Kapachino

Not A New Subject Yet

I was really wanting to talk to you about something other than my job and my wedding today. But, not yet.

I have been taking care of patients completely on my own for about a week and a half now. One patient I have been the primary nurse for since about a month ago. I have built a strong relationship with her sister (she herself does not speak due to a stroke). Last Friday through Monday I took care of three patients, all of whom I knew and had taken care of before.

Today, after one day off, I arrived at work and the first thing I noticed was that my patient for the past month wasn’t on the floor anymore. After questioning, I found out that she was transferred to ICU yesterday, having become septic. That was a downer.

Then I received my assignment for the day and I was given four patients, all brand new who I knew nothing about, and two were due for discharge. You might think that’s a good thing, because they’d be leaving. However, discharges and admissions take a lot of time. There is paperwork, medication reconciliation, fulfilling doctor’s orders, and preparing them to leave to take care of. Both of my patients wanted to leave as soon as possible, and the beginning of the shift is always busy anyway.

A little bit later, the doctor of a patient I had over the weekend came to the unit and informed us that after he was discharged last night (against medical advice), he went home and shot himself in the head. Wow.

After I got through all of that, the day got better. And tomorrow, I hope to come to you with something completely new and random!

Start of a Day

My first wedding disaster dream: It was the day of my wedding and I had left the flowers and centerpieces up to my mom to figure out. I arrived to find that the flowers were hot pink and the centerpieces were doll figurines.

Sorry to anyone who hates reading about other people’s dreams, but I felt it was a duty to myself to chronicle that one.

I love my day off during the week. Today I plan to have lunch with David at his work, buy my brother a birthday gift, and shop for bridesmaid shoes and other things. I’m also thinking about taking Cleo to the dog park. Thinking about it. Poor girl, I haven’t had as much time for her lately.

What I have done so far this morning is eat a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats, read today’s entry in My Utmost For His Highest, and browse the first 75 pages or so of Real Simple’s September issue. A good start, I think. Up next is a shower, and then I’ll consider whether I have time to make it to the dog park and back in time to get to Chick-fil-a before their breakfast menu closes. David loves the chicken biscuits for lunch and I promised I’d bring them to him.

I Love My Job…I Love My Job…I Love My Job…

Even when I have to wake up at 4:30 a.m. on Saturday morning to go.

Even when I have to clean poop out of an opening it shouldn’t be coming from.

Even when the hospital shuts the water off on our floor without telling us, so that everyone goes to the bathroom and is unable to flush for hours and hours, and the rooms and hallways start to smell.

Even when one of my patients spits up phlegm every five minutes into a cup that he leaves sitting at his bedside, and I have an attack of dry heaves in the bathroom just thinking about it.

Even when another patient vomits all over himself and the floor.

It’s worth it when they all tell me how glad they are that I am their nurse, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to going home at the end of the day, eating burgers, and hanging out with my fiance and my dog. I love my job, but some days I don’t like it very much.

Hmm

Today as I was exiting the bus I looked at the bus driver and had the thought, “I wouldn’t want to have a job like that where all these people’s lives are in my hands. If she messed up we could all die.”

Then I remembered what I do for a living.

Late - Early - Late

This morning my alarm went off at 4 a.m. and I pushed snooze until 4:45 a.m., apparently. That’s a lot considering my snooze only lasts 4 minutes. I usually don’t do that, but I guess I was especially tired. Anyway, I got up in a rush because I have to leave by 5:10 a.m. to catch the bus, and I still had to shower. I was all of a sudden filled with energy.

But then when I was in the shower I realized that I have class today, so I didn’t have to be at work until 8 a.m. Immediately I was overwhelmed with sleepiness. I went from being late to being extremely early. So I took my time getting ready, browsed the internet and finished reading a book. I caught the bus a little early.

Then when I was on the bus I realized that the class time had gotten moved to 7 a.m. Shoot. Luckily, the teacher was running late too.

