What A Week This Has Been!

Work has been crazy, more patients then we have beds for, and they still keep booking patients. Why can't we be like a hotel? "I'm sorry Mr Jones but that unit is full for the night, we have a room available on XYZ floor, may I book that room for you?" Oh well some things just never change.

Monday I had to work, man were we busy. Before I knew it, the clock said it was 1am and I had yet to do any paper work. Oh well it got done finally.

Tuesday morning, finally I have finished up what I need to do at work, ran to the Pharmacy to pick up some meds for my Mom and go out to her place. Got her meds all set up for the week and parked on the couch to await the visit from Evelyn the woman who was to come out and interview my Mom for her physical assessment portion for Arizona Long Term Assistance. Yes you got it I have had to ask the state to help care for my 91 year old mother who has now out lived her money. What a sad state of affairs it is when one of your parents gets to this point. Hopefully if this ever happens to you, you find that your parents were organized and have their affairs in order. Lucky for me, my Mom is VERY organized. I'm not sure how that organized gene didn't get passed on to me, but some how it skipped me :o( Well the interview went well and I was informed the next day that my Mom is physically qualified, now I await the states judgement on her financial affairs. I know there is some paper work to clean up, not much, but I think I can handle this. Baby steps right Flylady.....baby steps!

Wednesday was pretty uneventful, just another day of work, no empty beds, but somehow I managed to move a few more patients and squeeze in a few more patients. Did anyone say thank you???

Thursday morning homeward bound for a good days sleep.....NOT!!! Hubby is short of breath and wheezing to beat the band. Gave him a double aerosol treatment and went to bed. Woke up about 4:30 to find hubby still short of breath, wheezing like crazy and had a rattle in his chest you could hear two rooms away. Ok time to call the Dr. only to be told by the on call Dr that he needed to go to the ER (dugh like I hadn't already figured that out!) So I tell DH (dear hubby) we are going to the ER, he says ok, but I need to feed the dogs...so he goes out to feed the dogs, I start getting ready for work (I already called and there is no one that can work for me as we are already short staffed) Ok I'm ready for work, gonna drop DH off in the ER and go to work....I know they are going to admit him, the guy can't breath. Ok where is he? No really now he is changing his clothes, like the ER staff are gonna look at your clothes (you do have on clean undies right? And socks with no holes?) Ok now get in the car, no your not going to drive yourself to the ER...you can't breath!!! Ok, ok go ahead and drive yourself (how else are you going to get home?) Your nuts!!! Your not coming home tonight!! Ok so fast forward and tada he is admitted with pneumonia. Pulse ox of 72 when he hits the ER, for you nonmedical folks his pulse ox should me in the 90's.....70's is NOT condusive to good breathing!

Ok it's been 48 hrs and the phone rings for like the 6th time today....."Hi honey guess what I'm coming home, can you bring me my wallet?" So we get him checked out of the hospital, all in all it went pretty smoothly. I should have known trouble was ahead. I can't use the outpatient pharmacy because it is Saturday and they are already closed. So off to Walgreens to get his prescriptions filled. I give them my insurance card and they ask for a different card...ahhh this is the only one I have. No this isn't it, oh well we will call. Thanks good.....but wait.......what do you mean I don't have any insurance and it was stopped in 2004??? I have it taken out of my check every week.....crap its Saturday night and I don't have the get this $396.14 it is going to cost to pay cash for his prescriptions (yes you read that correctly $396.14!!!!) I leave the pharmacy, come home and start thinking who can I call that would know what to do......ahhhhh ya my office mate, she knows how to get around stuff like this. So I call her and she tells me ohhhhh yea I have another card for my prescription stuff, let me look at it. She gives me a number to call and I get a hold of a woman who looks up the information and tells me oh yes your covered, give me the number for Walgreens and I will call them with the info, so I give her the number of the closest Walgreens to our house, get in the car and go up to the pharmacy, only to find out they are no longer a 24 hour pharmacy................. so back to the first Walgreens I go. Luckily for me I brought the long distance number with me, just in case I needed it. Well another 55 minute wait and Yahoo I have his meds, along with a $101. 32 bill. Yikes no wonder people have to choose between food and meds at these prices.....remind me to tell my broker to buy stocks in pharmaceuticals. Dang I think after all that I need a rest.

