Nurse Karin

Eight Days of Time Off

2014-08-07T12:01:00.000-06:00

The benefit of working three days a week is that I get four days off. Carefully combined together, I can have eight days off without taking any days off my vacation. So, that's what I did.

So what did I do with those days. Nothing much but I did get a mental break (after the breakdown of course). Maybe I will discuss that part later.

Catched and released? Oh, yeah.

Walked the dogs.

Cooked so I don't starve. What is this, you ask? Broken omelet with spinach, onions, and broccoli sprouts--made as healthy as I could make it.

Watched hatching eggs, not at the zoo, but in the library. I have a feeling they won't keep them long when they start tweeting.

Tired my new dog out.

Walked the dogs some more.

Ate Sashimi. Yum.

September Renewal

2014-08-06T23:52:00.001-06:00

I know. I know. It is not September. But this is the month when half of us renews our license in the state so get it done. Don't let it lapse if you are still practicing.

And while at the subject of renewal, why don't you renew your toilet too? Armed with a handbook and video, I changed mine to this water saver toilet. With a rebate from the water utility company, this thing is a steal.

The Light

2014-08-03T13:46:00.001-06:00

Surgery Day

2014-07-07T11:03:00.001-06:00

My sister is having her elective bilateral mastectomy today for Stage 0 breast cancer. She will have a reconstruction at the same time like I had with fat and tissue taken from her belly. The plan is for her to stay in ICU for 3 days, then last day in regular floor. I wish the surgeon calls me as her husband is OK with it for updates. Been there as a patient myself.

I know I should not worry. Breast cancer is well-studied. What are the updates?

Why Oh Why

2014-07-03T09:33:00.001-06:00

Somebody asked, why am I involved with nursing association.

"All they do is have parties," she said.

Not really. For this 5K indoor race, together we raised around $75,000. Not bad. Plus I got exercise in this outdoorish-indoor Caesar Palace race location. It's good that the shops around are closed at around 5 am!

"This year, part of the proceeds will support the Philippine Humanitarian Coalition (PHC), the US Philippine Society, and the Embassy of the Philippines in Washington, D.C. in the rebuilding and restoration of the Visayan peninsula and livelihood of its people devastated by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda). This is in addition to the usual recipients of PNAA/PNAAF programs like Balik-Turo, Scholarship and Community Outreach."

When I Wished Upon a Star

2014-07-01T19:30:00.001-06:00

And then the star fell.

Oh well.

I thought I could do it, and I failed.

I did not meet finishing 5 modules out of 8 so I would get a failing grade on my third course in college online. That only cost me $1000. Ouch.

My mother-son life had been so hard from March through June.

My son's troubles got me in trouble. I spent too much time trying to fix him, save him from failing first year of high school, keeping him away from bad friends, looking for him . . .

He is back home and on probation.

I hope things get better

for me

and for him.

God please help us.

Shorts

2014-06-15T07:00:00.000-06:00

My engineer friend complains:

"Since the merge, we have to follow the rules at work, no shorts. They [the new CEO and owners] should give us clothing allowance then . . . We also have to badge in and out now and we cannot work from home anymore. It is no longer allowed."

I want to ask, "Seriously? You're saying that to me? I am a nurse. I wear pajama-looking scrubs everyday. Welcome to the normal world, buddy."

But I just smiled.

Everyday he worked, he looked like he was about to play golf. Then I saw him with tan pants and a nice white polo short. Not a huge difference, but hey, he looks good.

Source of image: Morgue Files

Blue and Green

2014-06-14T23:42:00.001-06:00

I really should be doing my homework.

But here I can't stop thinking about my road trip to the west and back. It will be to see family and friends and to go to a nursing convention.

I calculated the total time I will be driving on the road, driving through a couple a thousand of miles of beautiful nature (yeah right), listening to music and stories on CDs . . . for forty eight hours.

OK those hours are spread for roughly two weeks back and forth. It won't be so bad, right?

I am hoping I get cancelled one of my last three days at work so I can do school work and pack.

Oh, by the way, my hospital's new logo colors will be blue and green, just like the colors above.

Source of picture: Image URI: Morgue file

I love Coffee

2014-05-12T10:30:00.000-06:00

Whether instant or Keurig, I start my day with a cup of coffee to boost my energy. After that, I might have a cup of green tea, then I got to be a nursing paper typing machine. Well, I am hoping.

