Thoughts From the 3rd-4th Week

1.One week,you're on top of the game-the next,you do something unspeakable (or non-HIPAA compatible) & on top of feeling horrible about it,you then get to tell your instructor,the shadowing Masters Degree student,& the RN charge nurse.(the patient is fine) You then get to fill out your very first Incident Report on why the thing you did was a bad idea & burst into tears,well,just because the situation is not awkward enough.Mistakes happen,I know that(it's the sheer amount of authority figures that sent me over the edge). Live & learn.(I haven't been kicked out of the program yet,so that's a positive.)

2. I got to see a cataract operation(video from a guest lecturing ophthalmologist) as well as ten zillion pictures of the Diabetic Eye. It was both fascinating and made me want to throw up,as it seems that the winning combination of diabetes,nearsightedness,cataract surgeries,strabismus surgery,and optic neuritis spells a
near certain dearth for my left eye.(glaucoma,retinal detachment,macular degeneration,pick your poison)I really would like to keep it 'round as long as possible.(renewed vow to get myself to the optho this summer) I think that the clouding on my L.lens has progressed,I don't see as well at night(it seems to have really gone to town in the past 2 years...is it something about that 10 year post-surgeries mark? I think lasaring is in the cards for the near future which is kind of scary to think about. I hope it doesn't A.hurt or B. have any other visual side effects.I've known the day would come that I'd need lasar,it's just hard to remain calm when its an eye(s) you're talking about.

3.150 years ago last week,the Civil War began. iTunes has an incredible app called The Civil War Today which gives you a daily update through the 4 years of war. (it's an iPad app though) It's in newspaper format,& has video clips,journal accounts,quotes,trivia,photographs, etc. & really makes it come alive...it's a pretty cool app.If you love history and have an iPad,I suggest you check it out!

4.Cancelled my Endo appt,rescheduled for May 3.Hopefully my a1c won't be so off-the-charts high by then.

5. Freestyle strips without the Butterfly are becoming next to impossible to try and find. The bad thing is,both kinds have the same UPC so it's impossible for a pharmacy to know what they're getting.It's largely hit & miss trying to obtain any.(at all)
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1.In the Event of a Fire Alarm,make darn sure you grab your meter & sugar,because you won't get back in that building for a good 45 minutes. This is not a time to go low.
2. Working in a nursing home is like working in the psych ward..one day everything is "normal", the next, the patient is wheeling all over the cafeteria,& attempting to slug you when you try to prevent disaster from occurring. (while the rest of the population looks on) I guess it's not that bad when the patient is not physically capable of hurting anything,but it was just so,so,so bizarre & the Easter Bunny was not exactly helping me in what I was expected to do in said situation.(me & Easter Bunny in room full of patients,& I couldn't leave because I was monitoring somebody else) HELPPP.(just about ready to be committed to a mental institution myself,I was not supposed to be monitoring the whole entire room) Next time, a little help, Easter Bunny?
3. Forget tiredness, I've progressed to dead. But next week,there is no homework/care plans due(Monday,Test 4) and Wed/Thurs we'll be caring for two patients EACH & then,that's the end to clinicals. Following week,we have our big Patient Presentations & the week after that,evaluations & the cumulative Final Exam and the big Nursing Convocation Dept. "party" and then it's all done! (time flies when you're having fun) I need it to be summer.
4. You may cross "morbidly obese patients" and "chemo/radiation patients" off the list of future career choices.Someone needs to do it,it just won't be me. I can't even find a pulse(anywhere) let alone formulate a good plan. I feel like whatever skills I may have acquired up to this point have not gotten me really far (in terms of a morbidly obese individual)
5.One week & 12 hours till the royal wedding! (I'm sure you're all just dying NOT to know)

