Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Graduation Day
So, yesterday was my graduation. It was so hard to sit there and think that nearly two hears had elapsed since I started school. It's alarming to me that time can just vanish so quickly. As I looked around at my fellow students before, during, and after the ceremony yesterday, I had a difficult time comprehending that I had been surrounded by these people for 21 months, day in and day out, in classrooms and on clinical units....now it was actually done.
The lead-up three or four weeks to graduation were just big blurs. There was so much going on, paperwork to get done, NCLEX review classes to attend, luncheons, etc. I even squeezed in five days in SC a couple of weeks ago. So, the actual graduation date of June 5th seemed very far away. And then I woke up yesterday morning. And it all sank in.
The ceremony was very nice. It was nice to see and feel such a spirit of energy and love pouring out of everyone. In attendance were Farrell, my grandmother, my mother and father, my sister Kim, and my dear friend Ceci. They were just two rows behind me throughout the entire ceremony, and I could literally feel their excitement for me the entire time. (Of course my grandmother was so excited that she had to be woken up a few times, but what's new?)
My salutatorian speech went well. I wasn't really nervous until about five minutes before I had to walk up and speak. It was terrifiying at first. So, I simply told the packed auditorium that I was shaking like a leaf. (That technique always seems to make nervousness go away for me. I have figured out during years of public speaking that a big part of what makes me nervous is the belief that I have to try to conceal what I'm feeling from the audience. So, telling people you are about to vomit seems to break the ice. But, I digress.)
It was such an honor for me to stand in front of the dignitaries, the faculty that I have grown to adore these past two years, all of my friends and fellow students, my partner, and my family. It was especially poignant for me because I finally had a chance to honor my sister Kim publically for being an inspiration, a role model, and the definition of compassion and caring. I did not know until just a day or two before the ceremony that Kim was going to be able to attend. When I found out she was coming, I really started to get excited about graduation. I wanted her to see and hear what a big part she played in helping me get to this point. My fellow students have been hearing about her for years now, and so many people came up to me afterwards wanting to meet her.
I won a few awards. I won't go into the details, but one was called the Rose Muscatine Hauer Alumni Award for overall outstanding contribution to the school over the last two years. This was a tremendous honor for me and was very unexpected. I felt there were so many others who were deserving of an award like this, so I was very humbled and grateful for it. I also won an award for having the second highest academic achievement. These awards actually came with a little cash, so that was a nice surprise. Not a lot, but nice gestures on the school's part, for sure.
After the ceremony, we attended a reception back at the school for a short while. It was beautifully coordinated and was a nice way for the celebration to continue a bit longer before everybody disbanded with their own families and went on their ways. We stayed for a while, my grandmother ate the free food, and then moved on to my favorite part of the day, my lunch with six of the most important people in my life.
Farrell discovered a great restaurant quite by chance. It is called Shaffer's. It's pretty much completely a seafood place; raw oysters, clams, the works. We had a beautiful table in the back, under a sky light which flooded the room with natural light. The ambience was terrific, the food was amazing, the wine was great, and there I was sucking down raw clams. Things really don't get much better than that, and I made a point to remind myself of how lucky I was.
...Lucky to have a handsome and wonderful husband that loves me to death and has supported me so unfailingly these past two years. (Well, technically, almost six years now!!)...Lucky to have beautiful parents who have raised a family that loves each other to death and considers family the most important thing. Lucky to have a grandmother who has also played the role of best friend to me for my entire life....Lucky to have a brother and sisters that mean the world to me...and lucky to have Ceci, a friend who has been there for me every step of the way these past four years...
So, sitting in that room, surrounded by those people, it was hard not to think I was the luckiest man in the world. I can't thank Farrell enough for making such a special part of such a special day possible. (I think I have to make him a cake now. He's been begging for one for months. It's the least I can do.)
After lunch, Kim, Gram, and Ceci came back to our house where we sat around, relaxed, drank wine, and watched tennis. Of course Nuala was like a kid in a candy store with all of these guest faces to lick. Gram gets such a big kick out of "him". (After six years of trying to correct her on my dog's gender, I give up.)
And then it came time for all good things to come to an end. Everybody packed up, and Ceci and I drove Kim and Gram home, after which Ceci and I had a little snack at P.F. Chang's before heading home ourselves. A perfect day. It could not have been better. Thank you to everyone for making me feel so special. I will treasure the memories forever.
