CallaLily's Chaos

Oh do I have

Tue, 12 Oct 2004 04:05:13 GMT

my work cut out for me..this boat needs lots of work! At least everything is there except for the sails...which is fine because according to our estimations, we can't have the mast put up, it's 85 feet until we reach Lake Michigan. Today we formed a plan of attack...and I made a list of suppplies. I met the lady that runs the Marina...very nice! Except she has many cats...and I think I must have grown allergic because my eyes were streaming tears...and swollen and itch like crazy!

I need to go to bed soon and apply icepacks so I can look presentable for the hospital in the morning!

My car suffered 2,500.00 dollars worth of damage...but luckily my insurance will not black mark me as it falls under comprehensive! Hurrah! So no raised rates! I am driving a Chevy Impala in the meantime...and it does not have the power my car has..I better leave earlier for the hospital.

We are thinking up a new name for the boat. My dad said leave the name as is and maybe the previous owner who passed away and never realised his dream will look down from heaven and guide us...I think my dad mainly feels really sorry about the guy. Maybe we should call it "Joe's Dream" in his honor. I wonder how his widow will feel about that...she lives in Florida and it is my hope to take the boat through the Great Lakes, through the St. Lawerence Seaway and down to Florida..I want to take her out..and let her see his husband's dream become real. On the other hand it may be too painful for her..but we are in contact with his nephew who also worked on the boat. I'll ask him.

Oh, it all starts with a dream ... and lots and lots of hardwork...which is where we are right now!

I can't wait to get really started!

Oh boy..

Tue, 25 May 2004 04:23:40 GMT

My mom called today and she is having problems stabilizing her BP. We are leaving on Friday, with the limo picking us up from my house at noon. Understandably she is stressed!

She gave me her list of meds, which BTW she has been on for about 5 years with good control and minimal side effects.

I looked them all up and remember I am a peds nurse and so many adult type meds I am not as familiar with....the best advice I could give was call your doctor!

But I think she feels I let her down although I did offer to accomapany her to the doc's and go in and listen to what he has to say...she said my dad would go.

The most disturbing comment she made was this: "I'm glad we did not pay for your degee and nursing education!!"

I KNOW it was just stress talking and I just said; "But you know my specialty is peds and while I do know adult medicine to a point I certainly cannot say for certain what you should do, except see your doctor."

*sigh* I do not think that people understand the intricacies of medicine and why people specialize...they think a nurse is a nurse is a nurse. Even my own mother.

I think I need an Ark..

Sun, 23 May 2004 15:40:11 GMT

here I am with a week off before I leave and had wonderful plans to do tons of outside work.

The rain will never stop falling, not just rain but torential downpours, tornado warnings and loss of electricity!

ARGH!!!

At least my inside stuff got done.

Last day at work

Fri, 21 May 2004 02:47:31 GMT

before my vacation and the really wierd thing...I'll miss them!

Isn't that odd? I spend so much time with them, and yes we squabble like sisters and brothers...deep down we are a tight group!

I cannot believe how humid it is....I am so tempted to turn on the air conditioning!

LOL what a wimp I have become.

One more day...

Thu, 20 May 2004 04:27:42 GMT

of work and I am off for two weeks! I have one week at home to catch up on all those things I have been putting off and then I am going on a Cruise..and I can't wait!

I have never been to Europe and this is going to be a really great time with my whole family!

I am travel deprived...and hope to rectify that soon.

In the fall I am planning on meeting up with a person I met from an on-line game, I have met him before, and we are going to take his bike and travel around. THAT will be a very new experience for me as I am the type that plans every step of the way when I travel. But I have faith in him and he promises to keep me safe and make sure I make my plane on time.

I have so enjoyed my other meeting with him...he is fun to be with and talks alot as I do. We can argue and enjoy arguing because it is never meanspirited or condesending it's just exchanging ideas and looking at things from another prospective.

Now I am also the type that stays in hotels, uses taxis, and although I am very impressed with nature and all her beauty, have never been this "out in the open." Plus we are going to be in the south and I have only been to Orlando and Daytona, not those small towns...lol, I can't wait to start planning.

