Strep will take the pep outta your step

Whelp. 

I am at home with my throat aching... 

if you could imagine your throat being clawed open by a rabid

grizzly, then you would have an idea of how I am feeling today. 

I am sick and irritated. I just spent three awesome days in Disneyland with 

my favorite co-worker and a friend. I was ready 

to hit the unit today like a hurricane. I was going to pass meds, listen to lungs, 

and question orders like no one's business. 

But this morning, that came to a screeching halt. 

My day goes like this:

0500: Wake with a raging sore throat. Hurry to the loo and proceed

to clutch the porcelain throne while my bowels take revenge for

every piece of spicy food I've subjected them to. 

0530: Try calling clinical resources to tell them I can't come to work... because 

I am fairly sure I have dengue fever or some other whack disease. 

0545: Keep getting directed to multiple wrong phone numbers. Start to cry a little.

0600: Finally get in contact with clinical resources. After being on the 

receiving end of snarky comments like 'It's 0600 and you are supposed to be

here in an hour... and you are just now calling in?" 

 And in my head I think "I am fairly sure I could be dying. Spare me."

0700: Tell my mother I am sick... revert back to childhood behavior and request

medicine, coffee, and to tuck me in. 

0900: Answer door for my mom; proceed to ingest a latte, tylenol, and chicken soup. 

Then proceed to vomit. 

1200: Wake up from a short nap. Wonder why I don't feel awesome yet. 

1400: Admit defeat and that I could actually have something worth a trip to the 

urgent care. 

1500: Answer the door for the UPS man: who accidentally blurts "Holy...... wow, are

you okay?!" 

I wasn't sure if he was referring to the onesie pajamas with cats on them, my

Star Wars hoodie encrusted with dried soup, or my approaching death 

etched on my face. 

1630: Mom picks me up. I go to urgent care. 

1700: Doctor tells me he likes me hoodie... although he surely saw the 

soup stains and smelled how pungent it was. 

1730: Leave urgent care with a dx of strep throat and a prescription 

in hand. 

1900: Take a bath. Take antibiotics. Break out in a rash because I am allergic to everything on the gah-damn planet. Flop my bed and take two benadryl. Wait for the stupor to take over. 

I also didn't swallow my antibiotic fast enough. It's a large pill 

that I couldn't swallow on the first try. I have the gag reflex of a cat. 

So the pill started to break down in my mouth. 

Now my mouth tastes funny. 

Ew. 

Praying for a better tomorrow.

Breakfast food for dinner? Oui Oui !

So. I am now living on my own. 

My permanent roommate and I were not 

getting along and since it seems like our romance has 

imploded and will never recover, I am now

tucked away in a small one bed/bath house. 

It's actually really cute. 

I live on a quiet dirt lane that has lots of trees, is really green, 

and surrounded by pastures and nice houses with friendly faces. 

I have been keeping to myself a lot for the past couple weeks

trying to adjust and to have some privacy while my eyes leak nonstop. 

BUT. I did create a delicious baked french toast dish tonight. 

And that's a plus. 

This stuff is so fluffy and delicious it could easily become a once-a-week staple for me. 

Cinnamon Apple-Blueberry French Toast Bake

Ingredients:

 6 eggs

 1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 cup flour

1 tbs sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp salt

1 pkg cream cheese

1/4 cup brown sugar

Cinnamon for dusting

1 baguette ( cut into cubes about 1-2 inches thick)

1 container fresh blueberries

1/2 apple, cored, peeled, and cut into 1 inch chunks

Maple syrup

Slice up your baguette into 1 inch chunks. Allow to

sit out for a few hours so it's nice and stale... yes, STALE :) 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees :)

Thoroughly spray a 13x9 pan with non-stick spray

 Whisk together eggs, milk, flour, sugar, vanilla, and salt. 

Once blended, add cubes of bread to egg mixture (I hand dip each cube to make sure it's completely coated). 

Place soaked bread cubes into sprayed pan. Cut cream cheese into small cubes (1 inch) and scatter over top of bread cubes. Top with blueberries and apples.

 Dust with brown sugar and cinnamon. 

