Sell This House

Anyone live in or moving to the Triangle area and looking to be a homeowner? Or want some investment property to rent out?

Buy my house!

We purchased it in early 2006 when I thought I was going to Duke for nursing school and would be sticking around North Cackalacky for at least 4-5 years. Alas, life is what happens when we’re making other plans.

Despite the real estate tank, we’re taking a gamble and putting it on the market. So if you happen to be looking, look no further. What a deal!

And you’d be practicing altruism by saving me from paying rent AND a mortgage! Have pity on a poor nursing student!

Puppy Love?

So I had kind of a crazy thought the other day. What if I were to get a dog?

You see, it’s been an incredibly difficult adjustment to living on my own once again. More difficult than I anticipated. Last time I had my own apartment, I absolutely loved it. This time, not so much. Acclimating to a new lifestyle, a new climate, a new pace and a new solitary existence, combined with re-acclimating to the schedule and demands of being a student, have not been kind to the ol’ head and heart. And I’m the type of person to hunker down when I get lonely, which is exactly the opposite of what I need to be doing. I need to get myself out there and force myself to be social and that’s really hard for me to do.

So if S can’t be here yet and I can’t exactly break my lease or find a roommate, and I’m sure as hell not crying “Uncle” and calling it quits, how do I address my loneliness? Find a companion who’s as loyal as they come and who will force me to get outside and get my butt moving! There are a ton of dogs living in my building and the owners all know each other. And there is a dog park right by my gym – walkable in about 30 brisk minutes.

The big obstacle is money of course. The budget of a grad student is not very new dog-friendly. I looked at my numbers and I could swing it, but it would be tight. And then there’s the time involved, although I really have quite a flexible schedule, except on my clinical days. A puppy would be more time-intensive (but also more fun).

Hmm…. So here’s my pro-con list.

Pros: Companionship, help me be more social, give me something to focus on besides school, have a cuddle buddy (Sorry S ), more likely to go to bed at a decent hour rather than fall asleep on the couch simply to have some “company” in the television, and have someone to come home to at the end of the day. Canine beats quiet. And kisses beat, well, everything!

Cons: Cost, time requirements and constant schedule changes from semester-to-semester, having to brave the elements so the pup can do his/her business, waking up 30 minutes earlier to get in a walk in the morning (could also be a pro – extra exercise!).

I’ve been doing some research on breeds, looking online for local dogs, and calling vets to get ballparks on costs such as vaccinations, spay/neuter (if it’s a puppy and hasn’t already been fixed). So the ball is rolling. I just have to decide whether to keep playing.

And just to tug at your heartstrings a little, here are a few of the potential furballs I found online…a golden pomapoo (pomeranian/poodle mix) who won’t get bigger than 5 or 6 pounds.

Or there’s a Bichon Maltese mix who would also be ready in mid-September for the same price as the pomapoo. He’ll get no bigger than 8 pounds, so still easy to travel with.

And then there is the litter of morkies (yorkie/maltese) that was literally just born and ready around the end of October (right around my birthday – how convenient is that?). No pictures yet. Can you tell I am a fan of the small mixed-breeds?

Survey says???

World Travelers

One thing I really like about my class is that a number of us have traveled abroad pretty extensively. And we all want to travel more! When discussing this a couple weeks ago with one of my classmates, I brought up the idea of proposing an International Health elective be offered next summer, culminating in a 2- to 3-week trip overseas to volunteer in a health setting. She was totally gung-ho!

We did a straw poll of the group and found at least 7 others (out of 19) who would be interested in the class. The challenges ahead were: 1) Getting the administration to endorse the idea and support our efforts however they could; and 2) Finding an instructor willing to teach the elective.

Done and done. In our first Professional Role Development class Wednesday morning, our instructor launches into her love for travel, her extensive experience abroad and her background in taking students with her! I almost cried, I was so excited. Immediately after class I e-mailed her the proposal we’d been working on and asked if she could give us some input or even think about teaching the class herself. Turns out she’s already got plans in the works for that exact course to be offered in Summer ‘09 and has gotten the blessing of our dean and program director! And she’s going to India in February to do research, so she’s hoping to set up some connections there and have that be our site for the elective!

