creep

Well, I have been all over this Pottermore shiznit the past week.  Like on it every day.  I'm trying to gain some confidence in life by finding my Slytherin ambition.  It's all in all a lot of fun.  I really hope it's out of beta soon, so the rest of the books will be available to look at.  I'm dying to get into the rest of them.

Today I am making my first Pinterest recipe.  It is crock pot chicken tacos.  Or nachos if you choose to eat it with chips.  It involves frozen chicken, toppings (diced tomatoes/Rotel, black beans, corn, etc), cream cheese, and your crock pot.  Apparently, you throw all this stuff in and let it go on low for 6-8 hours.  My kind of recipe.  I'm excited to see how they turn out!

I am also casually cleaning today.  Steam cleaning the carpet mostly.  Housework may be one of my least favorite things to do ever.  But I do quite enjoy the end result, so I guess it's worth it.

Yesterday, we got a great surprise in our friend Jordan driving up from Dallas to visit for the day!  He was in Fort Smith with Stephanie and elected to make the extra hours trip to come hang out with us.  We met up with Monica and Emily for sushi (which was great) and then went for froyo (also delicious).  After that, we went to campus to take a look at Senior Walk since they recently put down the class of 2010's names, only to find that it is apparently not finished!  Names from "F" to "R" were missing!  That, of course, means that Jordan was none to be found which was rather disappointing.  We proceeded to walk around campus to find out parents' names and chase squirrels.

I always count it a good day to catch up with friends I haven't seen in a while or friends who live far away.  I miss college in that respect.  I realize how easy it was to take for granted being able to see those people every day.  Now that my two closest friends from school (besides Corey, that would be Jordan and Nick) live hours away, I cherish every time I get to see them.


--
"you're so ***king special, I wish I was special"

drive by

Pottermore.com is finally online for everyone.  Jesus, that took forever.  It was supposed to be open last October.  But it opened yesterday.

I'm still getting used to everything on there.  I've made it through the first book.  So that means I have a wand (Cypress, Phoenix feather core, 10 inches, slightly yielding) and I've been sorted (Slytherin house). I have been playing around with spells and potion making.  What's fun about it is that stuff actually takes some practice!  It makes it pretty interesting!  I am excited for the rest of the books to be unlocked on there.  I think there is much more to be discovered, for instance, there is opportunity to make fan art and comments, etc., and I haven't delved much into that yet.

So if you are a Harry Potter fan, you should check it out!

In other news, I have been working on being better at IV starts.  I have improved a lot just by observing others at work.  I also watched some archaic nursing education videos on youtube about it.  Crappy thing about those, though, is that they don't use the safety catheters that everyone with half a brain uses now.  It's still interesting, though.  The following videos are actually really good.  CRNAs, turns out, make pretty boss teachers.

I'll leave you with those.


--
"oh I swear to you, I'll be there for you"

set fire to the rain

My first post-apocalyptic blog post.

I mean....

My first post after I started my new job :)

I am working in the pre-op area of an outpatient surgery center.  It is so fun!  I basically prep patients for surgeries.  For example, I help get them properly dressed, start IVs, have consents signed, give kids "Goofy Juice" a. k. a. Versed (a magical drug!), run labs, and whatever else needs to be done for their specific surgery.  At some point I will learn recovery room, but for now, I am doing pre-op.

My before and after pictures:

I am missing my friends at my old job quite a bit.  I have thought about asking to be a volunteer nurse on the floor to help with admits and discharges.

I am loving having a Monday through Friday job.  I think working every day and having a consistent schedule makes the week go by faster, and I don't feel as tired!  Even though I arrive at work at 0530 now :)

This afternoon has been pretty lazy.  Just watching Abigail be lazy and listening to Corey's dub-step radio station on Spotify while he works.

--

"until you kissed my lips and you saved me"

I will always love you

Lots I could write today.

I finished my job at the hospital.  I start at the surgery clinic tomorrow!  I am getting nervous.

It was weird to read a status with the floor census.  I had a panic moment at first, like worrying/hoping I would be put on stand by.  Half a second later, I realized:  wait, I don't work there anymore.  Phew.

