nights nights nights

i'm working nights all weekend and really can't wait until tonight is over.

i don't mind nights normally, but i'm working with a couple of old girls who talk all night, move in slow motion, and shirk some of their responsibilities, which i end up picking up, and it can be a bit irritating...

usually when i work nights i come in for 7pm, head to the nursing office, get report, and then we all decide who is going to do what. one person normally pours the meds for all the pts, another one takes the nutrition cart around and the third person pulls down the beds and makes sure there are enough supplies on the cart.

then the round begins... 28 pts to transfer to bed, change their briefs and tuck them in... or restrain them.. some of the pts routinely try to climb out of bed and are a high risk for falls, so we belt them in so that doesn't happen.

sounds easy, but i work in geriatric psychiatry and nothing ever goes as planned. more times than not we have pt's screaming, some are aggressive and it's like a wrestling match trying to get them into bed.

the one old girl i work with a lot has good intentions but sometimes tries to take the "therapeutic approach" when the pt is aggressive, and tends to agitate them more. she attempts to reason with them and explain why they need to go to bed and holds their hands... which is fine if they can comprehend what she is saying.. but she's not very realistic sometimes. and she gets on my nerves because she never learns.... and she's slooooowwwwwwwww. LOL i'm a type A personality for sure. i like to get in, get everything organized, get all the pt's in and then move on to all the paperwork and other jobs we have to do... not take forever to get things done. i guess they call her "turtle" for a reason.

when a confused demented pt is agitated, their mind is racing and it's hard for them to grasp what you're saying. short directions tend to work best, but she drives me crazy when she's droning on and on....

"time to sleep" is what i normally say

"dear i think it's time we go to bed, aren't you tired? do you want to lay down? let's check your pants, here, crawl in.." blah blah blah is what she says...

sometimes i just say "enough!, let's get them in"

and then she speeds up a little. and by a little, i mean a little.

i could tolerate her more, if she was quick... or i had more sleep. LOL.

anyway, it's already time to hop in the shower and get ready for work. and i'm looking forward to being off for a couple of days. i get up at 4pm, and have an hour and a half to enjoy a coffee or two, take the dogs out for a run and get something to eat before getting ready.

ugh.

i really want to see this!

mission organization

so i'm finally done with my spring cleaning for now... the two rooms i focused on were the kitchen and living room since that is where i spend most of my time.

i woke up in a really great mood today... perhaps because i got the day off thanks to unused stat time and a willing part timer agreed to work my shift...

sweet!

the dogs are being super cute this morning too... and the weather is really nice.

it's a glass half full kind of day.

this is what spring cleaning looks like

i'll post after pictures if i ever actually finish.... ugh... why do i do this to myself???

i'm getting the spring cleaning urge right now, if only i had more than two days off and didn't have to get myself turned around from working nights back to days in such a short time.

i've been wanting to clean out my closets and get rid of a bunch of stuff i don't use. clothes being a major priority.. i'll probably donate them to the women's shelter downtown, and free up a bunch of room. i want to get rid of my old broken computer too and set up a sewing desk...

lots of ideas. i want to move my huge bookshelf but don't really know where to put it... and then there is gracies crate to contend with...

if only i could wiggle my nose and have it all done for me.

lugging stuff up and down three flights of stairs puts a ding in my motivation too... if only ross were here.... i could use his muscles.

anyway, off to clean out the fridge and take out the garbage.

baby steps!

so a lot is going on at the moment... the hospital i am working at has introduced lay offs. technically no one is being laid off, we're being reallocated to existing vacancies and some of us are being put into a temporary float pool until others retire in the next year or so...

at least that's what i'm hoping.. i still have my casual position at st. mary's to fall back on, i'm just hoping i get to keep my full time because the pay is great and i want to buy a house next year.

everything with ross is going great and once we buy a house next year, he'll be moving to kingston.. we talk about it often, and as long as he doesn't totally freaked out, that's the plan. LOL.

i'm teaching myself to cook.... well cook is a loose term.. i'm teaching myself to make things in a crock pot. and easy things to make in the oven. i've only made a couple of things so far, but haven't screwed up once so i'm not discouraged.

my sister got a full time job finally, so things are looking up for her.

the dogs have been really great lately, stella is always great but can be a bit overbearing when ppl approach her and sometimes they get scared because she wants to smell them and jumps up sometimes. gracie's housetraining is going well now that i've figured a way to barracade then in the kitchen and front hall when i'm at work.

i know i hardly update this thing anymore, it's just a lot of the same going on all the time, and not much to say!!