Ted BSN

Good Morning! Joe - I can appreciate being startled with an unexpected work-load. But I've learned that sometimes it pays to take a few deep breaths, and get into a "wait and see" mode to see how things actually pan out, like what you're doing. In the meanwhile, enjoy dinner with J. Well. . . I had a delightful dinner with Lil Nel and her friends, yesterday!! It's always nice meeting friends from allnurses, face to face! They're both very interesting people! They've known each other for a long time. It's nice to see a long-lasting friendship that they seem to have with each other. We ate dinner at a lovely Indian restaurant. I'm not as familiar with the Indian cuisine. To be honest, I wasn't sure how I'd like the food. But, it was DELICIOUS! And, it was a vegetarian meal, too!! (I do enjoy vegetarian meals. I enjoy vegan meals, too! They go really well with meat!! YUM!! L O L! ) (Although, I didn't have any meat last night.) I found out that her friend and his wife live in the same county where I live. So, hopefully we can all get together again in the not-too-distant future. Lil Nel and her friends are now on their way to Nantucket. She says "Hello" to everyone! Work Saturday and Sunday nights were busy nights. I played the role of "Mr. Shift Director". Basically, that means I was everyone's bytch, helping out wherever help was needed. L O L! (Taking people to CT Scan, starting IVs, drawing blood, answering call-bells, changing soiled adult briefs and wet linen, etc., etc., etc.) But, what it nice about this "role" is that I don't have to do a ton of charting!!! They were busy nights, but they were good nights. I do like being a Shift Director. Today is day (night) two off from work. The weather is supposed to be nice. I'll probably mow the lower portion of our property today. Haven't mowed the section of our property in weeks! The grass. It grows high!! EEK!! Don't have any other plans for the day. Amy is off from work today, too. Maybe we can do something nice and out-doorsey together (in addition to the yard work). Tomorrow is day (night) three off from work. I'm meeting Dad's wife for lunch tomorrow. It'll be the first time we've gotten together since Dad's funeral. It seems that she needed some space. For a while, she was not answering texts or phone calls. Admittedly, that was very frustrating. Throughout the past few months, I was attempting to contact her to say "hello" as well as to seek information with regards to the "where and when" of the burial service for Dad's ashes. Eventually, she contacted me. Since then, she seems willing to correspond. It'll be nice having lunch with her, tomorrow. Nothing much else going on. Hope all is well with everyone! Peace! Ted

Good Afternoon! Giving a warm but quick hello to you all. . . Just finished lunch after First Sleep. Getting ready for Second Sleep before going to work. Last night, work was a nice-busy. Because there were no patients in our teeny-tiny ICU, I worked the Med/Surg floor. I took an admission which brought the med/surg census up to a whopping THREE patients. L O L! This patient was a delightful 80+ year old gentleman. He was admitted as "Observation" for aspiration. He was fine, and safely slept throughout most of the night. During the admission interview, he shared that he is an artist. So, being the art-lover that I am, I "Googled" this person. Wow! Not only is he an artist, he's a talented one at that! He creates beautiful modern-looking artwork! Gosh, I hope that I'm that productive and that creative during my "retirement" years. (If I ever retire!) Well. . . Gotta catch me more ZZZZZs. Cheers! Ted

Tweety - Happily, I was On Call, last night! Did not get called in, either! (Woot, woot!) It is sad to read about the firings going on in your hospital. Must be crazy-unnerving! Hopefully those fired were the more "bad apples". Hopefully the firings that took place will lead to better leadership and choice-making for your hospital, its employees, and ultimately for the people in your community that it serves. Our hospital's hierarchy has been there as long as I've been there, if not longer . . . going on 20 years. With that has come great stability, which is nice. However, our "DON" (not her actual title, but I forget her title), is going into to her late 60s, and has hinted at retiring. THAT would be significant, and not necessarily for the better. Joe - Enjoy your dinner with J. Should be a nice time to unwind and relax. Nice to read that your cat is doing better. It was nice being On Call, last night. It gave me a total of 8 nights off from work! Although, being On Call could mean that I get Called In, which can be unnerving sometimes because of that anticipation of getting that phone call. Still working the next three nights in a row, which, mentally, seems more "reasonable". Anyway, I got some good rest last night. Today?? Well. . . the usual "sleep, eat, work" thing. I might spend some time outside tidying up our yard after all of the rainfall we've been getting. Specifically, our newly worked-on driveway needs some touching up from some slight rock & dirt erosion from the rainfall. The erosion is minimal. But with each rainfall comes more erosion. Nothing much else to share. . . Hope all have a pleasant day, today! Ted