Ok I have Sunday off.......lets see what surprise awaits me tomorrow.

The End Of Christmas

Ahhhh finally Christmas is once again a page in the history book. I for one am glad that it is over with, now don't get me wrong I love the Christmas season. I enjoy going to church on Christmas Eve and celebrating the reason for the season. What I don't like is the the never ending conversation that goes on in our house for several weeks before Christmas, it goes something like this........
hubby: " I don't know what to get you for Christmas."
me: "there really isn't anything that I need or want"
hubby: "but I have to get you something or I will NEVER hear the end of it" (No dear that is not true, you failed to get the point that buying me a file cabinet for Christmas was NOT my idea!)
me: "Well you could give me money and I could buy my own" (hehehe I'm really giving him an easy way out here)
hubby: No that's not really a gift (dang he just blew it again LOL)
me: "well please do NOT buy me perfume that I don't like, clothes (his taste in women's clothes sucks)

Now in years past he has asked my girl friends for suggestions or a female relative for her advice, but apparently this year he decided to go it alone.........BIG MISTAKE, HUGE!!!

About three days before Christmas, my watch stopped working, I figured it needed a new battery and since I was working every night I asked hubby to take it to the store and get a new battery in it......he comes home and informs me that it is the watch and not the battery that has bitten the dust. Now we are talking an inexpensive watch here, not a gold Rolex, heck we are not even talking Timex LOL. Don't you think this would be a huge clue to buy me a new watch for Christmas?

My paper shredder also bit the dust, so I have been hand shredding the mail and stuff, again don't you think this would be a clue to buy me a paper shredder??? I mean come on what's the difference between buying me a file cabinet and a paper shredder?

Ok, It's Christmas morning and there are no gifts under the tree for me, I figured ok, he finally took me at my word. Nope here he comes with this little bag with four things in it, one is a bottle of perfume that I actually like, (lol I know he snitched my old bottle to take to the store so he got the right thing LOL), a gift certificate where I get my hair done (ok this is workable), then I open a jewlery box and there is a silver bracelet YUCK!! Ok, first off this bracelet is the size that only a Barbie doll can wear, which I am not and second of all I don't wear silver.) Ok now I open the second box and there is a silver necklace, big, gaudy and you really want me to wear this?? Ok so he has hit 2 out of 4, not to bad for him. I tell him thank you, but I really don't wear silver and the bracelet is too small, he hands me the receipt and tells me to take it back. (notice that he has learned to save the receipts from years of experience LOL)

So now you know why I really don't like the gift giving part of Christmas....cause now I have to go buy myself a new watch and a new paper shredder and take back what I did get cause no sense in keeping something I won't wear.

Hope your Christmas went well!

December 23

Wow there really is a Santa LOL. I got off early, was able to leave work at 0430. Now for a nurse to get of early is really rare, but for a supervisor to get off early happens about as often as snow falls in Hawaii. I got to come home and get to bed while it was still dark outside, what a treat. Got up and did a few things, went grocery shopping, so I can cross that chore off my to do list. Then tonight we had Christmas with the grandkids.

Our grandson who just turned 6 is a great kid, respectful and full of energy. Kid knows his way around a computer and a video game better then most adults. So for Christmas we decided to buy him a bike, yes a manual get out in the fresh air and do some physical exercise BIKE. This decision was made like 6 days before Christmas, I was like you want us to buy a bike 6 days before Christmas, are you nuts?? In case you don't know this, I hate malls and I hate crowds even more. So hellooooo computer. Not much you can't find on the web. So with the help of a friend (thank you Chris) we spent one whole evening looking at bikes on line and trying to find just the right bike. Five days before Christmas I went to Target to look at what they had, ahhh you have to be kidding me a hundred bucks for a bike for a 6 year old.........I don't think so! Four days before Christmas I make a stop at Walmart on my way home from work and there sitting in the aisle is the perfect bike, a black and gold sharp little 18 inch Razor Cobra bike complete with training wheels, hand breaks and all put together. Life is sweet!