So, now it comes time to say goodbye to this blog. I started it as a means of tracking my day to day progress through the nursing school experience. While it never really became what it originally was intended, and become more a semi-weekly collection of inside jokes and posts that made little or no sense to most people who visited, I hope it offered some fun and a few laughs. Thank you to everybody who posted comments along the way. You provided most of the laughs. I can't believe it's been two years since this:
xxoo
The lead-up three or four weeks to graduation were just big blurs. There was so much going on, paperwork to get done, NCLEX review classes to attend, luncheons, etc. I even squeezed in five days in SC a couple of weeks ago. So, the actual graduation date of June 5th seemed very far away. And then I woke up yesterday morning. And it all sank in.
The ceremony was very nice. It was nice to see and feel such a spirit of energy and love pouring out of everyone. In attendance were Farrell, my grandmother, my mother and father, my sister Kim, and my dear friend Ceci. They were just two rows behind me throughout the entire ceremony, and I could literally feel their excitement for me the entire time. (Of course my grandmother was so excited that she had to be woken up a few times, but what's new?)
My salutatorian speech went well. I wasn't really nervous until about five minutes before I had to walk up and speak. It was terrifiying at first. So, I simply told the packed auditorium that I was shaking like a leaf. (That technique always seems to make nervousness go away for me. I have figured out during years of public speaking that a big part of what makes me nervous is the belief that I have to try to conceal what I'm feeling from the audience. So, telling people you are about to vomit seems to break the ice. But, I digress.)
It was such an honor for me to stand in front of the dignitaries, the faculty that I have grown to adore these past two years, all of my friends and fellow students, my partner, and my family. It was especially poignant for me because I finally had a chance to honor my sister Kim publically for being an inspiration, a role model, and the definition of compassion and caring. I did not know until just a day or two before the ceremony that Kim was going to be able to attend. When I found out she was coming, I really started to get excited about graduation. I wanted her to see and hear what a big part she played in helping me get to this point. My fellow students have been hearing about her for years now, and so many people came up to me afterwards wanting to meet her.
I won a few awards. I won't go into the details, but one was called the Rose Muscatine Hauer Alumni Award for overall outstanding contribution to the school over the last two years. This was a tremendous honor for me and was very unexpected. I felt there were so many others who were deserving of an award like this, so I was very humbled and grateful for it. I also won an award for having the second highest academic achievement. These awards actually came with a little cash, so that was a nice surprise. Not a lot, but nice gestures on the school's part, for sure.
After the ceremony, we attended a reception back at the school for a short while. It was beautifully coordinated and was a nice way for the celebration to continue a bit longer before everybody disbanded with their own families and went on their ways. We stayed for a while, my grandmother ate the free food, and then moved on to my favorite part of the day, my lunch with six of the most important people in my life.
Farrell discovered a great restaurant quite by chance. It is called Shaffer's. It's pretty much completely a seafood place; raw oysters, clams, the works. We had a beautiful table in the back, under a sky light which flooded the room with natural light. The ambience was terrific, the food was amazing, the wine was great, and there I was sucking down raw clams. Things really don't get much better than that, and I made a point to remind myself of how lucky I was.
...Lucky to have a handsome and wonderful husband that loves me to death and has supported me so unfailingly these past two years. (Well, technically, almost six years now!!)...Lucky to have beautiful parents who have raised a family that loves each other to death and considers family the most important thing. Lucky to have a grandmother who has also played the role of best friend to me for my entire life....Lucky to have a brother and sisters that mean the world to me...and lucky to have Ceci, a friend who has been there for me every step of the way these past four years...
So, sitting in that room, surrounded by those people, it was hard not to think I was the luckiest man in the world. I can't thank Farrell enough for making such a special part of such a special day possible. (I think I have to make him a cake now. He's been begging for one for months. It's the least I can do.)
After lunch, Kim, Gram, and Ceci came back to our house where we sat around, relaxed, drank wine, and watched tennis. Of course Nuala was like a kid in a candy store with all of these guest faces to lick. Gram gets such a big kick out of "him". (After six years of trying to correct her on my dog's gender, I give up.)