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Destination: Weekend

Eight Tips to Appearing on TV

(inspired by the D-life Nose-Picker Episode)
#1. Don't pick your nose. Seriously. A million people are watching you, even if you're in the studio audience + think no one could possibly be videocamering you. IT WILL COME BACK TO HAUNT YOU.
#2 And if you do pick your nose, do so in a delicate manner. Use a tissue, and make it appear as if you are just blowing your snozz, not digging it.
#3 Don't faint.This is easier (to do)then you may realize, and at times you will feel like there is no possible way that you're going to survive a minute longer. Take a deep breath, smile, and relax. Nothing lasts forever. If you faint, the first thing you'll be hearing is "Are you LOW?"
#4 Make sure you get the ok from a responsible adult, before you inflict your clothing choices on the tender eyes of a waiting nation. You may think you look like hot stuff-meanwhile, by the end of the night, your family has completely disowned you.
#5 Do not snort, guffaw, burp, wheeze, or make any other disgusting body sounds. (at least not when the camera is on you.)
#6 Do not say UHHHHHH. This does not sound intelligent, and does not convince anyone that you deserve to be up there. (this also goes for radio, from personal experience)
#7 Keep talking, even if you have nothing more(on the subject) to say.Bluffing always works.
#8 Do not, if you check your blood sugar on tv, suck the blood off your finger. Most non-D people will vomit, and even some PWD's might be shell shocked.
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It's been an interesting week, my computer has some serious problems.(attempting to sign in to my gmail account, the page keeps refreshing in an endless loop) WHY???(please help me, computers are not my forte) Hence, I am writing this at the library.
And on the Ebay front, I have had it with one of my buyers, went and left negative feedback. For doing this,I am (no doubt) a nasty,horrible, non-understanding person. This makes the 3rd negative feedback I've ever left, (in 7 years) I am usually fairly understanding about these things + don't wish to scar another's FB reputation. I would want someone to do the same for me.
1 month.
2 invoices + 5 emails.
No response from buyer.
File NPB(non-paying bidder) report.
1 week.
Buyer emails that they'll pay me soon.
Respond, ok. 5 days.
Email buyer.
4 days.
No response. Give up, leave negative feedback. I've had it with this guy.
Buyer sends payment that evening. WHATTTT? Now I feel somewhat guilty, as I just neg'd him. Annoyed, because this is just too draining + he's saying he never even knew he won the auction. Refund payment.I'm not dealing with this.
2 days later... Buyer emails, asks for item(gift certificate code). Says he payed.
Email buyer-inform him that payment was returned, check email(s) for reason why.
Close NPB dispute. Now I'm thinking that I may have been a bit too rough on someone who obviously is not the sharpest knife in the drawer.(doesn't check email,paypal,or My Ebay..hmmm) Either that,or he has a good reason for lying. He had a good fb record(short as it was)till it came to this transaction. If he negs me, it would be highly unbelievable as I've got a perfect record + have been around much longer then he has. Ahh, the joys.
The research study check finally came(at just the right time, dude,I thought I'd have to take a trip to Turkey + sell a kidney) I'm pretty happy about that. It's nice when stuff actually
comes on time.
On Monday, my first intelligent action of the day was to break off a windshield wiper on the ice-so I can't go anywhere till it quits raining. Highly inconvenient.(supposed to be a nice weekend,though) I also set fire to my breakfast (in the microwave), and dropped a 30 lb.wooden pallet on my right foot so it was a fairly disastrous day.
Today was pretty interesting- I got to see someone giving just plasma. (at the blood donor center) It looked like a regular IV bag of fluids. (plasma is the clear, watery part of the blood) Plasma, unlike other blood components, can be frozen/saved for up to a year (for use in vaccines,etc.) so its pretty unusual stuff. Their donation took awhile, though(more then the 30 minutes I was there). PWD's aren't allowed to give anything except whole blood(believe me,I've asked) something about reduced immunity + the IV dextrose they give(for one of those special donations). Such is the policy at that blood center. So I just gave #32, and watched them. I guess whole blood donations are enough of a challenge, they could be right(who knows how taking specialized components might screw up a PWD) . Oh well.
Have a great weekend, everyone.