Huntington Beach Single Adult Conference

Friday: We arrived in HB and went to the opening mixer. Keri was talking to a friend when she looked up and saw a guy that looked really familiar.
Keri to her friend: Ask that guy his name...
Keri's friend: No way. You ask him.
Keri: I think that's Julie's friend Tyler
Keri to Ty: What's your name?
Ty: Tyler.
Keri: Tyler, what?
Ty: ....
Keri: Do you know Julie ...?
Ty: Yes! She's one of my favorite people!
Keri: She's my roommate!
Ty: Calls me...

Saturday: We all met at the stake center for a morning devotional, lunch, and then off to the beach for volleyball. Afterward, Keri and I combined our friends and went to dinner then to the church for mingling and dancing.

Keri and I at dinner

Ty and I plus a couple of his friends and Keri and her San Diego friends

Marcello, Emily, and Tyler

Me and Tyler

Sunday: We met at the church for a two hour sacrament meeting. Really good talks about getting married and making commitments. Blah, blah, blah. Afterward we had lunch, where I dropped strawberries on my shirt and an ice cream sandwich down my shirt! After lunch they had a musical fireside which we left half way through. We were all very tired so sitting and listening to soothing music was impossible. So Ty, Keri, Dave (a new friend from the conference), and I left and headed to Long Beach. Once in Long Beach we visited the Queen Mary - little creepy in my opinion - then dropped off Ty - he had to get up early to study for his last board exam - and heading to Sgt. Pepper's Dueling Pianos. This place was really fun! It's a bar but they have two pianos and the musicians take requests and duel on the two pianos. It's like a live band and kareoke combined!


Keri, Me, and Ty and a really cool phone booth on the Queen Mary in Long Beach

Sgt. Peppers Dueling Pianos - they were playing my song

Keri and Dave at Sgt. Peppers - the sign says you might experience hearing loss.

Monday: Sunday I ran into one of Bree's old roommates, Julie. So we (Keri, Julie, I) met up for breakfast at the Sugar Shack then went down to the beach.

Keri and I at Huntington Beach

Sigma Theta Tau

Wednesday night I was inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, the honor and research society for nurses. The only take the top 10% (I think) of each class. My favorite nursing friends Elizabeth and Chrissy were also invited.

Elizabeth, Me, Amber (from my program)

Signing the book

Inductees from my class. On of my favorite instructors, Nita was also inducted. Dr. Cherry (my clinical instructor) is the 3rd from the right.

Elizabeth, Me, Chrissy with our Certificates

Random Pictures from Tucson Activities

Risa stopped to visit on her way from TX to Vegas . I showed her (and Keri as she had just moved here) the prettiest place I found in Tucson thus far - Windy Point on Mt. Lemmon.


Karen came to visit the next weekend so I took her to Mt. Lemmon too.


Fabio (flying) and Trevor attempting Superman as grown men. Rather humorous for us, not so much the downstairs neighbors.


Keri and I with our new bikes. No bikes locks so we had to keep them inside for a while besides I wanted to play with the timer on my camera.

Thursdays

I love Thursdays. I always secretly have. Unlike Friday, there is no expectation that you will go out or Saturday when you feel compelled to do chores. Thursday is all about anticipation. On Thursday you always think, "Yea, tomorrow is Friday and the weekend! I can survive this heinous week!"

Then nursing school struck and even surviving through Friday from the distance of Thursday seemed impossible.

But then Vulnerable Populations happened. I don't want to curse myself but since completing the killer classroom portion of this semester in early February and then panicking and finishing all my assignments early (yes, I am a complete nerd and that is why I am in two (2) honor societies) I seem to have lots of free time.

It's very strange.

I've read several novels (mostly mindless, just in case I need the brain power elsewhere), have begun attending church activities, have invited people over, played Guitar Hero on school nights, have pondered what hobbies I used to enjoy and might want to pick up again but probably shouldn't because I have no money, and most shockingly, have gone days without reading anything even remotely nursing related. All this makes me nervous. Of course without real stress I must invent some. So I wonder, should I start studying for the NCLEX or go back to my novel. At least for tonight the novel wins.

Oh, don't worry, I'm still working hard and loving the work. Had a delightful patient today. She's in her 90's and still cruisin'. Reminded me of Grandparents. I had almost complete responsibility for her - my nurse was busy making sure one of her other patients didn't escape - so I felt like a real nurse. Especially when I figured out I needed to unclamp the IV before trying to flush it and that abdominal pain of unknown origin is sometimes just gas. It's good to feel like a complete idiot at least once a day. I generally shoot for twice. Yea, I definitely love this.

Bad, bad blogger

I always make these promises to myself that I will blog, I will email, I will call and then I get home from clinical and, well, I move into a comatose state that lasts until bedtime.

So what have I been up to?

I went home over Spring Break (which is a wonderful thing for all my fellow BYUers that never got one). I spent most of my time with my fabulous nephews and niece (sadly Rebecca was in TX). I jumped on a trampoline. Yes, that was an event. Remember the knee surgery - I'm scared to run across the street much less jump on a tramp. Good thing I love my nephews so much! It was great fun. I fell in love with Guitar Hero and Rock Band. It was a great vacation.