And then it came time for all good things to come to an end. Everybody packed up, and Ceci and I drove Kim and Gram home, after which Ceci and I had a little snack at P.F. Chang's before heading home ourselves. A perfect day. It could not have been better. Thank you to everyone for making me feel so special. I will treasure the memories forever.
So, now it comes time to say goodbye to this blog. I started it as a means of tracking my day to day progress through the nursing school experience. While it never really became what it originally was intended, and become more a semi-weekly collection of inside jokes and posts that made little or no sense to most people who visited, I hope it offered some fun and a few laughs. Thank you to everybody who posted comments along the way. You provided most of the laughs. I can't believe it's been two years since this:
xxoo
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Professional Image
This is taken from a catalog of scrubs I received yesterday. This is just one example of what I believe is incredibly demeaning attire that this entire catalog is made up of. And nurses want to know why they're not taken seriously? When you dress like an imbecile, you must expect to be treated like one. When was the last time you saw a doctor wearing smiley frog or teddy bear scrubs? If nurses want respect, they have to start by respecting the image of their own profession. Dress the part.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
21 Months Later...
Next step, pass the Boards! I think that will be in early July. I have about a month to study.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
"J-E-N-N-I-E-dash-O"
I really don't know what to say about this. I think it will have to speak for itself-o.
Mother's Day Tailgate Party
First of all, we have an answer to the trivia question that was raised during our Mother's Day Tailgate Party at Gram's.
The Bronx:
The land was first settled by Europeans in 1639, when Jonas Bronck, for whom the area was later named, established a farm along the Harlem River in the area now known as the Mott Haven section. The Dutch and English settlers referred to the area as "Bronck's Land".
Secondly, here is a rough estimate of what our Mother's Day Tailgate Party 2007 would have looked like if I had my camera handy at the time, with the exception of the mountains in the background, of course.
And no, I have no idea who these people are. I hope they don't mind the publicity.
The Bronx:
The land was first settled by Europeans in 1639, when Jonas Bronck, for whom the area was later named, established a farm along the Harlem River in the area now known as the Mott Haven section. The Dutch and English settlers referred to the area as "Bronck's Land".
Secondly, here is a rough estimate of what our Mother's Day Tailgate Party 2007 would have looked like if I had my camera handy at the time, with the exception of the mountains in the background, of course.
And no, I have no idea who these people are. I hope they don't mind the publicity.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Monday, May 07, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Anaheim, CA
I'm in Anaheim this week for a nursing convention. The weather is nice, and I'm having a good time so far. But when I checked in to the hotel last night after SEVENTEEN HOURS OF TRAVEL (yes, seventeen hours to get from NYC to Orange County Airport), they said they had no rooms, despite the fact that I had a reservation. They were oversold, apparently. The agent then said he could offer me a suite on the top floor. I waited for the "BUT," part. I expected him to say he'd have to charge me an extra $100 a night, or something like that. And then it came...
Desk Clerk - "But, there's no bed in it."
Me - "No bed?"
Desk Clerk - "That's right, no bed. There is a couch, but it's really uncomfortable."
Me - "okay....ahhh..."
Desk Clerk - "We can send up a rollaway bed."
Me - "okay...ahh..."
Desk Clerk - "The rollup bed is much more comfortable than the couch."
Me - "okay...ahh...well...I guess I have no choice, right."
So, somewhat confused and kind of concerned, to the top floor I went, unprepared for what my room would look like. Here are some pictures. This is the strangest experience I've ever had in a hotel. You can see why, for yourself. What you don't see in these photos is my tiny little rollaway bed that I place in the middle of the room. It's quite bizarre. I think it's used for receptions, bridal parties, meetings, things like that. I really feel like I should be conducting interviews or something while I'm here.
A morning view:
A view from my window...the convention center where the conference is:
Another view from my window...part of DisneyLand in the background:
Desk Clerk - "But, there's no bed in it."
Me - "No bed?"
Desk Clerk - "That's right, no bed. There is a couch, but it's really uncomfortable."
Me - "okay....ahhh..."
Desk Clerk - "We can send up a rollaway bed."
Me - "okay...ahh..."
Desk Clerk - "The rollup bed is much more comfortable than the couch."
Me - "okay...ahh...well...I guess I have no choice, right."