Bake for 25-28 minutes. 

Remove from oven, let cool. Cut yourself a piece and drizzle 

with syrup and enjoy :) 

*Pecans, powered sugar, lemon ricotta, and peaches are also great substitutes for ingredients.

Diced up baguette...  nice and stale

Coated bread chunks, cream cheese cubes, and blueberries with apples

 Dusted with cinnamon and brown sugar

 

Fresh out of the oven after 28 minutes!

 

 A delicious piece of fluffy goodness for dinner :)

After eating all these carbs, my eyes are getting heavy. Work tomorrow and Thursday... then I will be off to Disneyland with a couple friends for the weekend. Can't wait :)

Perpetual Hiatus

It's been over a month since I last posted, 

and I guess that's okay. 

I have had a lot going on. 

I've been working, doing a little travel, 

and mostly trying to come to terms

with a lot of emotional upheaval in my life. 

I am now living on my own in a cute little house. It's about

a fifteen minute drive from work. There is a park close by

and I live in a nice area that is really 

pretty. 

So that is good. 

A few weeks ago I did get to go on a trip with my mom to

Northern California and Nevada to see my Uncle Mike. 

I got to see some amazing sights. 

Yosemite National Park

Lake Tahoe

Sequoia National Park

Grant's Grove in Sequoia 

My mom and I in front of Golden Gate Bridge! 

It was good to be away from work... 

I'm sick this week and have been stressed trying to move and 

do homework. But life will keep plugging along and so will I. 

God Bless and Happy Thursday :)

Tip top breakfast for a Nurse!

As you are aware (if you read this blog at all), 

I am a nurse who works looooonnnnnnng shifts. 

I am at the hospital from 0700-1945ish every day. 

That's a long day. 

In the morning, I wake up and try to eat something for 

breakfast because one thing floor nurses DON"T do is take a 

lunch at 1200 everyday like most normal people. 

We take lunch when we have a spare 30 minutes... which sometimes

doesn't happen until 3pm. That's a long time to wait to eat

when you are dealing with sick people and running your

butt off all morning. 

My favorite breakfast is these oatmeal muffins I make out

of bananas, oatmeal, and other ingredients. 

They are really filling, and perfect to pop in a baggie to stash

somewhere in the unit kitchen when I need a snack. 

I take three overripe bananas and mash them with a potato masher 

until they are pulverized in a large bowl. 

I add a cup of vanilla almond or soy milk, 2 eggs, 

a tablespoon of baking powder, 3 cups of rolled oats, 

1 tsp vanilla extract, and 1/4 cup chocolate chips. 

Preheat the oven to 375, mix all ingredients together, 

and line a cupcake tin with liners. 

I spoon enough of the mix to the top of the liners, and then bake for 25 minutes. 

Once they are browned on the tops and firm to the touch, they are done. 

It makes from 13-15 muffins. 

Once they cool down they are easy to remove from the cupcake liners :) 

These are one of the best recipes I have found when it comes to needing

a filling breakfast... they also can be stuffed in your mouth while on the way to work :) 

Summer is slipping away

The days are slipping away this summer! I am not sure why 

time seems to go so quickly... 

The past week or so I have been busy working (of course). 

That's most likely why time seems to go fast... because 

most of it spent being an adult and working!!! 

I am actually starting to really get in the 

groove of things at work. 

My assessments are not taking forever, med passes are

going quicker, and it's becoming easier to 

see the whole clinical picture. 

To let off some steam last week, a co-worker and I decided

to go for a paddle down the Verde River. 

It was a fun day; it involved too many Blue Moons, a lost paddle, 

a 911 call, lashing two kayaks together, missing car keys,

a ride from a good samaritan, and

lots of hilarious photos. 

The view from where we beached the boats for a break

The photo we sent to a concerned co-worker, Kevin, after telling

him he may need to be our designated driver.

A visit

A couple days ago I went to the cemetery to 

visit my dad's grave. 

After he died, I put flowers there for Fathers Day, 

and then didn't go back for several months. 

I'm not sure why I avoided going exactly... I think 

mainly because I knew it would 

be so painful, and I was trying so 

hard at that time to just keep it together. 