I got home and jumped back into clinical. I was in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), which I loved but I just don't think it has all the action I'm looking for and I would have to work nights indefinitely. So I'm still set on the ER. I spent a day in the Children's ER last week and really enjoyed that so maybe that will be an option. I started an IV on a kid - super scary! I thought I was keeping my visible panic in check but then the mom asked me, "Are you nervous?". If I wasn't before I am now!!!

Now I'm in my Multi-system Failure rotation so I'll go from ICU to CCU to Cardiac Step-down to ER. I've had some time in the ICU now and let me just say, for the record, if anyone ever does that to me I will haunt you forever!! We can do some pretty impressive things to keep people alive but I wonder, should we? Some of the patients I've seen, let's just say I wrote a whole rant about it but just deleted it due to confidentiality but there are some major ethical issues going on. I don't think the ICU is going to be the place for me. Too many opportunities to tell people what I really think. Oh, and if I'm going to tell people what to do - get an advanced directive or a living will and a medical power of attorney (please note, if you're concerned about mental illness you need a separate document naming a mental health power of attorney). Document what you want so your neurotic, grief-stricken family doesn't have to make those choices for you. And please, for crying out loud, see a doctor once in a while. Not seeing one doesn't make the problem go away it just makes it less solvable. OK, I think I'm done ranting.

It is a pretty exciting place though. I got to practice some exciting skills and, I AM A ROCK STAR! I do love my job.

I'd write about my social life but there isn't much to report. I got a PlayStation 2 so we've had people over to hang out and play. I've been making an effort to get to know people in this ward and while my first impressions were a little disappointing, I'm finding some great people. This weekend, hopefully, I'm going flying with a friend. I wonder if he'll let me fly the plane. I have had one lesson. Later this month I'm going to the single adult conference in Huntington Beach. I'm trying to keep an open mind but I'm preparing myself to find the humor in it. I promise to report.

That's about all. I have to get to bed - we're practicing mock-codes tomorrow. Yea.

Del Sol: Wickenberg to Scottsdale

The most incredible weekend ever. What could be better than a race, a road trip, and camping trip with my best friend all in one weekend. No worries, we only slept about 3 hours so I got to enjoy every possible minute I had with my friends in AZ. Van 1 was captained by my old roommate Theresa and included her siblings Annie and Daniel, Daniel's friend Sterling and friends from our former ward Paige and Natalie. My van included me (as the Team Captain, Honorary Gimp, Race Coordinator), my friend from my Salt Lake days Ryan, my BYU roommate Karen, friends from CA Kristin and Andrea, and Carlin a friend from Tucson. I didn't get to run in this one - darn knee - but I'm eager to run in the 2009 Northwest Passage race. I'd write more but right now I'm a bit pooped.

Banner Week

This week has definitely been a banner week. So many wonderful things have happened!

Sunday: My roommate and I were invited to dinner. Exciting because she enjoys one of the guys in attendance and because the guy who invited us is the coolest guy in our ward. He makes me laugh embarrassingly hard. I always love making new friends.

Monday: I actually made it to Pilates. Now that may not sound exciting to you but it's a pretty big deal to me. By the end of my school day I'm usually ready to curl up in the fetal position, not so much ready to head to the gym. It was a good class - way over my fitness level but I enjoyed it none the less.

Wednesday: Prices came down just enough for my roommate and I to buy tickets to London!!! I've been wanting to go forever and now I'm really going! We'll be going for 10 days in May (during the semester break). I'll keep you posted on that one!

We also invited people from our new ward over for Sunday dinner. Our first dinner party!

Thursday: I passed my skills test which was the last requirement for one of my courses. Clinical begins on Tuesday. The only downer of the week - I got the scariest instructor for my psych rotation. She has a reputation for writing people up for the most ridiculous infractions and one of her students mysteriously wasn't allowed to come back this semester. My whole group is a bit panicky.

Friday: NO SCHOOL! If that were all it would be the most exciting event of the week. My clinical group was required to attend a job fair at TMC so I dragged myself down there and made a beeline for the ER booth. I asked the manager what she thought about starting in the ER straight out of school and she went on about personality and what it's like and being really challenging... I peppered her with questions and finally she leaned over, put her hand on my shoulder and said, "you just don't seem like a med/surg nurse to me." That may be one of the best compliments I've ever received! Shortly thereafter the nurse recruiter asked me to fill out the background check release and while I was doing that she came back over and said, "the Emergency Dept would like to make you an offer..." I have a job when I graduate!! Actually, I have a job now, I can work as a nurse tech (whatever that is) until I get my license. So I don't have to "work my way up" to the ER, I get to start there. I very, very excited about that. I will, of course, inquire about opportunities in CA but if I end up staying in Tucson this is the best job I could hope for.

On top of all that greatness, I had some errands to run and in particular needed to buy a new pair of black heels and I found the perfect pair at Target. Shoes at a reasonable price. Ahhh, the glory of it.

Not a bad week. Not at all.