But first things first and my current mission is to get ready for my cruise, I am in elimination mode as far as packing and am quite impressed that I am down to one pair of shoes to pack and one to wear! LOL this from the shoe goddess.

Such fun!

Procrastination

Thu, 25 Mar 2004 02:25:16 GMT

I was HE'd today. That means "hospital excused." When our patient census is low and not all the staff is needed we are HE'd and put on call. We take turns and today was my turn. You also only get on call pay and not the days wages. You have the option of taking a PTO day, paid time off. The HE day still counts towards your pension and hours worked to determine PTO. OK?

Now what I should have been doing is working on my entry for the Nurses Book, instead I went to the video store to make a list of movies I want to rent from Netflix, washed all the bed linens, cleaned out my frig...played with my hair for new and interesting "up dos" to avoid getting blood and yuck in my hair...

Now I am here...*sigh* Well maybe inspiration will strike, ok any time now.

Meetings

Wed, 24 Mar 2004 02:39:44 GMT

We had a unit meeting today and saw the plans for the new construction for the peds and PICU units..I like them, more efficent use of space. Currently our PICU rooms are in a horseshoe shape and this time around they will be in a straight line.

I think this will give the patients better privacy, somrthing not easily accomplished in an intensive care unit. I just hope we have more room to chart!

We were also told that for Nurses Week, the physcians at our hospital are having a book published for us. We need to submit stories answering the quesions: 1)why I became a nurse, 2)what do you like most about being a nurse, 3)What keeps you in nursing, 4) What special moment in your career had the most impact on you personally.

It should be in a story form and since most of the writing we do is defensive charting, we are having a workshop to help us.

I like the idea...it will be a great commerative thing and a way to remember this moment in time...but what to write!

I better get busy...

The Flower Show

Sun, 21 Mar 2004 01:23:39 GMT

Yesterday I had a great day. I went with a friend to the "Chicago Flower and Garden Show" at Navy Pier.

Now this friend for some reason which is unclear does not care for taxis. So we started walking from the train station. I suggested hailing a taxi, but no. Just a few more blocks...

It was a beautiful day, sunny and not too cold, so we walked. And kept walking..we discovered a cancer survivors garden along the way that was beautiful and will be more so in when the warmer weather arrives. But truthfully we took a wrong turn somewhere...

Finally we arrived at the show and when we entered the festival hall I just inhaled and inhaled deeply! Ahh..the smell of flowers and growing things. :)

The displays were breathtaking and I purchased this really nifty thing that you use to grow tomatoes upside down! I am anxious to try it.

After we had our fill of the show we went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner, via taxi! Yum great food!

We needed to walk off all that food so went to Michigan Ave and window shopped.

A perfectly sensual day..:)

The other shoe dropped.

Fri, 19 Mar 2004 03:07:31 GMT

It was nice having two good days in row. Today not so good.

A day ago there was a major accident, a pickup truck rollover. There were 14 people in the truck. Yep 14. All were ejected. It was a truckload of illegals. I am not sure of all the facts, except two died and some were airlifted to a larger trauma center.

We recieved two of them after they spent time in the SICU as our PICU was full. They are 15 years old and from Mexico, speak no English and have no parents here. This is difficult for a number of reasons...they are minors, they are here illegally, and the language barrier makes thier care hard. We are lucky in our unit to have a number of Spanish speeaking nurses.

They will be taken care of physically, but to be so hurt and broken and not have family nearby is horrible. What will happen after they are released, what are the legalites? Will the immigration department step in, the Mexican consulant?

Our risk management dept. is advising us. In the meantime we need to heal their broken bodies.

And I have to get ready soon to return for a midnight shift after working days...I know I need a nap but I can't sleep. I thought those all nighters would be over after I was a student. ;)

This is not easy!

Thu, 18 Mar 2004 05:19:43 GMT

...sum up your opinion or impression of me in one word, leave it as a comment in this posting, and then post this sentence in your own journal...