Good Morning! Tweety - Nothing like those "end of shift" situations that require immediate attention like complaints of chest pain, or vomiting, or falling out of bed (or chair), or a new run of V-tach, or a sudden unexpected drop of blood pressure, etc., etc., etc. (Ugh!) It seems that the old saying is true: "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen at the end of the shift!" (Ugh!) Still, it's good to read that your 1st of 5 work-days went well. Hopefully you'll get call today - or not get call today - whichever works best fo you. L O L! Joe - Good to read that the new employee that you helped train seems promising. We've had the rare occasion when a new ICU Nurse (and not necessarily a new RN), just wasn't working out for the job. It's sad for them, actually, and frustrating for our teeny-tiny ICU. Because we are small, and with very limited resources, our ICU team needs to be fairly high-functioning. Sounds nice that you and J are going to see a play Sunday. Curious. What play are you going to see? Recently woke up. Still in a sleepy-daze. . . Need First Coffee. . . Going to work tonight for the 1st of 4 nights in a row. With the exception of doing 4 nights in a row, I'm ready to work. Having 7 nights off was a rare luxury! I wasn't always productive during those 7 nights off, but that time off was nice and restful (with the exception of mowing the other day). Hopefully tonight will be relatively "Q". In the meanwhile, it'll be the usual "Sleep, Eat, Work" thing for me until Monday. (Sunday, I'll be my usual whiny self because of BOTH church and work that day. I'm even ready for that, too! Been doing those Sundays for as long as I've been nursing!) Hope all have a nice day today! Ted

nursej22 - Taking off the last adhesive dressing must of smart! OUCH! (Couldn't there have been a kinder way to take off the dressing??) Seems like a nice, relaxing thing to do. . . walking along the beach with your grandsons. It's been raining outside. No mowing today. So, what does one do when it rains outside?? Nothing really constructive, of course! L O L! (Still haven't gone grocery shopping. It's RAINING outside! - Whine!! ) BUT! I did spend some time farting around, editing video-footage, that only serves to entertain! (I need a break from editing the dance video.) Here's the completed video for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

BCgradnurse - L O L! Awwww! The snow (eventually) melts away, and our house has a fireplace to help keep you warm and toasty during the winter months!! Will say "hello" to Lil Nel for you. NurseBlaq - Good to see you. Wishing you good vibes and well health as you continue on with your studies.

BCgradnurse - Gosh! Real estate in your are of MA must be crazy expensive. I know that the cost for apartment rentals in Boston have sky-rocketed over the past 35+ years! It's good that the value of your home has increased. So, if/when you sell your home, there's a lovely one just over the MA border in NYS which you can purchase, and STILL have $$$ left over for another home somewhere. L O L! (Actually, Berkshire County in MA, and Columbia County in NY have a lot of 2nd home buyers from the cities of Boston and NYC.) By the way. . . I have plans to meet another Allnurses member in a few days from now!!! Lil Nel will be flying into Albany this Monday to meet with some friends. Apparently, they'll be making their way together for a vacation in Nantucket, MA. In the meanwhile, I'll be meeting Lil Nel and her friend(s) in Albany, NY, this Monday. We all will be having a dinner together! I do enjoy meeting people from Allnurses! I've met quite a few throughout the years!

Good Morning - Tweety - Working FIVE 12-hour shifts in a row?!?!? Are you crazy?!?!? I get all whiney just thinking about it. Hope those work-days are kind to you! As for the real-estate market in my area. . . believe it or not, it's slowly getting better. Still, I don't know if we'll ever recup the loss of our home's value, though. If/when we sell our home, we'll be taking a financial loss, for sure. However, I can say that this home of 14+ years has given us a whole lot of memories, most of them are treasured ones. It was - IS - a "Home" in every sense of the word. I'd be happy is it were never sold. Amy? She's much less sentimental over our home than I am. Joe - Good to read that your first work review went well. I'm sure that that was reaffirming. Also, good to read that things went well with J's CA trip. Hope the two of you can get together soon. Recently woke up. Still haven't had First Coffee yet. I was up a good portion of the night working on the dance video. Again. Went back to bed around 3:00 AM this morning. Got a few good hours sleep. Today?? It's my last day/night off work. This 7-day stretch of nights off from work has been really, really nice. I actually feel ready to return to work Thursday night. (I'll be doing four 12-hour shifts in a row, starting Thursday. Ugh!) Not sure what I'm going to be doing today, though. Well, I KNOW I'll be doing some grocery shopping. Amy JUST told me that she made out a list of things to buy! L O L! It's supposed to be really hot, humid with thunder storms. So, mowing the bottom part of our property doesn't seem to be a choice, today. (I'm doing the Happy Dance!) Will probably continue on with the video-editing. As mentioned a few dozens times before here, this video-editing thing is a slow process. Well. . . Gonna get me First Coffee. Hope all have a nice day today! Ted