Sometimes I doubt myself, can I really do 4 more years of this school to get my MSN writing papers?

Photo credit: godidwlr from morguefile.com

Mother's Day

2014-05-11T21:21:00.004-06:00

Photo credit: hotblack from morguefile.com

It is mother's day evening. No work, no pay for me. I have been coughing, daughter has been coughing, son has been coughing.

Darn cold. So we had an excuse to skip the mass.

"Can we go to the movies."

"Err, no, we don't want to cough on crowded areas like we don't want to do in the church."

So, we got a Redbox movie instead, Catching Fire, and because it is inside McDonald's we had to get the limited-time-offered Strawberry Creme pies too.

"We have to get it, mom. Ariel's dad got it once for us, it is so good."

OK, it tastes just like Pop Tart to me, and just like Pop Tart, it is so sweet.

Oh well, after that beautiful card she made me, she deserves a couple of those pies.

See what I mean?

I really should write my paper now for Community Health NUR 492.

Good night.

Hope this day you got to thank the moms in your life.

Happy Nurse's Week

2014-05-06T09:42:00.000-06:00

Image source: http://mrg.bz/0FeTkl

Happy Nurse's Week.

The nurse group I belong to gave me a recognition award simply by going back to college to pursue my Master's. What a surprise! I went home carrying a pot of Hydrangea from our Nurse's week celebration. Beautiful.

from en.wiki (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

***

I am assigned to bring something for my fellow nurses at work as a duty of a Recognition Committee member. I thought biscotti will be easy and nice to have with coffee on early morning so I that is what I will bring to work. I hope they will like it.

Good News, Good News

2014-04-26T16:42:00.004-06:00

I am getting a raise based on my work's market analysis of some sort, meaning, they researched what is the average hourly pay of nurses in our area considering experiences. I get three times as much increase as I anticipated. YAY. That also means I was underpaid for many years, but hey, I prefer to look at it the positive way.
I earned a nursing education scholarship at work. I will find out on nurse's week how much it would be. Early Happy Nurse's week to me!

Image from: JPEG URI: http://mrg.bz/K3R8mH

What Do You Do?

2014-04-21T21:57:00.001-06:00

What do you do when a family member of a patient asks you to police who comes in and out of the patient room to visit? Only the one's listed are allowed by the family member. Your patient cannot talk, sedated, and intubated, and has no say over this.

What do you do if a patient's visitor barges in the room, demanding you stop what you're doing, may it be taking care of the patient right after receiving him from the OR . . . so you can hook up her oxygen to the wall for her using the hospital oxygen?

Just wondering.

Saturday Mass Vigil

2014-04-20T05:57:00.003-06:00

Happy Easter, Peeps!

So the mass last night lasted 2.5 hours. That was the longest Catholic mass I've ever been. But since for some reasons, I had all weekend "on" this holy season, I had to do the vigil.

Happy Easter!

I will have to get ready for work now.

I am bringing yellow Peeps for potluck contribution, and chips, and beans . . .

Don't fear CCRN Exam

2014-04-14T22:48:00.001-06:00

Don't fear. Prepare, study, and the rest (experience, will, faith, and luck) will make me pass.

That's what I tell myself.

Now, enough positive talk, and study, Karin.

CCRN Review Day 1

2014-04-14T21:22:00.000-06:00

WELL, since a couple of my coworkers younger than I just passed it, I feel like I have to take it so here I go, trying to make time to review for the exam before I take my CCRN sometime this year.

Wish me luck.

I ordered the oh-so-recommended Laura Gasparis Vonfrolio review course. It cost me $158 for the 2011 DVD set review from her website. This is newer and a better deal than the one found in Amazon. I will let you know about the program when I get it.

Oh, by the way, I just passed my second course in nursing. Another 4.0. Goodbye Nursing Theory.

Oh and while I'm waiting for my Laura course, I am reading this Pathophysiology book. Funny, my engineer friend cannot even pronounce it. It really is a no-brainer. I think it is written for pre-med students without any medical background. It is a good review for nurses too. I recommend it.

