together; would be good camaraderie if he's not into joining you guys on the Wear Pink Wednesdays. That's such a fun idea to have a theme day(s) like that!
We shall see...we don't know him very well yet (just met him last week) so we will have to figure out his comfort level. 😉
You could stand at the back during some of those presentations. You actually burn more calories standing than you do sitting so standing was considered an option where I was studying. You need a clipboard if you plan to take notes, though.
We had our water fixed after 3 weeks without. Not really without we could take fast cold showers and flush. Laundry got done at the Mat and my sister's. I need to go pick up my extra bottle of soap. She is the BEST!
We still need to boil or use water from bottles. I hate the waste but would hate the other results worse. It is raingin today. I finally got my fall garden in. I can't wait. My summer garden still has tomatoes, peppers, more peppers and onlions in it. Oh and cabbage. I should go pick another cabbage.
Tonight dinner is a chicken alfredo lasagna with caprese salad. Still avoiding cooking with water for a few more days. On Friday they will test and we will go from there.
My Big Boy cat is grumpy today and tried picking a fight with his brother...the dog. Scardy dog is very upset.
Today is my day off. I feel like I got nothing done. I have to clean the kitchen and do laundry. Yes with boiled water.
I better get back to it.
Real men are comfortable wearing pink- lol!
I have a small framed sign in my living room that says “Life is Better With a Cat”.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, I have one in my entrance hallway that says, "What Part of MEOW Don't You Understand?"
Whew, late to the party today.
Pink. I will start by saying that at the 4 day weekend rodeo events of which I attend three, one night is dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness with the theme being "Tough Enough To Wear Pink." Wrangler keeps coming out with pretty shirts to honor the slogan.
Our nursing home facility allows use of scrubs of choice. And quite frankly, we are in a generally low income area so several of our aides wear not scrubs. I started in the era of all white and nurses wore caps and adapted many white nontypical outfits because I like to be different. Think embossed white on white t-shirt from the beach and capris, tunic top with ruffled hem and leggings before leggings were EVERYWHERE. I was a med tech at the time. (Passed medications, it is how Missouri is able to have enough licensed nurses to go around.) We then moved to colored scrubs. Because I dress for the residents (and myself) I made print tops out of seasonal material, sometimes in fun prints. But always unique.
I finally opened the box to my new printer. The peanuts are not. Instead I have a lot of little (1-2 inches) cardboard shapes that are fabricated and folded in such a way to fill space, cushion and prevent damage. I thought I was opening a box from the Borg leftover parts on Star Trek! As soon as I see that I can get the printer up and running without the possibility of return, I know two little boys who will have a lot of fun with them.
Love your cat drawings, Kristen! And the photo of pink hydrangeas is glorious!!
so exciting. the rn is so comforting. you worked so hard. you deserve it. it is beautiful. i hope you get pink scrubs soon. thanks so much for continuing to post. you rock.
My son is a nurse. He carries him murse-nurse. Male nurse man purse.
@Mary, wow. Autocorrect. That should say murse-murse.
My favorite photos of you are the ones that show your RN badge.
Hehe thank you!
Orientations are necessary- but are long and over the top at times. I work at a hospital so it is easy to understand your need to move and roam. Love your snoopy and cat fun! Hope you are planning a fun recharging weekend
My stream of consciousness---been taking my blood sugars regularly for about 3 weeks, all but one reading has been in range. YEAH ME. LOL. Tuesday my friend was supposed to come over and fix my car, he ghosted me, BUT I spent the time waiting for him cleaning, decluttering, and tidying up this place and it looks a million times better than before. Cutting down on sugar, adding fruits and veggies to my diet, and I feel so much better even though it's only been about 10 days
I know what you mean about moving - my bicycle was in the shop for a late summer tune-up, so I'd been without it for two weeks! But we picked it up Thursday and I rode it yesterday, and I felt like myself again! I get eggs through my old church's CSA, and I ride the 13-mile round trip once a week to pick up my dozen. This week I saw four deer on my way home from the farm - a bonus!
Yes! Our bodies were meant for movement.