Normal Sinus Rhythm, Please

Want to know what I’ve been up to? No problem:

The Six Second ECG

For the past three days, instead of working on the unit, I’ve been in class learning how to interpret EKGs. My brain has had just about enough! It’s also difficult to concentrate because this is something I will rarely encounter on my floor. So I’m trying to learn it well, but if I don’t get to practice, then I’ll probably just forget.

Any Ideas?

Hello internet,

I have absolutely no idea what music to walk down the aisle to in 53 days. Due to the location and my lack of planning, it will be recorded. We need songs for the wedding party processional, bridal processional, and recessional. Your thoughts?

Also, what are some good dancing songs? And what songs should I tell the DJ not to play?

I appreciate any ideas at all. I am sure I will be begging you for more advice soon enough.

Meet MagsMac

I would like to introduce you to my brother’s girlfriend Margaret, who is way cooler than I am. She is a social media queen, and since my brother designs websites, it was only a matter of time until their two talents combined and she began a blog of her own.

Visit her at MagsMac ‘n’ Cheese!

P.S. I am aware that my blog is now requesting you to sign in to Twitter. I have no idea why. I am looking into it. But in the meantime, why not sign up for Twitter? You may like it.

Kansas Weekend

I’m back home from the whirlwind Kansas trip where one of my best friends, Ellen, got married. As a bonus I got to see a few extra friends and introduce David to many people. Most of it is a blur, but here are some thoughts regarding the weekend. To see the rest of the pictures and more of the story, go HERE. 

The rehearsal dinner had all you can eat barbecue. I’m usually not so much a fan of barbecue, but the side dishes were so good that I stuffed myself.

We got to visit my best friend Becca, who is 8 months pregnant. She and her husband just bought a fixer-upper house. Here we are in front of it.

The wedding was outside, and it was a THOUSAND degrees. I think I sweated more than at any soccer game I’ve played in. Also, the bridesmaids wore the shoes from hell. They were pure evil, despite their cute appearance.

David was so supportive to come all the way to Kansas with me, missing his own cousin’s wedding to go to a place where he knew no one. I love him.

Got to hang out some with these cool girls, Julie and Valerie, friends from Tabor College.

The obligatory bride and groom picture. Ellen was beautiful, and I took her veil from her literally the minute after she removed it later that day. It will be my “something borrowed” at my own wedding!

My good friend Julie let David and I stay at her house while we were there. She and I are a lot alike, and whenever I see her I lament the fact that we live two states away.

We left town around 4 p.m. on Saturday, and since David had to be back by noon on Sunday we just drove through the night. We got home around 2:30 a.m. having been awake since 5 a.m., but we made it!

Final thoughts: I’m jealous that Ellen is married already and I can’t wait to be myself! David and I had some good quality time together this weekend despite the craziness, and I can’t wait to spend my life with him. I have some amazing friends and I hated to say goodbye to them, but I will be seeing them in less than two months!
 

Four Things

#1: I just painted my toenails a dark shade of purple. I am in a wedding this weekend and the bridesmaid dress is purple, and I do not want my hideous toenail bruises showing. However, it is the worst toenail paint job ever, and I’m wondering if the bruises might not be more attractive.

#2: I am devastated because Bennigan’s has filed for bankruptcy and soon will be closed down forever. This was one of my favorite stand-by restaurants. I always knew I could go there for a good meal (the baked potato soup and 1/2 county cork sandwich with a brownie bottom pie for dessert was my favorite). Never again. Tear.

#3: A good friend of our family’s and a member of our church who has always enjoyed photography is now becoming more serious about it, and thus set up a website. He particularly enjoys action shots, and came out to one of my Saturday morning soccer games the other week and took a bunch of pictures. Go HERE to see them. They are really good, except for my hideous face which is a mixture of concentration, exhaustion, and heat stroke.

#4: I am headed out of town to Kansas tomorrow straight after work for the previously mentioned wedding. I am toting David along with me. It is going to be a crazy fast trip, but memories will be made, I will see some of my best friends, and David and I will be together more than we have in the last week combined. And it will be good to get away, if only for a bit. See you when I get back!