I was trying hard to not cry so much all the time. 

Later, I felt enormous guilt for not going more often. 

I didn't want to be rude towards my dad for 

not visiting his grave... I had

this irrational guilt that I was being hurtful to him

by not visiting. 

Anyway, I try to go more often now. I 

go and anticipate I will cry a lot and 

generally feel terribly sad and hollow for 

the rest of the day. 

The other day was no different, except maybe

that a sticker got in my flip flop and 

I cursed VERY loudly and creatively. 

I brought yellow sunflowers for my dad, 

because as far as flowers go, they were the manliest

type available at the Safeway. 

I will go back again soon... 

I don't feel any closer to my dad being there, 

but it is nice to have an area with

some type of physical memorial to him. 

A place to lay sunflowers, 

a place to visit. 

A little guidance

All of us have those people from our 

past that taught us valuable life lessons. 

There are so many things we can learn 

from others, simply because no one 

has the same life experiences and wisdom. We 

are completely unique in everything we know and 

how we came to know it. 

That being said, I want to say 

thank you to a special nursing instructor 

whose advice always comes back to me while I am 

at my job caring for my patients. 

Mrs.M was a tough teacher... I dreaded turning in 

my clinical documentation/assessments/care plans 

to her every week because I knew she would

use her handy weapon (a pink highlighter) and 

mark up every page. 

But it made me a better nurse. 

One thing I was told in my review recently is I 

have great documentation skills, which is always

a good thing. It's most likely

thanks to Mrs.M. 

I was very lucky to have her... she currently is living in the 

southeast US enjoying sunshine. She isn't an 

instructor anymore, but there are plenty of us out there

who probably thank our lucky stars she was ours :)

Our clinical group from first semester of nursing school :)

It's been 20 days...

...since my last post. 

Where did 20 days go??!!

I have been super busy working shifts, going to staff meetings, 

and having issues with allergies that have kept me at 

home with a swollen face. 

What has happened in the last 20 days? 

I got accepted to Arizona State University to start my BSN degree. 

I am thinking maybe a dual-degree in journalism would be awesome, no? 

My sister and her family have also moved back to Arizona 

after being in Colorado while her husband was in vet school. 

He is now a fully licensed vet who will be working with furry 

patients at a clinic in north Phoenix. 

I have been working a ton and feeling so exhausted after

each shift I just sit in my house watching Les Mis with

a cup of coffee. 

I have had some really sweet patients the last few shifts, 

which is nice for a change. I'm not exactly saying 

I expect people to be less than pleasant, 

but it happens when people aren't feeling well. 

People tend to forget I am human too, with only two

hands and limited patience. 

It was nice to have a steady day with pleasant people who remembered

to say please and thank you :) 

With all the work, I have to make some time for play. 

I am thinking a trip to Sequoia National Park will do the trick. 

Life for me isn't much fun if I am at home getting stagnant. I need 

to see and do new things to refresh my mind! 

That being said, locally there are some fun things going on to 

help with the boredom... 

The Farmer's Market Jamboree started in my hometown 

that is happening every Thursday for a few months. 

Fresh veggies, fantastic local music, and summer evenings. 

What could be better? 

New Grad Blues

I have three days off. 

Yahoo! 

So... sometimes I feel like I really suck at my job. 

I felt reaaaaallllllly bad for the night nurse

who took my group last night because I missed

orders, didn't get a chance to empty all my 

surgical drains, 

forgot to change IV tubing, and had a patient 

with an extremely high blood sugar and didn't give him

his insulin right away because I was waiting

on a resident to put in orders (I really should have just given

the already ordered insulin). 

Today went so much smoother... I'm not sure what 

happened yesterday; I had a patient whose room

I just couldn't get out of plus discharges and transfers.

Not anything out of the ordinary, but still... just weird. 

I wanted to cry in the bathroom. 

"Dear Kevin... I am sorry I am incompetent and that

you probably had a very hellacious night because 

I forgot a lot of things. If you forgive me, I'll leave my blinds 

open all weekend" 

Don't ask about that last part. 

Anyway. I felt extremely stupid. 