The Good: March 2014

2014-03-17T09:13:00.000-06:00

I got to celebrate my birthday. "Happy Birthday to me . . . "
My doctor of genetic counselling said, I, with my oncologist and family physician can chill for now about the breast cancer issues in my family. My daughter can just be a teen. No need for testing . . . yet.
I am still on remission. Breast-cancer free--YIPPEE.
I can still wear my scrubs of different colors--solid, printed . . .
I seemed to have filled most bald spots on the top of my head. It took so long after chemo.
I don't have to wear the prescribed royal blue from some assigned vendors to show the world that I am registered nurse--not therapist, not doctor, not phlebotomist, not assistant . . . But sometime before December I will.
It is still busy in the ICU and I haven't been cancelled from work for months!
It is vegetable planting time! Spring is here.
My tomatoes I started indoors look like they will make it.
My sister only has stage 0 breast cancer, not 1, or 2, or 3 or 4. I am still thankful about that.

Random Acts of Kindness Week

2014-02-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

Dr. Deb: February 10-16 is Random Acts of Kindness Week: Random Acts of Kindness Week is February 10th thru the 16th. The Random Acts of Kindness foundation is an internationally recognized non-p...

I Don't Think of Getting Violent

2014-02-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

What I want to do when I just got in an isolation room all gowned up and my glucometer reads, "QC due."

Healthy Snack

2014-02-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

Baked sweet potato fries with Greek yogurt onion dressing

Oh well oh well, my dip is white as the view outside--snow white. It finally warmed up, thank goodness, from -18 degrees to -3. YAY.

My kids and I are having fitness-health spurt whatever you call it. I serve healthy food, they eat it. This morning I made garlic fried brown rice with spinach, eggs, and a little bit of bacon. Hey, I didn't have to wake them up. They came to the table. This afternoon we are going to the rec center to workout. My daughter has volleyball so she's working out with me after. Son will come along too with a friend.

Tomorrow I go back to work.

I really should be studying right now, not blogging. I am on my 2nd of 19 required courses to earn my MSN.

Till next time.

Happy 2014

2014-01-17T12:10:00.002-07:00

It's not too late to greet Happy New Year, right? It is still January.

Well, well, I finished my first class of 19 for ASN to MSN bridge program. One down, 18 more to go. My excuses aside (post-chemo brain, old age, busy-single mom of 2 life, bad cold, and holidays), I pulled a strong A for my final grade--97%. That includes an extra credit writing assignment, of course. I learned well from this course and read/wrote to exhaustion. It can be done, ten weeks, one course. The holidays got in the way (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and boyfriend and my two kids' birthdays) but I did it.

Obviously, I neglected blogging those weeks. But here is another blog post by a wonderful ICU nurse. As an ICU nurse myself, this post made me teary-eyed. Please read.

Wish I Had More Time To...

2013-12-06T13:10:00.000-07:00

What do I wish I had more time to do each day?

Why school work, of course. This one subject in ten weeks is killing me...softly. Read, read, read, write, write, write, post, reply, only APA style. If only APA style is as much fan as Gangnam's.

By the way, this dance can be a good aerobics dance. Maybe it can help me lose that four pounds I have just gained after Thanksgiving.

Help

2013-12-05T13:10:00.000-07:00

You have heard of the killer Haiyan storm that hit the residents of the Philippines last November killing over 4,000 Filipinos. I don't know anybody personally from that 4,000 but I have read and watched the news. It was enough to put me in a few days of extreme sadness.

As I research for my college paper today, I saw this in the American Nurse's Association website. On their press release, the donation link for the Haiyan victims is still up. If you haven't already, please try to help.

Thank you. Maraming salamat.

If you're in Colorado, you may want to join us in our Saklolo (Filipino for help) fundraising.

If the Bible is the most read book, perhaps we should join that reading club. I am joining a little late but beter late than never.

To answer the daily prompt from NaBloPoMo for today, how often do I go back for seconds? Why at least one time. That is where the name came from--seconds, right? I usually go back for thirds. That explains the four pound weight I gained after Thanksgiving worsened by my sitting aound to read or type for my assignments in college.

I need to be more physically active. I wonder if I can find some verses in the bible to inspire me. Hmm.

Pay It Forward

2013-12-04T00:36:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago, I had a box full of groceries plus more back when I just had surgery, unable to lift (or not allowed) more than five pounds. This Thanksgiving, I can fill a box and lift it too. Thanks for to good health. I am able to give.