So, somewhat confused and kind of concerned, to the top floor I went, unprepared for what my room would look like. Here are some pictures. This is the strangest experience I've ever had in a hotel. You can see why, for yourself. What you don't see in these photos is my tiny little rollaway bed that I place in the middle of the room. It's quite bizarre. I think it's used for receptions, bridal parties, meetings, things like that. I really feel like I should be conducting interviews or something while I'm here.
A morning view:
A view from my window...the convention center where the conference is:
Another view from my window...part of DisneyLand in the background:
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Alaska Cruise: July 19-28
My grandmother and I have been talking about doing this for like fifteen years, with no exaggeration. She finally committed to it over the weekend, and in within 30 minutes, I got online, did research, found the best rated ships, searched for available cruise dates, found what seemed like a good deal, and booked it. Done. No more talking about it. I'm actually getting pretty excited. She is too. She called me six times today. Just to talk about it and tell me how excited she is. That makes me happy.
Anyway, we arrive in Vancouver the morning of 7/19, spend the day and night there, as well as the following whole day. The ship (Celebrity Summit) departs at 5:;45 pm on 7/20. The intinerary is as follows.
At the end of the cruise, we get shuttled from Seward to Anchorage. We will spend the day in Anchorage, and fly out late that night. We'll fly overnight and get home in the morning on the 28th.
Cholesteral, The Sequel
Through the roof, once again.
Here's the breakdown:
Category/Recommended/Me
Total/less than 100/290
LDL/less than 130/209
HDL/higher than 45/44
Triglycerides/less than 150/186
I fail every category.
Here's the breakdown:
Category/Recommended/Me
Total/less than 100/290
LDL/less than 130/209
HDL/higher than 45/44
Triglycerides/less than 150/186
I fail every category.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Friday, March 16, 2007
I don't even look like I had surgery at all, right?
Just kidding. This poor guy. He's pretty jacked up. It was so funny, when I walked into the office today for my visit, the entire staff couldn't get over how "non-post-op" I looked. The administrator asked me if i went for my surgery. There was no significant brusing, no swelling, NOTHING. I got pretty lucky, I guess. I'm actually starting to develop some bruising on the right side, where the worst of the trouble was, but thank God, nothing like this poor schmuck, whoever he is.
1st Day Post-Op
I went for a follow up with my doctor this morning. She told me how nasty things were up there. When she created an opening for the maxillary sinus, all kinds of nasty stuff came pouring out. No wonder I've been sick on and off for years. And as far as the tissue mass/growth she had to remove, I won't get the biopsy results on that until a week from today.
I feel really dizzy, but the pain is pretty much under control because of the med. I can't move my head too quickly, or it bleeds. I guess things are pretty fragile up there right now.
Although it's too early for me to get the full benefit of this surgery (that might not happen for months), I feel like I can breathe a little better already. I'm pretty happy about that.
I feel really dizzy, but the pain is pretty much under control because of the med. I can't move my head too quickly, or it bleeds. I guess things are pretty fragile up there right now.
Although it's too early for me to get the full benefit of this surgery (that might not happen for months), I feel like I can breathe a little better already. I'm pretty happy about that.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Surgery
I had surgery today. I had complete obstruction of my right maxillary and right ethmoid sinuses, as well as abnormal tissue growth. The same ENT that did my septal deviation surgery a few years ago did this surgery as well. (She's a very special doctor and person, but that's another story in itself.)
So, the surgery went pretty well, I think. I don't get a chance to actually speak with the doctor until my follow-up appointment in the morning. I know that I lost a lot of blood, so there was a lot of IV fluid replacements. My heart rate and blood pressure were off the charts post-op. I began to try to figure out why and started thumbing through my chart while nobody was around. It turns out that to help stem the bleeding and to "vasoconstrict" me, the gave me cocaine, lidocaine, and epinephrine (locally at the sites of the bleeding), all of which are helpful with slowing down blood loss. I thought that was pretty interesting.
The nursing care I received today was terrific, from start to finish. I met some wonderful nurses, and did a LOT of spying and listening. It's amazing how much of what I've been taught over these last two years IS actually relevant and IS said and done by nurses in practice.
I was in the PACU (recovery) for quite a while, but by the time Ceci arrived to escort me home (they wouldn't let me leave without an escort), I was really ready to go. (I almost vomited in a Ziploc bag in the cab on the way home.) She took such good care of me tonight until Farrell got home. And now nobody is taking care of me. (That was joke. Farrell has been EXTRAORDINARY tonight. Thank you, both.)
