National Nurse's Week

In case you didn't know, this is National Nurse's Week. Please feel free to send your appreciation and gratitude my way...




For you, a few covers from nurse romance novels. This one might be my favorite but there are lots of other funny (and embarassing) covers, I'll post a few each day this week.








“She became furious one moment with rage, then cold the next with despair. She remembered how Viola Belsare acted whenever Craig was around. She suddenly became all warm and melting, very much a woman. Otherwise, she was as crisp as chilled lettuce.”










“She shook her head, her hair brushing his chin. ‘No, I don't mind at all,’ she said softly. And trembled as his lips brushed her hair, ever so lightly.

And thought . . . who was it said dreams never came true?

. . . Or was it ‘whom’?”

I love this one for it's concern over proper grammar even in the throes of passion.

Am I the Last One To Know About This?

Did you know April is National Poetry Month? Apparently they don't talk about this on sites I frequent. But I was recently reading a blog of someone I don't really know who mentioned it. This internet thing really does brings us all together, right.

It's the last day of the month but I wanted to throw my hat in the ring and share one of my favorites. William Stafford is an amazing poet, so simple and clear but descriptive. And I have so many memories attached to him. My sophomore year in college, I took a poetry class and met a guy named Nathan, my official unrequited crush of 1992. He was from Portland, so beautiful, a renaissance man, loved science, our poetry professor actually had to tell him to stop turing in poetry he had turned in so much, and we could talk for hours. I later found out that he, of course, had a girlfriend. But he sparked the kindling of my interest in Oregon. He xeroxed William Stafford poems for me and every few weeks I got packets of them to pore over.

Enough about Nathan, let's get back to William, in the introduction to his collection of poems, An Oregon Message, he says, "I must be willingly fallible in order to deserve a place in the realm where miracles happen." Isn't that inspiring, that my failings, mistakes, and weaknesses allow me to be part of miracles.

So here's one of my favorites:

Why I Am Happy

Now has come, an easy time. I let it
roll. There is a lake somewhere
so blue and far nobody owns it.
A wind comes by and a willow listens
gracefully.

I hear all this, every summer. I laugh
and cry for every turn of the world,
its terribly cold, innocent spin.
That lake stays blue and free; it goes
on and on.

And I know where it is.

Can You Believe This Isn't From Utah!

I signed up for emails from Daily Candy with their promise of art, beauty, food, and fashion. And most days they live up to their mission statement by showcasing cute shopping finds or fun websites. But recently this was the featured item - swimwear that "highlights the face rather than the body." And it wasn't even April Fool's Day.I understand the inclination to cover up at the beach but I really don't think this is a more flattering option than just proudly showing your flabby white thighs. If this mix of Victorian values and modern materials isn't weird enough for you, they also offer an "extended" model with sleeves just above the wrist and legs down to the calf.

Worst of all, it's from somewhere in the Portland area.

Unknowingly, I Was Cheech

First, some backstory...I live in an old house that is now split into 4 apartments. My apartment in right by the front door and front porch. My neighbors smoke on said front porch. When they open said front door, I catch a brief whiff of cigarette smoke.

Last night I caught a brief whiff of smoke, but not cigarette smoke, pot. And yep, they were out on the porch. I thought, "Do I say something to them? To the landlord? Do I wait to see if they do it again?"

So today, mid-afternoon, I smelled it again. They weren't outside. I realized I was in the same spot, by my kitchen table, as the last time I smelled the suspicious odor. I looked down on the table, and there, still in the plastic bag, were 3 grapefruit(s?) I bought a few days ago. Yep, they were the culprits. Who knew? I then went to my mom's, took one with me, and she agreed about the smell. And since, before I left, I opened the bag and left them on my table, when I got home, the whole apartment smelled like I had been lighting up.

Ugh!

Have you ever realized you're a living, breathing stereotype.

Here's what I just bought at the store:
Advil
Tampons
Haagen Daaz mint chip light ice cream

(guys, sorry for the oversharing)

3 Years...

3 Long Years, that's all I'm saying. Some of you know what I mean.

A Better Week

A few months ago, I posted about a hard week.

Yesterday, we met with our nurse manager to discuss patient satisfaction and how it's tallied off of surveys patients get once they are home. We get lots of positive feedback in person but only the frustrated people actually fill out and send back the surveys. So I'm trying to buck the trend of people only sharing bad news and not the little good things too. Here's what's good at work this week, in contrast to the last post.

I had a patient who, in the middle of me trying to stop her nose bleed, said, "You have the cutest dimples ever." And tried to set me up with her grandson.

And another patient, while I was listening to her heart and lungs, said, "You have exceptionally beautiful skin." And also guessed my age at 8 years younger than I am. Never mind that she was a head trauma patient...

And yeah, blah blah blah, it was a good week, I did a good job, people lived, and all that other stuff I should say...Did I mention people said I was cute!

Hey Baby, What's Your Sign?

Maybe it's a springtime rebirth, maybe it's the extra sunshine igniting my brain, maybe it's just an internal backlash from my recent post but I have been thinking a lot lately about goals. Still not really career goals but plans for my future nonetheless.

Now I am not one to give much credence to horoscopes, and usualy if I "believe" them, it is more in the hope they will come true when they forecast good things. But today I finally sat down and flipped through SLCityWeekly and this was my horoscope for this week:

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)
The time is ripe to sign a new contract with yourself. Put it all in writing—I mean the promises you want to make to your future self. Describe the ideals you intend to live up to, the freedoms you want to fight for, and the changes you want to make in the world around you. There’s no need to sign it in ink made from your blood, but I do suggest that you dab some of your sweat and tears on the document.

Not sure yet how many of the details I want to share but it did feel a bit like the universe was conspiring with me (I know the universe can conspire against someone, but can it conspire with someone? Either way, you know what I mean).

Also, I'm not sure but I think the image might be a belt buckle, in case anyone wanted to start birthday gift plans early.

Word Slingers

Tonight, the lovely Heather Roberts had people over to play Scrabble and sip tea. And even though her very detailed post, complete with photos and word lists, pretty much covers it all, it was such a delightful evening I just had to mention it myself.

We played two rounds, the first as sticklers for the rules. In that round the best words were maven, covens, and revamper.

Then we threw the rules and dictionaries (yes there were several) out the window. We could make up any words we wanted as long as we could pronounce it, define it, and use it in a sentence. Two of my favorites were grofecyz (prophecies you don't really like and make you kind of gruff) and blirreaz (when an oil spill makes the environment around it blurry. Although we liked this one so much we also applied it to anything blurry or blizzard-like). I also really liked Heather's use of 3 consecutive N's in a word I'm not sure I could spell again.

The tea was delicious, the popcorn was addictive, and I made scones. Yep, I could have just put the recipe here, but I'm trying to promote the other blog.

My goals or lack thereof

As a new grad nurse, I have to go to this 4 hour class once a month. This month, one of the topics was setting career goals for the future. Now generally I have goals but I spent the last 3 years making and accomplishing some pretty big career goals, pre-reqs, getting into nursing school, getting mostly A's, graduating, passing the NCLEX, interviewing for and getting a job, moving to SLC. So I have given myself the year off of making career goals. In a few months I will think about the future, staying in SLC, being a travel nurse, or just picking a new city to try.

My "career" goals right now are to go to work, do a good job, make good use of the days off I have each week and to remember I have a paycheck and can, for the first time in 3 years, buy fun stuff (in moderation).

So here's what I just bought...A cute little (4" x 6") print "Keep Spring in Your Heart" from ArtStarPhilly