Ok I 'm scared now...

Thu, 18 Mar 2004 03:31:07 GMT

This is the second day in a row I had a great day at work. Sure I had the same group of patients and that is always nice, but no catastrophes and we were staffed well and even had the time for a lunch.

Now nurses as a whole are very superstitiuos. For example we never say the name of a frequent flier we allude to them. If we say their name they will surely be admitted. We also never say; "Wow we are having a nice day!" If we do, diasters will surely follow.

I have one more day then I am off! My friend and I are going to the Flower Show at Navy Pier and I am very excited! I am so longing for spring. I can't wait to dig in the dirt, smell the richness of the soil and feel the sun. Hmmm..

This year I am adding English roses as they are supposed to be more carefree then hybrid tea roses. Every year I lose one or two hybrid teas. Plus the English roses are very pretty and smell very good.

I am also planning on bribing my son and some of his friends with pizza and beer and have them help me take down my side fences. My neighbors on either side of me are aesthetically handicapped and put up those solid plastic fences. If I take down my side fences and attach to theirs without violating any lot line codes I will extend my yard about a foot on either side. Currently I have a white wooden picket fence that is open and it's very hard to keep the weeds between the fences under control and I have to look at them. But...there plastic "walls will make a decent backdrop for some interesting plantings.

I have to move my dinner plate hibiscus anyway as my drawf bing cherry is too full now and blocks their sun. These plants produce blooms that are the size of a dinner plate and I love them. I have a pink, a white and a red.

I also want more statuary, well I am Italian and we love our statues. I have three fairies in my front yard..my girls and I know this is fanciful but I named them Isabella, Olivia and Sophia. Once upon a time when I thought I would have many children those were the names I picked for my future daughters...things just didn't quite work out that way. But I do have a healthy and most times happy son and I am grateful for him.

Except right now he is having his first broken heart and that is painful to watch. :(

Ok I'm scared now...

Thu, 18 Mar 2004 02:57:29 GMT

A nice day finally!

Wed, 17 Mar 2004 05:18:23 GMT

Today I had a great team of patients with cheerful, friendly firm parents!!

My first "job" was to start a difficult IV which I got on first try..this may not seem like a great accomplishment but it's not very easy on a squirmy 18 month old that is dehydrated. I got her in the foot, which left her hands free.

My funniest patient was a 7 year old that thought he would pull a prank on me. I went in to hang a med and help him order his lunch. I thought he was asleep. Just as I was about to flush his lock, he jumped up and roared at me! I was satisifactory surprised which delighted him!

My other patient was a 16 year old young man...totally polite and interesting to talk to, although he kept offering my candy...I don't need candy.

Then my only girl, a 6 year old that was so cute and not a bit shy.

I had a great team of patients today!

Good Intentions

Tue, 16 Mar 2004 12:18:14 GMT

Every morning as I blearily head for the coffeemaker, I say I will get to bed earlier.

Every night I look at the clock and say...10 more minutes, find something else I want to do, watch part of one more movie, read just a few pages more or talk longer to friends.

And every morning it's the same thing.

Chicago

Tue, 16 Mar 2004 04:22:51 GMT

I actully live in the suburbs, but I love Chicago. It has the tallest buildings and lovely places to go. But it's actually the people that make it special to me.

You can find some of the wealthiest and some of the most impoverished. I suppose all big cities can say the same thing.

Chicago is made up of very many cultures and the ethnicity of the city is very evident. I also think it's a very bold city...and still has a young attitude as opposed to some of the older cities.

Yes it has it's bad points and it's shady politics but it is the most alive city I know!

A beginning...

Tue, 16 Mar 2004 02:51:21 GMT

I came here at the recommendation of friends. I am an ordinary person with an ordinary life..or am I?

There are no ordinary people, each person is unique with unique thoughts and feelings and responses to the world around them. But even so we share some common things. The common things are a basis, and the other is what makes people so interesting and frustrating all at the same time.