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June 30, 2004
Damn.
Thank god this week of tests is over, but now we are on to more work at the hospital.
I think I am turning into MissBoringPants.
But I am finally registered and paid for the summer!
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:19 PM | Comments (1)
Ooo! Crutches!
Tonight was out of control, but really, kind of silly.
Got home from clinical and a nursing buddy of mine and I caught the shuttle back and went to go study for our Pharmacology exam, which is at 9am tomorrow. And then, out of the blue, the curb comes up and pushes her down. She tried to walk it off, but it was sore, and we studied, but it was sore, and then she tried to get up, and she couldn't walk on it.
Luckily we are in a hospital. But all of the wheelchairs were locked up, so I carried her on my back to the Emergency Room. And they told us to go across the street. And when I carried her across the street, they told us to come back to the Emergency Room. But at least we found a wheelchair.
So we waited. In the ER. For 6 hours. And I got hives. Lots of them. And she got crutches and an x-ray. And some nice lady next door gave us $20 to take a cab because sprained foot nursing buddy refused to let me pay for a ride home. Stubborn, she is.
And now I'm home, filled with Benadryl, and Pharmacology information, and just about ready to crash out, but now I can't sleep because of all the excitement.
You know how it is.
So that was my day. And PS, I think I have a latex allergy. And PPS nursing buddy is fine.
BED FOR ME!
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 02:47 AM | Comments (2)
June 27, 2004
Will it never end?!!!
It's only been two weeks now and all I have been doing is studying. I have never studied this hard ever and I still don't know anything.
It's MAKING ME CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And I just want to lay in bed.
*grumble*
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 03:00 PM | Comments (3)
Oh, and another thing....
Can someone explain to me why in the gymnastics floor exercises the women (GIRLS) flail their arms around and pretend to dance and do all that random "choreography" in the middle?
I don't care, and frankly, don't want to see them prance around with their legs on top of their head.
Just do the damn flips.
Nobody cares about the other stuff.
Especially not me.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 01:03 AM | Comments (0)
June 26, 2004
Hella Cable TV!
Hallelujah! (I don't think I know how to spell that)
I finally have the internet at home! Which means I can now actually write in my blog, talk to people that I don't otherwise talk to (we all know how much I love the phone), do illegal things, and oh yeah - watch TV because I have cable TV now.
Right now the Olympic Trials are on for gymnastics and I am horrified. Let's keep 20 year old women in puberty because we want them to win win win! But again, I just can't help myself. Must. Watch. Any. TV.
I can't even begin to describe these past two days, and I am just happy to be at home in my bed now, even though I'm still studying. I had my first days on the Oncology Unit at Stanford and I am so overwhelmed but so completely at home and comfortable there already...
It's just a lot to think about. To take in. To process. To try and learn and do and care and see and hear and feel everything and still keep distance but not too much distance and then get all my work done and still have time to hang out.
But last night was a good one... we studied for awhile and then decompressed by going to another awesome noodle place (yeah, obsessed with noodles) and then I went to a midnight showing of Farenheit 911 with my friend Ayanna and her boyfriend (who is a DJ and drives a Lexus with rims. I was in heaven). And that blew my mind too. More on that later.
Just wanted to give an update. I feel so vague lately... It's hard to have a blog when everything is stuck in my head... but bear with me.
It's comin'.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
June 23, 2004
It's just one of those days...
Where I hopelessly, desperately miss my peanut.
So here is my favorite picture of us:
*SIGH*
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 06:02 PM | Comments (1)
I know they're bad for me, but....
I broke down and bought a Krispy Kreme today. Oh heavenly heavens. But I also got a litre of water to go with it, so that has to count for something I think.
Today is a "late day" - class at 9 - and last night I had the best study session ever. Miss Doesn't Study Unless She Has To is actually totally in to doing this, and even though I have been procrastinating some (because I just can't NOT) we drilled Pharmacology into each other for 2 hours in this fabulous little coffee shop on Lincoln and 9th called Canvas (I think).
I love exploring the city. Mostly I have been a little on the tired side to do any real exploring, but even trips to coffee shops, or tonight a bunch of us are going to a Cuban restaurant, or some time in Golden Gate Park is just....
I couldn't be in a better place.
Off to talk about the 5 "Rights".
Remember,
Right Patient
Right Drug
Right Dose
Right Route
Right Time
Or you're fucked. (And so is the patient)
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:40 AM | Comments (1)
June 22, 2004
Nursing Rant #1
I have only been here a week, but I feel like my head is swimming with all of these things that I can’t stop thinking about. And I don’t just mean the coursework, or the skills lessons, or all of the technical stuff. In this short time I have realized that there is so much about nursing that is so easy to take for granted when you don’t really know what the profession or the role is all about.