Sometimes all it takes is asking!

Week 1 Down the Hatch

Holy syllabi!

This week was a not-so-gentle introduction to the life of a full-time nursing student.  Gone are the days of one course and 4-hour clinical shifts at nursing homes.  Welcome to reality!

Classes will be Monday-Wednesday this semester.  I’m jazzed about all of them, albeit intimidated by the enormous reading and writing load that they collectively represent.  Because this is a second-degree program, they emphasize critical thinking and writing skills from the get-go.  Apparently our life experiences that have led us here justify throwing us in headfirst.  But it’s all good.  Davidson didn’t exactly have a light workload (understatement of the millennium), so as I soon as I complete the mental transition to full-time studenthood I think I’ll be fine.

However, clinicals are another story.  I do a good job of keeping the terror off my face, but this is a whole new level of challenges that is going to kick my ass and take my name.  Repeatedly.  Starting next Thursday.

We met briefly with our psych clinical instructor this morning. Funny story, actually.  Our Mental Health prof told us we were supposed to meet in the third floor lobby at the hospital in a very specific location.  So we all show up at the right place (which looked more like a pseudo-lobby and was nowhere near the actual psych unit) and proceed to twiddle our thumbs.  Five minutes after we’re supposed to start, no sign of our instructor and we start to wonder if we’re in the right location.  We conclude that we are and she must be running late.  10, then 15 minutes pass before we exchange cell phone numbers and split up to start looking for any other 3rd floor lobbies.  Nada.  Then one of my classmates gets a phone call from the instructor.  She’s on the third floor lobby of the freaking nursing school!!!  Apparently some lines got crossed.  So needless to say, by the time she got to where we were, it had already been a long morning.  Good news is, she was really nice and really supportive and encouraging about the fact that she was setting us all up to succeed, rather than feel like idiots.  And since our clinical is in a major medical center, we’ll be able to rotate through a number of different psych settings in our 6 weeks: adult, child/adolescent, and chemical dependence.  We’re all psyched (pardon the pun) about that opportunity.

So there you have it.  We have hit the ground running.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a paper to write…

Time Flies

I have been waiting with bated breath for WEEKS for S to come to town. Last week especially seemed to crawl by. I made it through my last clinical at the nursing home and booked it to the airport Friday night, scrubs and all.

Now, almost 48 hours later and he’s gone again. As usual we had the most magical time together. How cheesy, but oh so true. Every time I’m around S the rest of the world seems to stand still and it’s just the two of us. It keeps getting better and better.

We’re talking more and more about the future and it’s really exciting. As hesitant as I was to even think about making the ultimate commitment after the outcome of my first (naively-entered-into) marriage, all of my walls have come crumbling down. He just fits me. First step: Figure out how we can actually live in the same state again and move in together. This will take some time to figure out the logistics but even the figuring-out part is exciting. And the best part is we’re keeping the lines of communication open so that there are no surprises and no misunderstandings.

I love him.

Oh yes, and the semester officially starts tomorrow. We already have assignments for our classes that haven’t even met yet. Sonofabitch.

*Sigh*

P.S.  Oh yes, and his surprise was tickets to one of our all-time favorite Broadway musicals!  He was so excited – and sang along to every word from his seat.  So adorable!

Relief

Phew!  I am so relieved that’s over!  My physical assessment exam was this morning.  I moved a little more slowly than they wanted (took me 39 minutes rather than the expected 30) but my instructor did admit that my volunteer offered a lot more information while I was doing the assessment and that it was good I followed up with thorough questions.  He also reassured me that efficiency will come with time.

I had a few technique issues here and there – no surprise since I have been a nursing student for exactly 4 weeks – but I didn’t forget anything and overall he said I did a great job.

It was very disconcerting to be watched so closely – I’m sure I was blushing furiously.  As I mentioned before, I have major performance anxiety issues.  And I’m proud and stubborn and don’t like to be wrong.  But I guess there’s no problem with a little humility.  I can’t be an expert nurse overnight, right?

This was my last major source of stress before S arrives.  I’m a free woman the rest of today and tomorrow, and I have clinicals Thursday and Friday.  Friday at 9:30 p.m. can’t come soon enough!