herring_RN - You have a wonderful husband. Being married for 53 years says a lot!! (I'm impressed!!) Your NP is a "looker" though! L O L! Here's the blushing embarrassed emoji: L O L! (Obviously, I have a bit too much extra time on my hands! L O L! ) BCgradnurse - *IF* we sold our home, we'd rent either a small home or condo. Amy's been doing some research. If we sold our home now, we could rent a similarly sized home on some acreage for around $1600.00/month. That's about a thousand dollars LESS than our current mortgage!!!

L O L!! Well, herring_RN?? DO YOU have a crush on your NP?!? Enquiring minds want to know!!! (He does look stunning!) Recently finished mowing, and just took a long, hot shower. Lawn looks good. Muscles ache. Ugh!

Tweety - You ate some steak?!? It reminds me of my Boston-living days, living with a room-mate who was a vegetarian. For MONTHS he'd prepare us vegetarian meals. (He was a good cook! His vegetarian meals were delicious!!) Then on a really rare occasion, BANG! There'd be a medium-rare steak on the table!! L O L! (Gosh, I miss those Boston days. Good times. Good memories!) You're a good friend, spending time with your best buddy. Seems like you have a busy day planned for yourself. Hopefully you'll make it to the beach today?!?!? Joe - Good to read that work is going well with you, despite the changes. Also, good to read that your cat seems to be doing better. Currently drinking Second Coffee! The weather is somewhat cool outside, now. I'm going to let the sun dry up some of the morning dew that's on the grass, then I'll probably mow. Gosh, I really don't want to mow. (Blech!) Oh well. The lawn looks good afterwards. And. . . it IS freakin' good exercise! (Whine!)

Good Morning! It's 5:10 AM (EST) in this part of the world. Recently woke up. Currently hearing the sound of coffee percolating. It's such a beautiful sound! Responding to yesterday's "Good Morning" thread. . . BCgradnurse - Good to read that you had a nice 4 days off. Hope these 5 days of work are kind to you. Sorry to read about your 16 year old cat, though! (((Hugs))) It is profoundly sad losing a beloved pet. They are family members, for sure. nursej22 - Nice that you have the week off from work! (Today, I am Day 6 of seven nights off from work. It's rare that my work schedule turns out this way. I ain't complaining!) Hope all goes well with your husband at the trade show. Hope all is OK with your pacemaker! Cool, that you're volunteering in the medical tent for the JDFR bicycle event. Curious. What does "JDFR" stand for? This event sounds significant . . . 100 miles!! Hope your son does well! herring_RN - Curious. Do you have an air conditioned room for those really hot days?? I guess I'm getting soft. I can't imagine life without one. (It's been quite hot and humid around this part of the world, these past few days.) Regarding bird feeders. We decided NOT to put those bird feeders out on our lawn after hearing that they attract bears! Yep! We have bear sightings around here. We've had them come up on our back porch in past years! (Yikes!!) Hope you and your loving husband a comfortable during these hot days. NSIME - Those really hot and humid days are NOT fun! It doesn't seem pleasant at all with Nannie having a cold. I hope that the "Nannie Situation" gets settled, for your and for her sakes. Nice to read that you've lost some pounds. It's a good feeling, for sure! (I'm down about 15 pounds after working through a recent "exercise & healthy-eating" regime. I'm still eating healthily. Need to work on maintaining the exercise, though.) As for socializing?? It's important. Gotta make the time and effort for such things. Amy and I are homebodies, but mostly because of our weird work-schedules. It's just nice to go out, do something different, and be around good people. It does take effort, though, at least for us. dianah - Always good to read about your time at the bluegrass festivals! Being with other musicians, hearing great & fun music, and doing LOTS of jamming! Very cool!! Congratulations on your friend winning the raffle (after purchasing only ONE ticket) and winning that guitar! That must have been exciting for him! I've probably said this before to you, but we have a yearly Blue-grass festival around our neck of the woods! If interested, I send you some info regarding the when's and where's. (To be honest, I've never gone to it. Amy has, though. She says that it's a lot of fun!!) (However, I've taken care of people from that blue grass festival, in our happy, teeny-tiny hospital's ER, who needed medical attention. Our hospital has specific plans for that blue-grass festival in dealing with possible large-volume "issues"!) ____________ Well. . . It is now 5:51 AM (EST). The coffee is now fully brewed. It beckons! Nothing much planned for today. . . except mowing. . . if it ain't too hot & humid outside. The grass. It grows! If it is hot & humid outside (recently, with associated thunder storms), Amy and I will happily hang indoors and relax. We're seriously thinking about putting our house back on the market, again. The Realtor that we use says that it is the "seller's market". I doubt very much that we'll get what we paid for it, 14+ years ago. According to recent sales of houses in our area, a home with property like ours goes for around $275,000 dollars! If that is the case, we'll stand to LOSE close to $90,000 dollars from what we paid for this home (14+ years ago). OUCH!! But, we're focused on getting out of debt as we focus on retiring - sooner than later. Selling our home will help us, greatly, with these important plans and goals. Still, I do love our home. Lots of memories. And, it is a lovely home. It's coffee time! Peace! Ted

