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Friday, September 23, 2005

 

hausfrau

So far, I love impersonating a housewife. The house is about 8 times cleaner than it was last week, and I'm starting to tackle the projects that I always mean to do but never seemed to have time for - like going through our books for ones to discard, cleaning out my closet, washing windows, and so on.

But I'm not just sitting around on my butt, either - I'm going to school 3 times a week for the CNA certification program. The "book-learning" part of the course is not hard for me at all, but I feel like such a klutz when it comes to learning new hands-on skills. Like this week, I started learning how to take blood pressure. There's not that much to it - you feel for the person's brachial pulse, you put the cuff on their arm and pump it up, you put the diaphragm of the stethoscope over the brachial pulse, and you deflate the cuff while listening for their pulse to become audible and then fade out, noting the numbers on the gauge at those times. It sounds really straightforward, right? But jeez, I'm so klutzy, I feel like all the tubes and everything are trying to tie themselves in knots. And I'm concentrating so hard on listening that I have trouble remembering to look at the gauge and remember the numbers, which duh, is the whole point. On the other hand, I can tell that as soon as I have the chance to practice some more, it will become totally second nature and easy. I hate this part of learning something new - I really prefer to know what I am doing! And I have a terrible fear of looking stupid.

But don't get the impression I'm not enjoying the class. I am. And I'm looking forward to actually interacting with patients in a few weeks when I start my clinical!

Back to shoes: I tried on a pair of Dansko Sport clogs yesterday (lower, wider heel and more squooshy inside) - I think I like them. And I found a really good deal on them online here. Should I just go for it, instead of trying on 101 other kinds of shoes?

Thursday, September 15, 2005

 

library thing

http://www.librarything.com

GASP! .....!!!!!

I'm in love. Also. I totally need something like this for our CD collection.

 

last day!

I'm packing up this afternoon to leave Dumb Ham Job. I thought I might feel sad when the day finally came, but I don't. I feel excited about moving forward. Also, my coworkers are being phenomenally sweet - I've been taken out for a sushi lunch, receieved a Starbucks card, and a gift certificate to a day spa. Aren't they kind? Too bad the people in charge don't know how to run a company. Speaking of which...I think I'm getting out just in time. Stoner CEO Guy is moving out of state to be involved with his family's business, and he hired Lawyer Guy to come in as president of the company. Allegedly CEO Guy said that he will give Lawyer Guy 6 months to make the business profitable, and after that, he's cutting off financial support. So, set your watches, this place will be closing up shop in March!

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

 

nursey shoes

All right, lurking nurse readers, I know you're out there. I need some practical advice! The CNA program I'm in requires me to get white shoes for my uniform, but any style of shoe is acceptable as long as they're all white. I'm short, I'm kind of klutzy, and I have a bum ankle from a bad sprain a few years ago. What shoes do y'all recommend? Don't worry about price - if they're worth it, I'll pay top dollar.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

 

amazing dinner

We had the most incredible dinner on my birthday at a restaurant called Elemental in Wallingford. I almost hesitate to write about it, for fear that even more people might go there. There are, I believe, 4 tables in the joint, plus a few armchairs and a miniature bar. They take no reservations. We went at 10:30 at night after my first CNA class, and had to wait a few minutes for a table - but that was no problem because the incredibly friendly owner/host pulled up some armchairs and fixed us some mystery drinks. We eventually got him to tell us they were made of white port, club soda, and lime juice. Ahhh!

Then, he moved us to a table, handed 'round menus that listed a variety of small plates, and encouraged us to share. We saw that the menu offered "wine service" which turned out to mean a steady parade of glasses to go with each plate as it arrived. My dad was elected to be the Sober Guy who would drive us home, and when he declined the wine, he was instead treated to a nonalcoholic pear cider so he wouldn't feel left out.

We got completely drunk, had some AMAZING food, and apparently said some extremely funny things. My mother proclaimed that she wanted to marry the heirloom tomatoes in the caprese. What you may not know is that "marry" is a polite code word for "fuck" in my mother's vocabulary. R* alleged that he was so enchanted by the fig and cheese tart, he believed he may already be pregnant by it, regardless of the lack of intercourse with said dessert. I believe I announced my intention to rub my face in that same fig tart.

After plying us with cocktails, wines, and teeny pours of raspberry liquor, someone let it slip to our host that it was my birthday. The last thing to arrive at the table was a little glass of what I think was tawny port, topped with a disk of cardboard bearing a birthday candle. So festive!

By the time we got home, well after 1:00 AM, I could hardly focus my eyes. I fell asleep holding R*'s hand in an effort to keep the bed from spinning out from under me. I think we're going to go back for R*'s birthday in November.

What the pros have to say.

Monday, September 12, 2005

 

when I have a moment

I will tell you all about what I've been doing for the past few days. It involves lots of restaurants, a hotel, and 4 hours of class on Thursday night.

But right now, I have no time! However, I do want to take a sense to say a very sincere thank-you to those of you who posted such kind birthday wishes. That was a nice surprise to find inside my computer this morning.

Thursday, September 08, 2005

 

happy birthday to me

Last year on my birthday, I was stressing about the presidential election. That didn't exactly turn out well.

But this year, I can finally see that real changes are happening in my life. In the last year, I've finished all the prerequisite classes for nursing school, changed my diet and exercise habits and lost a chunk of weight (more to go, though), enjoyed a really good year with R* (who knew, marriage gets better after you do it for a while!), and progressed to the point of quitting my dumb job to facilitate my career change. That's a lot.

As for the whole turning-30 thing - I really don't know what to think about it. I don't feel any different today. I guess I'd always thought by the time I was 30, I would have a graduate degree and a child, and I don't have either one. But my life is pretty darn good, so I'm not sure that there's anything I need to feel bad about!

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

 

NEUROTICALLY YOURS CARTOON: HURRICANE REPORT

A cartoon squirrel gives a better news report than CNN. Warning, if you're offended by foul-mouthed language, or if you don't want your coworkers to hear you listening to a potty-mouthed squirrel, don't click.

 

amazing reading

Medscape

This site is posting first-hand accounts of treating evacuees from Katrina, written by doctors and nurses who are volunteering at shelters and clinics in Texas, Louisiana, etc. It's pretty amazing stuff. I'm getting kind of choked up just reading about it.

 

nurse in training t-shirts

How cute!

 

a small way to help

Nurse Ratchett's Alter Ego provides an address where you can send a care package to a random evacuee from the Gulf Coast here. This seems like a terrific way to do something tangible that won't cost a fortune or be a big time committment, if money and time have been preventing you from helping out. I would think you could use a Priority Mail envelope and stuff it full of small useful things - they cost a flat rate of $3.85 to mail anywhere in the U.S.

Thursday, September 01, 2005

 

I did it I did it!

I just gave notice at my job!

My last day is going to be September 15th. And because I made the plans a long time ago, I'm taking off September 9th to go celebrate my 30th birthday (which is actually the 8th) with my husband and my parents. And Monday is Labor Day. So, I really only have 8 more work days to go!

Here's the plan: I'm going to start the training program at NATI next week, at night. After the training is complete, I'll find a CNA job and work as close to full-time as possible. I need to get 192 hours on the job before January 3rd, which is when the application for the Spring quarter's nursing class is due to Shoreline. I'm a little concerned about the timeline - but it should work out okay. 192 hours is 24 8-hour days, or just over 1 month full-time. I should be able to fit that into November & December even if I can't find a 40 hours/week job.

In the meantime, since I'll be going to training 3 nights a week, I'm going to impersonate a housewife for a while!

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