I remember when my father said to me (in an attempt to be encouraging when I was rejecting the path of becoming a doctor) that I would be driven crazy by the fact that I would be constantly told what to do, and that it would be impossible for me to be happy in as a nurse because I was smarter than half the doctors out there, and I wouldn’t be able to stand it. But part of what I am coming to understand, and wish others could realize, is that there are so many, varied, complex elements to being a nurse, and it is not at all about simply following doctors’ orders.
It seems that on some level, physicians actually have it easy. Yes, they have to figure out and diagnose what is wrong and decide a best course of treatment, but nurses have to implement that. Nurses have to be with the person (both well and ill) and they must carefully, delicately, thoroughly and caringly, carry out any treatments or other physical and emotional care of a person when that “order” comes down. And this is the hardest thing to do; it is the most nuanced, most important, and it is the thing that goes unnoticed when it is done well.
Once in awhile I have a twinge of “Oh my god, maybe I should have been a doctor,” but when I sit back and think about what it means to be a good nurse, and what it means to nurse, I know there is nothing more that I would rather do, and nothing more important. Nurses are with people at their most vulnerable. Nurses are responsible for making sure they are safe at all times. Nurses are involved with their most intimate processes, both physical and emotional. Nurses are responsible for making sure that people are truly being taken care of, educated, and advocated for in what may be one of the most trying and humiliating experiences of their lives. Even something that appears simple, like moving a patient in their bed, or making sure people are rotated regularly so they don’t develop skin ulcerations, or cleaning a bedpan, is crucial to safety and care, and it takes skill, attention and dedication to do it in such a way that it does go unnoticed – because that means it has been done right.
I read once that the work of a nurse is often unrecognized because of the level of intimacy nurses have with people when they are at their most vulnerable. It is easier for someone coming out of the hospital to praise a doctor for “fixing” them, than to have to be reminded of how vulnerable of an experience it was for them by praising a nurse for cleaning up when they couldn’t stop vomiting, wiping their head and body when they were delirious and feverish, feeding them, instructing and educating them on how to give themselves medications or why certain procedures have to be done, giving them a bath when they couldn’t move, or holding their head when they were crying.
This is nursing. Nursing is intimacy. Nursing is caring for all of a person.
We cannot forget that even the tasks that may appear menial take the greatest of care and have the most significant impact in the experience of a patient. And I get it now…for real. I feel it. Anything that seemed silly or gross or not as “good” as what a doctor does is gone, because it just is not true.
I am proud to be a part of this.
I am honored to be able to truly care for people, and to always have so much to keep learning.
And to the core of me, I believe in it.
I believe in nursing.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 09:16 PM | Comments (1)
June 21, 2004
A.D.D. Morning....
So, even though I'm already a little behind, I'm too tired to study this morning. Plus, I'm trying to read about acid and base regulation in the body, and that's just about enough to put me to sleep.
I was also up at 5, and was working on creating a forum and bulletin board for our class last night until 11, so I'm a little pooped.
I'm in desperate need of a Jamba Juice.
This weekend I was in Oakland with Loody's sister and family and spent a lot of time with the boys, which is always fun (and yes, very overstimulating). Nick and I were working on a web site for his comic book company (he's 10) and I took a 3 hour nap yesterday.
Yes, count 'em, THREE HOURS. Let me just say that a) I don't really take naps and b) when I do, they ain't for three hours. Last week was wild.
I'm so excited to be doing this. It's just exhausting. And right now, I have nothing interesting to say, except for the fact that I made a cool mix for my carpool girls to use tomorrow, so I'm excited about that. It includes everything from Stevie Wonder, to DJ stuff, to Laura Nyro (who I will talk about more at another point), so I hope they like it. And if not, well, I just make another one... The beauty of being able to burn.
And I have to go down to health services today to get this damn immunization thing straightened out so I can finally pay my tuition and get some ccaaashhhhhh.
It's always funny to me that it seems that my wish list of things I want gets bigger with the less money I have. Right now it's:
1 - a digital camera
2 - some more cool shit from the bookstore (yeah, i'm a sucker for tshirts from whatever school i'm attending)
3 - omg anything. just want to buy something.
Time for class.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:30 AM | Comments (2)
June 19, 2004
New Yummies.
Jamba Juice Orange Dream is my new favorite beverage.
There are smoothies just about EVERYWHERE around here, but this is ungodly.
Fresh OJ
Soy Milk
Orange Sherbet
Frozen Yogurt
It's like a creamsicle. MMMmmmmm.
Love it. Love California.
Study time... finally.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 05:11 PM | Comments (1)
The procrastination never EVER ends....
Look Look!
I took LJC's lead and made a little icon of myself while I should be studying for Pathophysiology. But hey, it is Saturday after all.
So here it is:
I kind of look like an anime comic character....
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 03:28 PM | Comments (0)
June 18, 2004
This is what we do in California....
Teambuilding.
Ropes course? Falling? Going around and saying warm fuzzies?
Perhaps.
I don't know whether to be excited or run away screaming.