I am so exhausted from working as a nurse

plus all the things I have had to take care of 

since my dad died. 

I am so overwhelmed. 

I have heard it's normal for new nurses to get the blues

while adjusting to their job. 

I think I am doing fairly okay... day shift is just so busy and 

I have so many people pulling me in so many directions 

that it makes my head spin. 

Then I come home and my head spins even more

because I am still depressed over my dad's death

and I worry about the business plus I have my 

own life (or lack thereof?) to think about. 

Oh well... life moves on. It always works out some way or another. 

A year ago I couldn't see my way clear and had no 

idea how to live without my dad in my life. 

And here I am. 

Living and shit. 

Things will get better. The company will take care of itself. 

Someday I will not feel like an idiot everyday at work. 

Time for bed. I am cranky and want to be in stretchy pants. 

Oh... P.S.: I had a patient (who was very cantankerous and demented)

ask if I was pregnant or recently so. She also asked if the night nurse

or the tech (both men who have the same name) knocked me up. 

Maybe not so many lattes at work. 

Diet time? 

For the Birds

Working four shifts in a week is for the birds. 

It really is. 

It's about as pleasant as an itchy rectum. 

Luckily I had a couple days off for the weekend. 

I am already burnt out on all the rude people I have to work with. 

My group of patients were really starting to grind on me. 

I really do have empathy and I will bend over backwards to help a person

who wants to take care of themselves and takes their health seriously. 

I am a nurse. My job is to help you overcome illness and 

encourage healthy practices. 

It is not my job to be your waitress, I am not a drug dealer, and 

I am not paid to wait on you hand and foot. 

Being in the hospital is a rehabilitation process... it 

is not a hotel where you expect the staff to give you 

four star meals and fluff your pillow when you have two working arms. 

I don't appreciate the sense of entitlement. 

Anyways... I had a break, and I am sad it's coming to an end tomorrow. 

Four months and I am already feeling like I need

a vacation. 

Oy vey. 

This weekend Robyn came for the weekend and we kayaked, went 

out for beers, shopped, and ate delicious food. 

We went out with some of my former co-workers from the 

laboratory dept where I used to work. 

What a group. 

It was a good weekend. 

My recommendation is to not drink two 25 oz limearitas

while kayaking... especially when a thunderstorm is rolling in. 

Those limearitas are potent. 

So we took out early, ended up calling my mom because we left

our keys in the car, and slept on top of our 'yaks 

while it was storming out. 

I'm not sure how we wind up in these situations. 

A Tough Week for Arizona

Many of you have probably heard on the news over

the weekend that 19 members of the 

Granite Mountain Hotshot firefighter crew were killed

battling a fire in Yarnell, AZ. 

It's very somber here in the county as we all reflect on these

deaths and the families these brave men left behind. 

Firefighters lost their lives, and many people have lost their homes as well. 

Flags are flying at half mast... it brings tears to my eyes and my heart aches

for these families. 

For more information on these brave men, click here to view

a page created in their honor. 

The wildfire situation in Arizona is terrible right now... there are multiple fires

occurring in the state right now. 

Please pray for healing, pray for rain, and pray for those affected by this tragedy. 

My heart goes out to the families of the firefighters and the people

who have lost their homes this weekend. 

Much love to you all. 

Arizona Rain

It's starting to be my favorite time of year... 

when we hit the rainy season in Arizona. 

I love the smell of wet dirt, rainbows, and the 

beautiful sunsets and clouds that 

come with the summer storms. 

I do NOT love that my swamp cooler doesn't

work so great when it's humid outside. I think it

may be time to invest in an air conditioner. 

Seriously. 

I just got done working three in a row. That

is whole gig is for the birds. 

I am so exhausted, I don't even have the 

energy to take Jock to the park

or water my plants. 

The first shift, 

I wanted to accidentally break my leg

so I didn't have to go back the next day. 

The second day wasn't so terrible. 

Yesterday wasn't so terrible either. 

With nursing, how the day goes depends

on your patient. And people are 

unpredictable. 

Ah well, two days off and then back for

another three. I will enjoy my rest and my sleep while I can!