Now the bike has been sitting in our dining room since I brought it home. Tonight we loaded it back up in my Rav4 and headed off to the kids house. Now you can't really wrap a bike so I decided to make it a game, a treasure hunt with the prize being the bike.

The first clue was to look in the place where you put your dirty clothes and they come out clean. On the washer was another clue to look on the box that keeps your food cold, on the refrig. was a clue that lead him to look under his bed. That clue told him to go and look under the tree, and there was his shiny new bike.

While the bike was a big hit and he had to ride it in the house up and down the hall a couple of times, I think he really like the treasure hunt the best. Leave it to a kid to look at the toy and end up playing with the box LOL. Then he wanted to be the one to hide a "treasure" and Grandma go do the searching.......I'm still not sure how my stuffed snowman prize made it into the light fixture on the overhead kitchen light, but it was a lot of fun. Grandpas treasure was a piece of chocolate left in front of the gingerbread house.

We had a wonderful evening and a lot of fun, I know this will be a Christmas that we will never forget! Now I wonder what surprises are waiting to be found in the next two days. I hope you find a treasure under your tree. But remember that Christmas is not all about presents, wrapping paper and how much time you spent finding the perfect Chrsitmas gift. It's going to church and celebrating the birth of an infant that would change the world. I wish you peace and happiness and time spent with family and friends this Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas tree

Last weekend was a nice long 4 day weekend off for me, the last block of days I would have off before Christmas. Putting up the Christmas tree was at the top of the to do list. Saturday I spent all day cleaning, got a lot of things done that I had let go. Sunday my 93 year old mother-in-law comes into town, so spend some time with us. My husband took her to church, then we went out to lunch, then she wanted to go visit my Mom and then we had to drive her to Marana which is like 45 miles from where we were. By the time we got home I was exhausted!

The last thing I felt like doing was putting up the tree. My dear hubby said "oh lets get this over with, we'll have it done in a couple of hours and then you won't have to worry about it." So off to the storage shed we go. We own two Christmas trees, one is 7 feet tall and the other is 3 1/2 feet tall. I asked him which tree we should put up, and his answer was what ever you think is fine with me. Ok so 31/2 feet it is. We haul the boxes with all the decorations in. I open the box with the tree in it and low and behold there is the tree with the lights still on it and the decorations........SCORE!!!! Now this is gonna be a piece of cake, I set the tree on the coffee table, put the tree skirt around the base of the tree, put on a few ornaments that fell off and WAALAAA. Our tree is decorated with white pearl lights, maroon velvet
ribbons with gold wire edges and clear plastic icicles with fine glitter on them. One of the best trees we have had in some time. Ahhhh now to cross that chore off my list. It's not perfect, but hey its a Christmas tree and its up.

Hope your shopping is done, your tree is up and decorated and your ready for Christmas.
Until next time........

Christmas Lights

Why is it that when you go to put up the Christmas lights that worked great when you packed them away last year, but now only half the string lights up? Whats up with that? Well this year as usual we brought the lights in to test them before we put them up (smart thinking right?)
Half of each strand worked, the other half didn't light up well I don't know about you, but trying to find out the problem is just not worth the effort, so in the garbage they went. Off to the store to buy more lights. I bought 4 boxes of icicle lights, ran home and got the ladder out and set up, opened the first box only to discover that all the lights are BLUE ok, not exactly what I wanted, but hey their just lights right? So we proceed to put up the lights, every thing looks great!

Ok now fast forward 24 hrs, I go out to turn on the lights and nothing, nada black as black can be. So for four nights we have had Christmas lights up that don't work. Today we decide to try and figure out the problem. I think we put too many strings together end to end (I'm a genius right?) So out comes the ladder again and we start taking the lights down, I figure if we disconnect the lights at the beginning of the forth set it should work out, we can plug the last half of the lights in a different outlet and all should be well.........WRONG!!! We finally end up taking down three sets and it ended up being a loose wire in the first set, so lucky for us that I had purchased an extra set. Now we have our outside lights up and even though they are not the color I wanted, they are working LOL. And as my dear hubby says "hey their just Christmas lights!"

