Recovery and Addiction

The good news is that I'm finally starting the recovery process and feeling a bit better. The bad news is that I am now quite addicted to Lipton's Cinnamon Apple Tea with honey. I've never been a big tea drinker prior to this cold, but now I might willingly subject myself to another one if it means unlimited access to this beverage. I know, I know. I'll get help. Just as soon as I finish what's currently in my mug.:o)

This weekend was an amazing time to relax and recover. After being canceled from work on Saturday, I spent the day rather lazily in my pajamas. I did get some homework done, but I actually spent some time curled up under the electric blankets of my bed reading a book for fun. (I'd almost forgotten what that's like...:o)

Sunday brought a wonderful church service and sermon from Rick Holland. During second service I attended an Evangelism class with Justin and Rebecca. I'm so excited about it! Can't wait to learn more. After church Becky and I went grocery shopping, which is always a treat. Amazing what we can find to chat about while comparing the price per ounce of various chicken products...

Today has been business as usual. Slept in a little. I haven't really been sleeping through the night since I got sick, so when I wake up in the morning and feel my sore throat and stuffy nose the thought of burrowing deeper in the covers is incredibly enticing. (Just have to make sure that this new habit doesn't continue tomorrow when I have to be out the door before 6 am.:o) One thing that was unusual was the rain and even hail, yes I said hail, that we had today. There is even snow up on the hills by my aunt and uncle's house. It's been raining for a few days, and although I realize that moisture falling from the sky is not at all unusual in certain parts of the world, it is quite extraordinary in the land of the perpetual drought. Well I'm off to make a plan of care for a patient I had last week. Make sense to you? Me either.:o) Happy Monday!

To the north was blue sky, clouds, power lines, and snow. Gotta love Southern CA.:o)

To the south was this. Naturally this was the direction I was headed...

Perfect day for a scarf!

Sick Day

sleeping in. hot tea with honey. fuzzy socks and slippers. electric blankets. kleenex. beginnings of a Rudolph nose. warm shower. comfy sweats. unmade bed all ready for a hasty retreat. thank you Lord for another unexpected day off to recover.

Go my favorite sports team!

So apparently today was the Super Bowl. Actually, surprisingly, I watched it. Well most of it. For the first time! Due (pretty much completely) to the fact that my aunt and uncle watched it, and I was home. Can't say I was rooting for a team. But (thanks again to my aunt and uncle) I do actually know what teams played. So, here is a pic to prove my enthusiasm.

This one's for you Justin.:o) (For the rest of you, you'll have to listen to comedian Brian Regan to fully appreciate this picture.)

The part I definitely understood was the amazingly delicious food my aunt and uncle whipped up.

After eating approximately twice our weight in food we each got comfortable and enjoyed the commercials...I mean the game.

My aunt is actually a pretty incredible recliner referee. She pretty much always made the right call the first time, even when the actual referees didn't.:o)

And I multi-tasked. Doesn't it put you at ease to know that your nurse may have studied her drug cards between commercials?;o)

Expect the Unexpected

Today was one of those days which goes completely contrary to plans, but ends up being completely awesome anyway. I woke this morning to the sound of my phone ringing at 4:30 am, which generally means that UCLA is either sending me to their hospital in Santa Monica or canceling me. (Generally I'm not awake enough to care which it is.:o) In this particular case , they were calling to tell me that they were overstaffed and not to come in. Since this also meant that I got a few more hours of sleep, I shut off my phone, rolled over, and slept for another couple of hours! Hooray!

When I did wake up I stumbled to the bathroom and proceeded to break the handle on my toilet while attempting to flush it. Enter my uncle. He comes innocently strolling down the hallway in his pj's and bathrobe and I step out in front of him. "Uncle Bill?" He looks suspicious. "Yes?" "I think I broke the toilet." He chuckles and heads into my bathroom, takes the toilet lid off, and confirms my assessment. "Looks like we'll need a parts run," he says. I sigh. It seems like I'm always making work for him. A little while later he has changed into his Saturday work clothes, taken apart the toilet, noticed the handles in my shower are turning a little funky, noticed my shower isn't draining properly while messing with the handles, put something down my drain to fix it, fixed the handles, and figured out a way to flush my toilet temporarily until he gets parts. He comes out of my bathroom, and lets me know everything that's now fixed. "You know Emily, it makes it a lot easier to fix things if I know they're broken." I smile sheepishly (we've had this talk before) and remark, "I did tell you about breaking the toilet." He smiles. "You're right. You get credit for that." As he heads to the garage to work on all of the things he had actually expected to do today, he teases over his shoulder, "Well now you'll have something to blog about." To which I replied by running out with my camera and snapping a picture of him. For my blog...:o)

(I have been blessed with the greatest uncle ever!)

In spite of the rough start to the morning, the day did become a bit more productive. As I sat down to breakfast I began thinking about all of the homework I should be working on, and then stopped myself. These were twelve extra hours I hadn't planned on having. (Ok...so I slept in a bit and didn't quite have the full twelve hours anymore...but you get the point.:o) I decided to use the day for all of the things I've put on my mental long-term list of things to get to when I have some free time. Ha! (On a side note, it turns out my lack of "life" and slight obsession with kidneys and nephrons has paid off. I just found out that I got an A on my nursing test Thursday. My first A in a Professor Washington class in two quarters!!!) Anyway, today I vacuumed, detailed, and washed my filthy car, organized some files and drawers that haven't been looked at in ages, trimmed my nails, worked on my blog, cleaned my bathroom, vacuumed, organized some school paperwork, typed out some long overdue e-mails, balanced my budget, and even sat down to watch some TV with my aunt and uncle. It certainly wasn't what you'll find written on my calendar for today, but it ended up being exactly what I needed. (Further proof that the God of the universe knows my needs better than I do, and knew that I needed some unexpected time off more than I needed a day of work. Thank you Lord for teaching me flexibility and for reminding me to expect the unexpected.)

Monday, Monday

woke up. went running. ate breakfast. studied for ten hours. ate dinner. more studying. still smiling.:o) school is hard. God is good.

"How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you." -Psalm 31:19

Heart Donor

At UCLA it is not uncommon for transplants to be performed. I think you could almost say it is routine for organs to be transferred from donor to recipient. But today, after 12 hours on the pediatric oncology unit, I became somewhat of a donor. Because tonight, at 7:15 p.m., I left the floor and left a little bit of my heart behind.

My patients and their families were amazing. Some of them have been patients for months. Some have been in and out of UCLA their entire lives. Today I became a part of their hospital memory. I played soccer in the hallway, figured out a way to create a train with an IV pole, a little red wagon, and a bed sheet, took vital signs, ate a chicken fajita made by a grandmother in a hospital room (on a George Foreman grill!), made beds, played cars, watched medical personnel sprint down the hallway in response to a code blue, took strawberry ice cream to a little boy who had come back from radiology and couldn't think of anything in the whole world that sounded better, sent specimens to the lab, and prayed for a family who lost their precious little girl.

Nursing is an emotional roller coaster unlike anything else I've ever experienced in my life. There are triumphs and tears, and everything in between. By the grace of God I know without a shadow of a doubt that I can trust Him for everything that happened today. I can trust that His sovereignty extends to the lives of my patients and their families, and that that little girl is safe with Him in a place where "code blues" don't exist and morphine isn't needed for pain. And because I can trust Him, I am headed for bed so that I can (Lord-willing) get up in the morning and do it all over again. There will likely be tears and hopefully some triumphs, but most importantly there will be prayer. Lots and lots of prayer.

Thank You Lord...