Thank you, siri!!

Good Morning - Well, it looks like you (Joe) and Tweety have started today's Good Morning thread at the same time. Again! L O L! Hopefully a moderator/administrator can combine the two threads together. Again. Joe - Hope your cat it OK. Maybe the cat recently jumped down from a high place, injuring itself?? It's sad to see them limp along, though. Hope the change at work isn't too drastic. Tweety - Hope all is well. . . Been up for a while doing the video-editing thing. I'm not feeling inspired to write a new composition. There are ideas rattling around in my head, but nothing worth spending lots of time and energy developing at this point. Had a really nice day, yesterday. Our per diem Pastor gave a really nice sermon during the church service. I wish he'd stay full-time, but he's semi-retired. We're lucky to have him come to our church, even if it's just every-now-and-then. Had a really nice time meeting up with friends and watching the musical-comedy with Amy in the cast. Although Amy doesn't necessarily have one of the "lead roles", she is featured a whole lot on stage. The musical-comedy, itself, was quite funny. It was definitely for "Mature Audiences Only", though, with the "F-bombs" that were thrown in as scripted. After the show, we all went out for dinner together. It was really nice visiting with friends. The dinner was delicious, too! Amy and I don't socialize much, unfortunately. We must do this socializing-thing more often. Today?? There are no real plans. If the weather is nice, Amy and I might go out and do something outdoorsy-like. If it's going to be another hot, humid and rainy day (which is what it's supposed to be), we'll stay indoors and relax together. I'll probably do more video-editing. Who knows?? Maybe I'll bang out a new melody??? L O L! Just finished drinking First Coffee. Think I'll get another cup and do more video-editing. Hope all have a pleasant day today! Ted

Good Morning! Tweety. . . Didn't I just "see" you on Facebook?!? L O L! Thanks for starting today's "Good Morning" thread. Good to read that you're catching up on much-deserved sleep. Hope today is a relaxing day for you, too. Hi Joe! You just sent your post moments before I hit my "send" button! L O L! Good to read that you had a productive day, yesterday. Looking forward to seeing photos of your cross-stitching project once completed. (Hopefully we can figure out how to share those photos here on AN!) Recently woke up. JUST finished drinking First Coffee. Gotta get ready for church soon. I want to get there early, today, to set up an additional lavalier microphone that I'm donating to the church. I was told that people are having difficulties hearing the Pastor(s). There are already two microphones that are used, one on the alter and one on the lectern. This 3rd lavalier microphone will be used solely for the Pastor (or person presiding over the church service). After church, I'm coming home and rest before going to see the musical that Amy is in. This 2:00 PM show is the last performance of this musical-comedy. Looking forward to seeing Amy perform on stage. She's really talented! Did additional editing to the dance video. I'm working on the "Camera 2" video files. "Camera 2" was used for close-ups. Gotta say that the "footage" looks really great! It's just that doing the simple color-corrections that needs to be done is very time-consuming. I'm only a hobbyist with this video-recording/video-editing thing. I'm sure that someone who does this stuff for a living is 10 times as fast as I am! L O L! I only do a few dance scenes at a time before I need to give my eyes (and back) a rest. Tonight, I think I'll take a break from video-editing and focus on composing another instrumental piece. THAT whole composing/sequencing process also takes a whole lot of time and creative thought. My goal was to do one composition a month. So far, I've done just three this year. These compositions are my Holiday Present to family and friends. I'll burn several dozen CDs to give as gifts. Well. . . got to get going to start the day! Cheers! Ted