kapachino

Blog

  • Just Some Stuff

    Lately I feel like there are so many things going on in my life, little and big, that it’s hard to keep straight. I just want some time to relax and read my books, but it’s hard to let myself have that time. Anyway, before I head to bed I want to share with you a few of those random things that are happening, or that I’m thinking about.

    >The triathlon that I’ve been training for is about a month and a half away. I’m pleased to report that running is going very well. As long as I don’t attempt it in the heat of the day, I have no trouble running the 5k. Swimming is another matter. After I successfully completed the entire 750m, the next couple of swims were extremely tough. I feel like I’ve backslid in that area. And as for biking, I don’t go that often because it takes so long, but I am confident that I can complete the 14 miles. I’m quite slow at all three events, but my goal is just to finish. Unfortunately, my training buddy cracked a rib this past weekend and can no longer race. I’m left to do this one on my own, which is no fun. It’s hard to stay motivated, but I’m really going to try to tough it out.

    >I’ve been enjoying listening to podcasts while I run, and also while I drive. A few of my favorites that I’ve found so far are: The Dinner Party Download, Stuff You Should Know, Filmspotting, and Radiolab.

    >We only have 8 beds (out of 28) open on my floor at work now, so there are only 2 nurses needed per shift. It’s very strange; the rest of the unit looks like it’s under some weird kind of quarantine. We will be floating to other units a lot now, and on Sunday I actually have to work the 3-11 p.m. shift. I’m kind of nervous about it, mostly because I don’t stay up that late hardly ever.

    >Yesterday I registered to be a bone marrow donor. This was one of my 101 goals. Methodist made it pretty easy, because they had a table set up right in the lobby. It only took a few minutes to fill out a form, swab my cheek, and done. I didn’t realize it, but 70% of bone marrow donations are done by pheresis, which is just like giving blood.

    >Ellen, a good college friend of mine and one of my bridesmaids, had a baby today. It blows my mind.

    Off to bed now, one of my favorite times of day!

  • The Living Room, Almost Done

    Well, we’ve been in this house almost seven months now and we finally have a few rooms that are shaping up to look like I want them to. The kitchen is done, and now the living room and breakfast room are almost there. Everything got painted, new light fixtures were installed, and furniture was bought. It’s such a great feeling to come home to this! (Please excuse my sad photography skills.)

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    A vertical shot to show off the fan:

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    I love the fireplace now that Lauren and I painted it! On the mantle is the woven mirror from Target that I love.

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    Our new media stand from Overstock.com, which makes me so happy:

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    And its matching side table:

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    The coffee table from IKEA:

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    David is adorable, by the way. He was so excited to have a coffee table that he went out that day and bought four coffee table books to display: one on dogs, Houston, the ocean, and a Christmas book.

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    A close-up of the buffet area:

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    Eventually I want to decorate this better, but right now it just has some random stuff on it. Two pitchers from Crate & Barrel that I think are pretty, a marriage prayer plate that we bought on our Honeymoon to Kauai, one of our engagement pictures, and a little DIY art that I made in about five minutes one day. Oh, and a candy bowl. Can’t forget the candy bowl!

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    And here’s our cute little table and chairs!

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    David bought me the rose for no reason at all. :)

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    It’s not quite finished, though. The next thing we need are some window shades or blinds. I keep vacillating between Roman shades (white or tan), bamboo shades, and white faux-wood blinds. You can’t really see it in these pictures, but we do have some sheer white curtains from Wal-mart in the living room that add interest. What’s your vote on the windows?

    Once we get the windows taken care of, I’d like to get a rug for the living room. Again, I’m not sure of the color/pattern that would look best with what we have going on. I’m thinking something soft and easy on the eyes, and if there is a pattern it should be something with curves because we have a lot of corners and angles in the room. Suggestions?

    Lastly, something needs to go on the wall in the breakfast room. I bought three bamboo dishes from IKEA that I think would look cute hanging in a row. I hope to try it out soon, but first I need to get some plate hangers.

    After I get those things out of the way, it’s time to save our pennies for a little while before we tackle another room. Which one should it be? The bright red dining room? The tiny half bathroom that gets frequent use but needs a big overhaul? The extra room that we’d love to turn into an office? Or how about our own room? So many choices!

  • Seven Things

    I was tagged to write seven things about myself on Saturday by Kaitlyn, and since she said I am an awesome woman I simply must comply. Tomorrow I should have some great pictures of our somewhat-finished living room to share with you, but for now I hope you enjoy these tidbits:

    1. I was born at The Methodist Hospital, same place I now work.
    2. One of my favorite things about my job is when I get to make beds. I’ve always enjoyed that task; I find it therapeutic.
    3. The mattress for our bed is my favorite piece of furniture. It cost $4000 and we are paying it off in two years, no interest. WORTH IT.
    4. I am also still paying off a $2000 credit card debt, amassed while I was in school with only a part-time job and measly loans to pay my bills.
    5. I am considering going back to school in the somewhat-near future to slowly become a nurse practitioner. I probably will, although it frightens me a little. OK, a lot.
    6. I don’t have very many irrational fears, although I almost had a panic attack when attempting to bait a hook with a live shrimp once. And I did have an emotional meltdown when a roach crawled on me in bed while staying at my brother’s house.
    7. My husband is not afraid of shrimp or roaches. And he loves me better than anyone ever could, which is the same way I love him.

