Thankful Thursday | Oh hey, I’m an RN!

This week, I am thankful:

that I passed my NCLEX!

I took the test Tuesday morning, and it shut off at 85 questions, which means you either did super well or super not-well (so, not a helpful clue as to your results. Ha.)

I got the results yesterday at noon, and woohoo, I passed! I have a real registered nurse license number now. 

I can hardly believe it. I have both a diploma and a healthcare license! 

that I can mentally put the NCLEX in my rearview mirror

Ever since I took my first pre-req class in the spring of 2021, I have been doing my studies with an eye to passing the NCLEX. It has been looming over me for four years, and to have it behind me is weird, in a good way. 

All that studying I did, all the podcasts I listened to, all the practice questions, and homework assignments, all the YouTube videos…they worked! They got me here successfully.

And now, poof! I am in a different phase, and it is almost hard to comprehend.

I really really am on break, whereas before, even on summer breaks, I still felt like I needed to stay fresh to retain information for the NCLEX. So I never felt done with school.

Last night I was cleaning up my kitchen, and I felt like I should listen to a lecture or an NCLEX prep video.

(It’s been my habit to do that for the last four years whenever I’m working on a task that requires my body but not really my brain.)

But then I realized I truly have nothing to study for right now. CRAZY! 

for the ability to donate blood

Every time I donate blood, I feel kind of in awe of how our bodies can make something so valuable without us even having to consciously do a thing. 

It reminds me a little of how I felt amazed to see that my body could grow a whole human, complete with bones. Wild! 

Or how it is amazing that our bodies can produce milk that is nutritious enough to grow a tiny newborn into a round-cheeked baby. 

I donated 10% of my body’s blood volume, and now, while I go about my daily life, my bone marrow will get to work making new red blood cells to replace all of that. So cool. 

for my floor fans

My house has no ceiling fans, and as a renter, I am not about to buy and install any! 

But I have several Honeywell floor fans that I bought from Facebook Marketplace, and they are a lovely way to bring some moving air to any room I want.

Moving air feels so much cooler than still air. 

for cool showers 

This is a time of year when I basically never take a hot shower; I’m always showering after a morning workout and in the summer, a post-workout shower always needs to be cool/cold for me. 

I always feel so much better afterward! 

A bonus is that I save on hot water, but honestly, I am just doing this because it is what feels good. I cheerfully take hot showers in the winter because that’s what feels good then. 🙂 

for cold watermelon

I ate an entire quarter of a watermelon after my third work shift last week. So good. So refreshing. 

I know some people think a whole watermelon is too much to buy when you have a small household, but this is not the case if you are an insatiable watermelon consumer. 

Basically, you just have to believe that there is no wrong time of day to eat watermelon.

It’s good at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and anytime in between as well. 🙂 

for beautiful sights in the woods

The air right now is an atmospheric crime, but beautiful things are growing. 

I do try to remember that the wet air makes all this possible. 

It is a bit of a struggle, though. 😉 

for a new oil furnace

The new one arrived this week; it’s not installed yet, but that’s ok. It’ll be months before I will need any heating help. Yay!

I have a lot of hope that the new furnace will provide much better service than the old one, but still, living with an oil furnace these last few years has made me pretty dead set against ever buying a house with oil heat. Too much headache. 

that renting means I face no unexpected house-related costs

I do want to own a home again one day.

But, I did not have to drop a penny on the new furnace and the new sump pump, and that has reminded me that renting does have its perks. 

What are you thankful for this week?