Odd Week

So this week features quite a bit of downtime.  Just finished my first nursing school paper and have no clue whether it’s what our instructor had in mind.  And it’s 40% of our grade.  Eeps!  I’ve spent hours going over the content, making sure the APA formatting is perfect, and it’s time to wrap things up and say a little prayer.

Tomorrow is our physical assessment exam, first thing in the morning – kind of like our final for this class.  I’ve been practicing out loud and thankful I have blinds so that people passing by don’t think I’m holding a stethoscope up to a pillow for sh*ts and giggles.

Then it’s time to twiddle my thumbs.  I have the rest of Tuesday and all day Wednesday completely off.  I think I’ll clean and get organized for the fall semester, which starts Monday!  Thursday and Friday night are my last clinical shifts at the skilled nursing facility.

So yes, this week will probably drag.  Especially because Friday night couldn’t come soon enough – S is flying in for the weekend!!  It’s been 5 weeks and I’m about ready to climb the walls!  We have lots of places we want to see and I’ve cooked up a little surprise for him Saturday night.  You’ll find out when he does.  No leaks.

Not My Cup of Tea

I never really imagined myself in geriatric nursing. There’s not one particular reason and it’s not that I dislike older people – I’ve just always been more drawn to the opposite side of the circle of life: pediatrics. So I was kind of dreading our first clinical placement at the skilled nursing facility (although it is one of the nicest nursing homes I have ever seen).

With two clinical shifts down, however, I find myself really enjoying it. Yes, there are awkward moments but I think that has a lot more to do with my green status than with the age of the residents. I was able to sit and chat with a woman who turned 100 this year and is still sharp as a tack. She didn’t seem to like me at first – who could blame her with 19 nursing students descending on her home? – but after I helped her inside yesterday and wheeled her to her room, we talked for a good 20 minutes. She now affectionately calls me “one of the purple people.”

We also picked the resident we’ll be doing a physical assessment on next week. We figured out very quickly that it’s not going to be quite as straightforward or easy as our exams on our adult volunteers. For one thing, most of these folks have some dementia and many are hard of hearing. Our mental status exams are going to be interesting. For another, they’re all age 90 and older so sitting them on an exam table for 30 minutes (probably more) and interrupting the routines they hold near and dear to their hearts would be very hard on them. So our clinical instructor encouraged us to do the exam in bits and pieces over the next few shifts.

My resident is a HOOT!! She is constantly smiling and making funny faces at people, so I was able to accomplish part of the cranial nerve assessment by playing the “face game”. Different cranial nerves are responsible for different motor functions in the face, so for example, by sticking out her tongue she was showing me that CN XII was intact. We also “exercised”, a.k.a., assessed range of motion.

This is a great introduction to nursing because it is relatively laid-back and more importantly, it forces us to be creative and adaptive. As nurses we’ll rarely be in situations where things happen as expected – I’m expecting the unexpected most of the time. I’m still pretty sure I want to work in peds someday, but I’m glad I’m having this experience now.

P.S. I LOVE compression hose! My first night I didn’t wear them and my ankles were killing me after only 4 hours. Last night I got wise and decided to try ‘em out. God’s gift to nurses, I say!

Day 1 – Check

Nursing rocks.  My clinical rocks.

But I am completely drained of all energy and original thought.  And I have a paper to write tomorrow before my next shift.

More later.

Back To the Dark Ages

I don’t normally ask my readers to get political, but this is ridiculous. It’s about having access to birth control when and where you need it. It’s about making your own decisions, about planning to have a family when YOU are ready.

Birth control does NOT EQUAL abortion, people! So why can’t our brilliant President figure that out????

Ugh.

Can you imagine living in a place where birth control is considered an “abortion” and health insurers won’t cover it? Where even rape victims are denied emergency contraception?

It seems unbelievable, but the Bush Administration is quietly trying to redefine “abortion” to include birth control. The Houston Chronicle says this could wipe out dozens of state laws that protect women’s reproductive freedom and protect rape victims. And this proposed “rule change” doesn’t need congressional approval.

I just signed a message to Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, whose department is considering this rule change, telling him: “Contraception is NOT abortion.” Can you add your voice to this cause?

Click here to sign the message.