It is in Golden Gate Park, though, which is totally gorgeous.
There is no lack of pretty around here, seriously.
I'll be back later, if I'm not too exhausted by having to be nice all day.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:28 AM | Comments (0)
June 17, 2004
Don't laugh, but...
By the way, my new favorite song of the moment is Boogie Ooogie Oogie.
I know, I know... but that bass line just makes me want to spank something.
Or maybe I'm just really tired.
....if you're thinkin' you're too cool to boogy.... boy oh boy have I got news for you....
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 07:59 PM | Comments (3)
What to do...
Ok, I just finished class. Today was "Move people to and from the bed without hurting them or yourself" day, and I'm sitting in the library staring at the Golden Gate Bridge and sneezing (my allergies will NOT let up). Now I have to decide what time I want to run errands, where to go, and whether or not I want to go home yet. I have no energy to cook myself dinner, but I have no money to buy dinner elsewhere. I may just have a Frappuccino and call it a day.
3 things that are currently happening in class:
1 - We get to use a mannequin with removable male and female genitalia. w00t!
2 - I get to give my lab partner a bath and put them in restraints.
3- Blah Blah Blah.... bed sores and hospital corners.
I don't ever want to be a patient again, that's for sure.
And other than that, I'm realizing it's easier to make friends if you are taking their vital signs all the time.
Haha.
Eh.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 07:37 PM | Comments (1)
June 16, 2004
Oh, and...
By the way, I miss you guys. (You know who you are...)
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 12:45 PM | Comments (0)
I have been here for 3 weeks and I have learned how to wash my hands...
That's what we learned today. How to wash our hands the right way. Oh, and how to take a rectal temperature. I guess it would be appropriate to teach both of those things at the same time, right?
It has been so crazy here for the past few weeks. Loody left, and I am sad, but I almost don't have time to be really sad because I have class all day, every day. And I have been running around like a lunatic, still trying to get immunized.
The good news is - they waived the out of state tuition for this year. That's $15,000. HOLY SHIT. I almost started crying when they announced it. And they were so nonchalant about it... they were just like, "oh, by the way..."
I am so glad to be back off my little hiatus. I finally figured out how to get get internet access at school.
I'm wireless. And back.
Phew.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 12:39 PM | Comments (3)
June 02, 2004
Because everyone wants to see my pantyline...
UCSF makes every MEPN student wear white pants for clinical shifts during the first year. Now, I understand that there is a need to distinguish students from professionals, because really, I don't want to be confused with someone who actually knows what they are doing, but seriously people....
Let's discuss a few of the reasons why this is a very bad idea....
- Have you ever seen a pair of white pants stay clean for more than 5 minutes? Let alone when you're working around all sorts of nasty business?
- All white clothing items are see through, no matter what people say. It doesn't make a difference if they are thick or made of canvas or steel or whatever.... You can see through THEM.... which means...
- You can see people parts that are just totally unnecessary (ie, my pantyline, my pasty legs, that little part of my butt that rubs up against the pants).
- I thought there was some rule about white after Labor Day. Maybe it doesn't apply in California.
- Ew.
That's all....
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 11:47 AM | Comments (1)
middle of the night allergies
i can't sleep AHEEEEEE.
we thought we would go to berkeley to have a nice quiet night (restful night) and it has turned in to an itchy nightmare.
whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?
*scratch*
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 06:17 AM | Comments (0)
Well, that's $700 I'll never get back.
Today, we bought books.
Really, the fun never ends.
But I got a cool hat (I would show it to you, but I don't have a digital camera), and my TB test.
Hopefully I don't have TB.
I don't think I have TB.
That would suck.
Tomorrow... Cuban Sandwiches and poking around Stanford in Palo Alto...
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 12:50 AM | Comments (0)
June 01, 2004
Yum Yum....Sushi
Quite possibly the best sushi I have had EVER. Well, right now it's a tie between Yum Yum Fish (at 2181 Irving in SF) and Oishii (in Chestnut Hill, MA).
This place is a tiny little fish store in the middle of one of the Asian sections in SF and there are only four tables and they have everything from spicy cooked octopus rolls, to fresh crabmeat nigiri and more.
Loody and I ate our weight in sushi for about $25. Can you do that in MA? I DON'T THINK SO!
A new place for me to be a "regular" at. Yay!
Yum Yum Fish... CitySearch San Francisco Profile
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 01:34 PM | Comments (1)
Mulholland WTF
My god.
That movie was out of control. And it is even more disturbing now that I understand it.
David Lynch is a crack monkey, and I love Naomi Watts even more than I did before, but EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.
*SIGH*
See it.
Oh yeah, and for a pretty good (but somewhat stupid-movie-critic-intellectualizing) explanation, try this: Everything You Were Afraid to Ask About 'Mulholland Drive'.
Posted by missfitsandstarts at 12:17 PM | Comments (3)