You Know You're a Nursing Student When...

• You find joy in the little things like eating and lying on a grassy knoll
• You can find anti-bac, gloves, medical tape, clamps, scissors, and a penlight in your backpack faster than you can find a pencil
• You cry in your car/shower, because it would be a waste of time to cry anywhere else ;-)
• You can point out every Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Chick-fil-a, and everywhere else that sells coffee within a 20 mi radius of your school/hospital/clinical site
• You understand what’s going on in House/Grey’s/ER
• Your Christmas list includes things like drug cards, tide stick pens, books, stethoscopes, and new white scrubs
• You diagnose people as they walk by
• You percuss your abdomen in your living room/in class/on the grassy knoll
• You only get to pick out your outfit about 40% of the week, and 30% of the time you just don’t care…
• You slowly make an alternate language known only to the few… the proud... the nursing students...
• You live for call lights and medication passes b/c it makes the day go by faster
• You wash your hands before you go to the bathroom, after, and about 60 other times a day
• You've signed "K. F. SN" (student nurse) on a credit card receipt
• you gauge how busy your day was by how many times you were able to use the bathroom.
• You have to "pack" the night before for all the roles you need to play, outfits you need to wear, tools you need to have, and meals you need to eat the next day.
• You wake up every morning and ask that He would guide you to be comforting when you're exhausted, funny when you're disgusted, understanding when a member of your carpool oversleeps, awake when you need to be, and, of course, not to kill anyone ;-)

"Internet Down..."

Don't you love this screen?

If you're anything like me, you can almost feel your blood begin to boil at first sight of this screen. Well, this morning, guess what popped up?You guessed it! I had wonderful plans of checking mail, sending facebook messages, checking on my online classes, writing e-mails, and reading articles for school on my day off. But, no, a couple hours worth of plans halted with the appearance of one dreadful screen.

It surprised me, as I thought about it, how, not upset, but, well, perturbed I quickly became when my access to the Internet was denied. Long summers in West Africa had, I thought, conditioned me to live with things like this. Finding that the Internet (or power for that matter) was down at the Internet cafe was really not a big deal after a few months overseas. And I even had undergone the 20 min walk in the 100 degree weather to get to there, and it was usually my once weekly trip that had been so suddenly canceled. We shrugged it off, and started the walk back, planning a stop at the fruit stand on the way. Now, how easily that ominous screen can throw off a days plan, school work, businesses, and your good mood while it's at it.

Well, today, my plans were changed, and, you know what? It was a good day! I caught up on some (no where near all mind you) reading for school, cleaned my room (which, believe it or not, is very relaxing for me once I finally get down to it), dug out some clothes/stuff I don't need anymore for charity, washed my dog, spent some awesome time with God! (which would have happened anyway, but I do believe it was a bit longer, seeing as I had nothing to get to after it), and had a very lovely lunch out on the porch.

Obviously, my Internet is back now, and I'm still in need of getting a few things done, but, with a slightly refreshed perspective. So, next time your Internet goes down, think about what God may be giving you a chance to do instead of cyber-spacing it up. Unless of course you have a paper due in 7 hours, then book it to campus, and try not to let your rage cause any speeding on the way ;-)

What's new?

What's new in 2009?

• The hardest semester of nursing school for me means: more time studying, more time reading in preparation to be able to understand what's said in class, more time in clinical (in hospitals now!), more driving to get to the hospitals downtown, new classmates in clinicals
  


• A new workout schedule! Tuesdays: kickboxing Wednesdays: washboard abs Thursdays: spinning Saturdays: recovering with sore muscles!
  
  

New sorority girls! My sorority is rushing again in a week, which means a whole new set of girls! I hope we're prepared, we're up to 60, halfway through our second year and last rush we ended up doubling our numbers!!

• New journeys for friends:

My new friends left wed. for Mozambique! Speak for Todd, Tia, and baby Rya as they begin their new life in Africa.

The Ms I worked with in Senegal are back in the states. Kate and Tim returned from their two year work in West Africa right before Christmas. They are now in North Carolina as Tim attends school and Kate works. Ask for readjustment and jobs for them both and that He would guide their paths for the future.

D & T, who went with me to Africa the first time, remain in Zimbabwe amongst political and economic difficulties. Ask for their health, safety, and work as they make advances among the troubled, disheartened, and often hungry people.

Two good friends of mine are in the process of asking about returning to Senegal for a semester, getting to work among the people I know and love. How great it would be for them to be able to continue work among my family and friends!! Ask for their decisions.

• New directions for Big Brother. He has graduated and is almost a certified paramedic (He'll take the final certification test, and I'm sure do amazing, in the next few weeks.) He'll be able soon to start working as a paramedic instead of an EMT (there's plenty of differences, but basically, paramedics can give drugs and EMTs can't) at his job. He's also taking some classes at the community college "just in case" as he's deciding if he wants to take advantage of the "paramedic to registered nurse program" or not. (not that he would really want to get off the streets to be a nurse; it may open more doors for his career in the future)

Back To The Real World

The lovely and relaxing winter break has come to it's inevitable end :-(

Wraping it up with a trip to the beach (yes, that's what we do here in 78 degree January!) and (my very first) pedicure with Momma (a Christmas gift)

it is back to early mornings, 3 hour classes, 7 hour clinicals, full work days, and tons of studying! Started back to work this week and will begin, what I hear is the hardest, semester of nursing school with pharmacology, pathophysiology, Care of the Adult 1, and Care of the family. I'll be doing clinicals at 3 different hospitals this semester working on general Med-Surg. floors, in labor and delivery, and in pediatrics. It promises to be a filled, stressful, busy, and fulfilling semester!

I'm just not super thrilled about being downtown, ready to go by 6:30 AM!!

;-)