  • When It Rains, It Pours (Or Insert Another Such Pun)

    Talk about a Monday.

    This morning I was in a patient’s room giving 9 o’clock meds when I heard the sound of running water. At first I thought it was the shower, or perhaps the sink. But there was no one else in the room. A few moments later my confusion evaporated when water began pouring from the ceiling near the door. I kid you not, within minutes the entire room was covered with an inch of water. Brown, stinky, disgusting water. Obviously chaos erupted.

    First of all, we had to get the patient and all of her belongings out of the room. That was interesting in itself considering she couldn’t walk and had to be wheeled in her bed. We found an empty room for the patient down the hall and parked her in it. At one point while I was in the leaky room packing her bags the light fixture crashed to the floor. Thankfully I was out of the way, but it sure scared me. We also soon discovered that the water leak was spreading to all of the other rooms nearby, but the one I was inside when it started by far got the worst of it. All in all we had to relocate 5-6 patients STAT.

    Once we got them out of the way we focused on containing the leak. We had already thrown down tons of blankets to keep the water from gushing into the hallway. Maintenance got there in a hurry and brought with them huge barrels to vacuum the water into. There might have been 6 inches of water in that room before they began to clean it. The hallway smelled like the big pipes that run through the bayou. I know what those smell like because I used to play in them with my brothers when I was young. We were safe and sanitary like that. They ended up shutting down the entire hall, even the rooms that weren’t affected, so that they could work. Our unit capacity was cut in half.

    So THAT was exciting. I have the day off tomorrow so I won’t have to deal with it. I’m secretly hoping that I won’t have to go in to work on Wednesday either, but that probably won’t happen.

    If the crazy work day weren’t enough, David and I came home to discover that our air conditioner isn’t working. I set it at 78 degrees before I left this morning, and when I got home it was 83. When I turned it down to cool off, hot air began blowing out, and immediately the temperature began to rise. Obviously, in Houston this is not acceptable, and that is why I am currently at my in-laws’ house (again) waiting to see if we will need a new A/C unit or not.

    Update: The compressor was locked up and needed a starter kit applied. So $440 later we’re back in our lovely home and cool as can be. I had better plans for that $440, but I just thank God it wasn’t $4400.

  • Floated!

    This morning when I got to work I found out that we were overstaffed. Usually when that happens they will call you at home and tell you not to come in, but I guess the hospital is trying to save money by not using flex staff (a group of nurses who don’t have an assigned unit, but just work wherever they’re needed) as much, because lately we are getting floated to other units a lot more often. Today, it was my turn.

    I was nervous because I had never floated before and I didn’t know what to expect. But thankfully everyone on the unit I went to was extremely nice and helpful. I don’t have a single bad thing to say about any of the people. It was just one floor below mine, but it has recently been remodeled so everything is a lot nicer and more up-to-date there. (Our unit hasn’t changed since the hospital was built in the 50’s.)

    The bad thing about that is all of the doors that lead to staff-only rooms there (like supply rooms, medication rooms, and the lounge) have badge-swipe entry, and the Pyxis machine, where 80% of the medications are stored, is accessed by fingerprint. But my badge isn’t set up for the doors, and my finger hasn’t been coded to their machine. So the entire day, whenever I wanted access to anything, I had to ask someone. It was very annoying, to me and I’m sure to them too.

    My patients were pretty much a breeze compared to what I’m used to. None of them really complained of anything, and they were mostly independent. It was a general medical floor, and I’m used to patients being a lot sicker than these were. A few hours into the day I got an admission. She was an 88-year-old lady who was extremely hard of hearing so if I wanted to talk to her I had to get RIGHT UP BY HER EAR AND TALK LIKE THIS. She was admitted due to a high fever, elevated white blood cell count, shortness of breath, and was coughing up junk. It was only after I had talked to her several times an inch away from her face, not to mention rolled her from side to side to position her, that I spoke with the doctor. He informed me that she was being put on respiratory isolation due to possible swine flu, and that I should wear a mask when I go in the room. Thanks, Doc. Thanks for being on top of that one. I hope David will still kiss me.

    Being floated also made me appreciate a lot of things about my own unit. My floor is so much more organized and well-stocked, for one thing. It also seems like the nurses there are more current on the latest research and protocols. And, I do have to say, oncology patients are so much more interesting. I think I would be bored out of my mind if I had to work with patients whose admitting diagnosis is “abdominal pain” every day, like 3 out of 4 of my patients today.

    But I got to leave on time today, and when I go back to my unit tomorrow for the dreaded Monday-after-working-the-weekend, I will be happy to be home.