Ok now lets just hope that putting up the Christmas tree goes a little better than the outside light project.

Things that make me mad

Ok now I have been known to have a short fuse, I have a tendency to get mad, but I say what I have to say and for the most part that's it. However there are some things in life that really tick me off.....like today. I call a company that provided home physical therapy for my husband after he had his knee replaced. The reason for the call is that I have received a bill that is stamped at the top "Notice of Collection", now I pay my bills on time and have never received a bill from this company so for them to stamp it "Notice of Collection" has me a bit upset. I call the number listed on the statement and what do I hear "If you wish to hear this information in English, please press 1" now I am in the United States and I am calling a number that is in the United States, why do I need to press 1? The official language of this country is ENGLISH you idiots, if you want to hear this message in another language, then you should have to press 1! Ok that's another thing that makes me mad is these stupid auto answering machines that companies have. (ok that's info for another blog)

Ok so I get the person on the phone that I need to speak to after pressing about 5 different numbers and ask why I have received this bill stamped "Notice of Collection", she says oh that's not for you, that's for the benefit of your insurance company WTH?? If you are trying to direct something to the insurance then why don't you mail it to their address and not send it to me? Well this person on the other end of the line is getting the hint that I am upset about receiving this and so she starts getting all uppity with me. So I proceed to tell her what I think of the services that we received while my husband was under their care. She then tells me that I should write a letter and put it in the envelope along with my payment. Now you and I both know what file that letter is going to go in..........yup you got it that little circular file under some clerks desk.

Oh well at least I had my say and maybe if enough people complain they will stop this stupid practise. Ok I am stepping off my soap box now and yes I do feel a bit better.

A day out shopping with the peacock

Ok let me tell you alittle about my friend Matt. First off Matt is short about 5'4 or so, wears his hair really short and is openly gay. Now Matt happens to not only be a friend, but is also one of the PCT's where I work. One morning we decide to go shopping after we get off. We have put in a 12 hr shift and got off at 7:30 in the morning. Ok we goof around for a bit and Matt says he needs to go to the bank to get a new ATM card, he left his in his car and it kind of melted (we live in the desert where it gets over 100 in the summer and a locked car can get MUCH hotter).

We get his bank card taken care of and head to the mall, which is not open yet, but we find a coffee shop thats open and kill another 20 minutes or so. Matt is very flamboyant, both in his actions and dress. At work he is known for wearing the brightest scrubs they make, like the flourscent orange one he wears that is the color of the jailhouse jumpsuits, or the Lime green one that he wears. Now Matts purpose for wanting to go to the mall is to buy croc shoes that match all his uniforms. I'm just going along for the ride. We get to the Croc place and Matt tries on and buys like five pairs of shoes, then we head to the department store, where Matt goes to the mens calogne counter. Matt had gotten a gay mens magazine in the mail and it had one of those little smell this new cologne pieces in it so he wants to buy this cologne.

saleslady: "may I help you sir?'

Matt: "yes you do carry Boss Cologne?"

Saleslady: "yes we do."

Matt: "Can I smell the boss please?"

At this point being the tired ass, boss that I am I stick out my right arm and say "Oh if you must" Now Matt is busting a gut laughing, I'm laughing myself and the sales clerk is standing there totally straight faced on getting the joke. Well at this point I have to walk away.

Pan forward a few minutes later and we are again in the shoe department of the same department store and Matt is trying on yes you guessed it more croc's. I start trying on a pair or two and find a pair I like, but not in the size I want. Matt has finished what he was doing and is now impatiently waiting for me to finish. Matt is standing leaned up against the shoe rack where the shoes are displayed that I want....I say "excuse me do you have this shoe in a 9 wide?"
Matt quickly takes his hand out of his pocket, jerks around and says "let me check.....Nope we are fresh out" as he gives me the finger. Now both of us are cracking up and people are looking at us like we are crazy. Ok as Quick Draw McDraw used to say "exit stage left" or did he say right???? Oh well............... such as my day spent shopping with a friend who can make me laugh any time he wants too.