Thankful Thursday | I didn't get COVID
This week, I am thankful:
that I didn't catch Covid from my patient
I took care of a patient one day, and all was well. But the next day, the patient developed a cough and a low-grade fever.
I messaged the doctor to ask for a respiratory panel order, and I sent the swab down. In a half hour, the lab called me and I was like...uh-oh. It's not usually good news when the lab calls!
Sure enough, the patient had Covid.
Obviously, we put droplet precautions in place immediately, but they were not in place the day before.
But, it's been over a week and a half since I said goodbye to that patient, and I didn't get sick. Yay immune system!
that the oak flowers are falling
I'm not particularly allergic to oak pollen, but I do dislike the yellow dust that covers everything this time of year.
But, they're starting to fall this week, which means after a good rainstorm, the world will stop being a dusty yellow.
And I can wash my car!
that I successfully killed the yellow jacket in my laundry room
You may remember that I have pretty bad reactions to yellow jacket stings...like, I have to go get on steroids (which means I can't sleep), my limb swells up, and I want to itch my skin off for a good week.
Zoe found one crawling on the laundry room wall, and I couldn't get it with the swatter. I'd heard hairspray freezes their wings, though, so I did that, and he fell to the floor. I assumed he'd crawl under the washing machine and die, but nope, Zoe and I turned around, and there he was, crawling out from underneath.
We both screamed. Ha.
And then I did get him with the fly swatter. Whew.
It would have been funny to have a video of us both screaming, though. 😉
I HATE yellow jackets. Hate, hate, hate. Every time I get stung, I know I have at least a week of suffering in front of me, so I will cheerfully kill any that come into my house.
that my current class is halfway done
Week four actually ends on Sunday, but I submitted my work for this week, so I'm officially at the halfway mark.
Once this one is done, I'll have knocked out four classes. Yay me! I'm getting through it.
(With lots of complaining, but still, I'm getting it done.)
that using the AIDET method is easy for me
My hospital, like many healthcare institutions, is implementing some AIDET training, which I attended this week.
AIDET stands for acknowledge, introduce, duration, explanation, and thanks.
Basically, you say hi, you introduce yourself, you say what you're going to do, how long it will take, why you're doing it, and you say thank you at the end.
This seems extremely common sense to me, and as a friendly, chatty person, I already do all of this without thinking.
So, this expectation is gonna be super easy to meet!
that my shoulder mobility is getting so much better
I'm now able to do some things at the gym that I could not do before, which is cheerful news.
I think I'm probably getting close to being able to graduate from PT, which will be great; that will be one less thing on my weekly schedule.
But of course, as a good PT patient, I will do my home exercises as directed.
that I haven't had to do a night shift in a while
Every month when the work schedule is published, I hold my breath as I open it, hoping desperately that I will not be on nights.
And then I breathe a huge sigh of relief if it's all day shifts. Ha.
My unit knows I prefer not to work nights, but I also know I will get put there if it's necessary for staffing.
Which means every month is a nail-biting experience for me.
The schedule for May just came out, though, and I have zero night shifts. YAY!!!
Good tip on the hairspray!
I have some "fake wasps nests" in the garage to discourage wasps to build a new nest there (again. We had to remove one in the past). But they are not nearly lije the wasps where you live.
This week I am thankful for the free nationwide breast cancer screenings in our country. Although an unpleasant procedure, I always faithfully turned up at the regular intervals. So do most (but not all) women I know. A close friend was diagnosed with a pre-stage of cancer in her most recent screening, but is now in time for less invasive treatment and her prospects are very good. Such a shock, and now such a relief.
Also: tulips everywhere. When the first one are done, the spring sun has awoken the next. We have many sizes and colours and I am happy that past me took the expense and trouble to plant them. It is a joy, I really enjoy this phase of spring.
I am thankful that my annual physical went well. Everything in my blood work was in a normal range. I may look old but my body is working fine.
I am thankful for air conditioning. We've had crazy hot weather and I turned it on yesterday. I slept much better last night than the night before.
I am thankful a niece was able to get the documents she needs to establish Canadian citizenship. Bill C-3 makes it possible for her as she had great grandparents that came from there.
Yay! for PT! I haven't gone to PT, but I have been doing a lot of stretches that are significantly helping me with an issue I have. Keep up the good work. This week I am thankful:
*that my son passed his FAA written exam yesterday! One step closer to his pilot's license. Also thankful for the aviation community; these people are noticeably kinder and more supportive than the general population.
*that it looks like the same son will be able to register for the classes he wants for next semester. Because the math program we use doesn't line up exactly with normal course descriptions and because we homeschooled/didn't do AP classes and because the community college's placement testing doesn't go high enough to place somebody into calculus, this was questionable. Also, two other classes he needs are contingent on his math placement. This isn't 100% set in stone yet, but it looks like outcomes will be favorable.
*that my senior college boy is wrapping things up. He played in the organ vespers yesterday and sang also. It was so beautiful to this mother.
*for my kids. They all pulled together yesterday to get folks where they needed to be. My husband and I had to be gone during the day yesterday (on separate adventures)-- but my youngest was sick. She was okay with staying home with my oldest daughter (who is a very good nurse). Later in the evening, the older 2 needed to be at an awards thing, but my baby wanted me to stay home--- so big brother stepped in and escorted them. Busy days like that make my head spin, but it's nice when we can all pull together to get it done.
*for spring. Sure, it's a little too hot and dry for my liking, but it's ever-so-beautiful!
*that we got our garage straightened up a good bit (not completely--we're not superheroes!). For asparagus. For the shower I'm about to take and the coffee I will make after that. That my kids are enjoying their soccer season. For those silly kitties. For a pretty walk along the canal towpath--on what we call "Bluebell Lane." That I was able to stay home with my children; it has been so good for our family. For beautiful art and music.