As far as recovery is concerned, the pain is pretty outrageous, a lot more than I was expecting. I've got a pain med that seems to be effective (it's freakin' awesome, actually), but the other concerns are bleeding, inflammation, risk for infection, and the sinuses actually "adhering" to themselves. (I'll spare you the details, but adhesions would be bad.) So, in a nutshell, I have to follow the teaching I received today from the surgeon and the nurses really carefully. I basically can't do shit. No lying flat, no standing quickly, can't bend down, can't lift ANYTHING, can't tie my own shoes, I have to move very slowly, not speak loudly, etc., all so that I don't pop whatever fragile clots have formed. Of course they should have mentioned not to scratch my nose: I had a really bad itch before, and was distracted by something on TV at the same time, and kind of forgot I had surgery. I rubbed my nose really hard like I always do when I have an itch. (Jules, are you with me on that?) Needless to say, it hurt and it bled.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Martina Update
Hingis won her first title of the year last night...The Tokyo Toray Pan Pacific Open. It was a Tier I event during which she didn't drop a single set and took out some really heavy hitters, including Ana Ivanovic in the final. She has moved up to #6 in the rankings and is closing in on being a top five player pretty soon.
This win should silence a lot of the critics who contend that while she has great court craft, movement, and plays some of the most intelligent tennis out there, she will never be able to contend with the 6'2' power hitters who stand behind the baseline and fire away. Well, on the contrary, she did EXACTLY that, all week.
This win should silence a lot of the critics who contend that while she has great court craft, movement, and plays some of the most intelligent tennis out there, she will never be able to contend with the 6'2' power hitters who stand behind the baseline and fire away. Well, on the contrary, she did EXACTLY that, all week.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Update
My patient who I wrote about in December with the rare neuromuscular disorder has passed away. I will be forever grateful to him and to his partner for allowing me in to their home in December to spend some time caring for him and talking with them. It was an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life. I hope his loving partner and his family find peace and comfort very soon.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Martina 2007
The 2007 season has begun. My girl is having mixed success so far. She has played in two tournaments already this month as warm ups to the Australian Open which starts next week. The first one she made it to the final, and lost in a heartbreaking loss. She should have won that match. There really was no excuse. It was really close, but she should have won. To make it to the final, having barely dropped a set throughout the tournament, and then to lose the title?? I was sick. And then in the next tournament in Sydney (this week), she was ousted in the first round. This was another heartbreaking match...she lost the first set, and was about to lose the second, but fiercely clawed her way back to win the second set. And then in the third set, it was as if she wasn't even there. She had MANY opportunities to win, but squandered them. (She only converted like 3 of 16 break points, or something like that.) Her form is good, but she is getting nervous on big points, and seems to lose focus. It's going to be a long 10 months.
Spring Semester
The spring semester has started already. It's pediatrics and labor/delivery. To say I have very little interest in it would be to overstate my interest in it. I am bored to tears already. Hours and hours of lecture already on child abuse. It made me want to find a random child to abuse. And sadly, we're being spoken to like 18 month olds by the instructor. She is nice enough, but I think she only knows how to speak to people like she's speaking to a child she's about to vaccinate.
So, I'm not too happy. In other news, well, I'll make a separate post about that when I have time.
And with regard to the claymation story, it seems to have stalled. What a shame. I think it had potential. And yes, in response to several inquiries, Bridget did actually make those out of this Crayola clay-like stuff (it's not clay, it's not Play-Doh, it's something very similar but also very different) on New Year's Eve in the time span of like 20 minutes.
Estoy cansado. Me voy a la cama. (I am learning Spanish. Figure it out on your own.)
So, I'm not too happy. In other news, well, I'll make a separate post about that when I have time.
And with regard to the claymation story, it seems to have stalled. What a shame. I think it had potential. And yes, in response to several inquiries, Bridget did actually make those out of this Crayola clay-like stuff (it's not clay, it's not Play-Doh, it's something very similar but also very different) on New Year's Eve in the time span of like 20 minutes.
Estoy cansado. Me voy a la cama. (I am learning Spanish. Figure it out on your own.)
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
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