I had a good, unemployed weekend. :)  Nick and Nichole came to Fayetteville yesterday.  We went to dinner and Dickson with several college friends.  It was a great group to go out with (minus Corey not being there :(((( ) and we had a lot of fun!  It was good to catch up.  It's interesting to catch up on people I used to be friends with.  People that, turns out, only were "friends" with me because they had to see me every day.  People who slandered mine and Corey's names as soon as we were not regularly present to defend ourselves.  I'm glad I ended up with the friends I have.  They are amazing.  :))  Denny's afterward was absolutely classic.  See the video below for part of the fun.

For the "The Lord of the Rings" nerds out there, see this:

Ha.  Yeah.  So that was the funniest thing ever.

I am way bored today.  Way.  Bored.

I'll try to update some more tomorrow after work.  At my new job.  :)

--

"bittersweet memories, that is all I'm taking with me"

up in flames

4 shifts.

4 shifts left on the medical surgical floor.

4 shifts left on the medical surgical floor, and then I change my "About me" and employer and all that business.

Monday after next, I start a brand new job at a new place.  It's closer to home.  It's clinic hours.  It's surgery.  I'm excited. :)

I will miss the people I work with very dearly.  They are my friends, work family, and a good support system.  I am hoping to find the same kind of people at my new job.  I will not miss the cranky old people and their crazy families who think our hospital is the Marriott hotel and the nurses and aides are waitresses and housekeepers and their family member is the only person we're assigned to care for that day.  I'm tired of being given retarded tasks to make our cares look good on paper, but tanks our actual bedside care if we do all of it.  Sorry, but I'm going to take care of my patient before I chart IVPB stop times (when it's documented how long the med runs) and I'm not staying 2 extra hours after my shift is over.  It's not the 1800s and I have a life to get home to after work.  Sorry.  Nursing Executive Who Sits Behind A Desk All Day can kiss my rear end until she does our job for a week with all the BS she thinks we should be doing and then harp on patient satisfaction.  Those people don't give a crap about patient satisfaction or safety.  It's all about the dollar signs.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Whatever.

Outpatient surgery is my new gig.  And I am SUPER PUMPED about it.

***

In other news, I went to the eye doctor today.  I hadn't been in a couple years, and needed to get a check up anyway.  I also wanted to use my vision benefits from my current job before I lose it.  I used my flex spending card while I still have it, too.  Found out my eyes are healthy, and my glasses prescription hasn't changed much at all in the past 2 years!  I was excited to hear it, because my prescription had changed a lot between the previous 2 appointments while I was in college.  I got some new glasses, just to get them since I had it covered by insurance.  I got some cute Vera Bradley frames.  During the exam, they dilated my pupils, so driving home was interesting.  My next vision goal is to get prescription sunglasses.  Hopefully those can be covered under insurance with my new job :)  That would be pretty awesome.


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"so it's over, this time I know it's gone"

I'm taking you with me

I changed my blog background again.  It's sunshine-y and I like it.

Today I went and learned how to be a preceptor.  I took the class at work that teaches a nurse how to properly orient new hires, especially new grads, to the nursing unit and to nursing in general.  It was fun!  I have already precepted for a few nurses, but this class gave a look at the whole process of teaching a new nurse.

I guess I don't have a whole lot to say today.  Just making a note of a good day!


--
"I've made a habit of not making promises that aren't easy to keep"

the long and winding road

I am at a career crossroads.  It was never my long-term career goal to work on an inpatient nursing unit.  As a new graduate nurse, other specialties ask for usually a minimum of one year's experience in clinical practice.  Medical-surgical floor nursing is a common source of this experience.

I have been a nurse for a year now, and I am looking to find my long-term career in nursing.  I feel like this year has been filled with all kinds of learning for me.  I have truly learned how to be a nurse.  I don't think I could have gotten the amount and variety of experiences on any other type of unit.  I have an absurd level of time management when I want to, and know a lot about a lot of different types of patients.

Surgery and peri-procedure nursing is where I want to go next.  I am not completely sure that I will stay there forever, but I was always interested in that in school, and it is my current goal to get into those departments.

I have had a few frustrating moments.  Like not being enrolled into ACLS.  I understand not having it paid for by the hospital, since it isn't "necessary" for my specific job role, but I am willing to pay for it.  I just want to be given the opportunity to take it.  I want to do what I can to increase my competence.

I have enjoyed this past year at work.  It's stressful and draining, but I still loved it.


--
"I've seen that road before, it always leads me here"