Miscellany on my mind

I will be spending the next three and a half days enjoying Seattle with Jon and Johanna. But for now as I sit in bed and drink my coffee, I will spew out my random thoughts/happenings since my last post. 

- Work was pretty great this week. I got to circulate in spines on my two 12 hour days...which I seriously love doing. Then I got to scrub a laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder), which I've never done before (but I was with a patient surgeon and things went well). Then yesterday I got to scrub in Hands with a surgeon who I worked with for the first time last week. He walked into the room yesterday and looked at me and sort of cocked his head to the side and asked, "are you Rachel, without glasses on?" I said that I was, and that I was impressed that he remembered me. And he said, "well you did a really good job last time." I know I shouldn't live for the approval/praise of other people...but it sure feels great when you receive it.

- On the way home from work yesterday, I did something that I've never done before. Actually exited a bus 2 stops after getting on because I couldn't handle the LOUD drunken obnoxiousness in another language that was happening a few rows behind me. It was 3:30 in the afternoon and I could smell the alcohol, and could still hear them with the volume turned all the way up on my iPod. So I got off and caught the next bus. And it was worth it.

- I was wondering the other day about why shopping is so enjoyable. Does everybody feel that way, or have the pleasure circuits in my brain been specially wired? I can vividly remember being in second or third grade, going to the Science Center and wandering through the gift shop. I just wanted to see (and touch) everything there, and pick out what would soon belong to me. It's sort of the same feeling I get today when I walk into a store that I like. I wouldn't call myself a Shopaholic, but elements of that book/movie certainly resonated with me.

- My niece and nephew are incredibly cute. And it stinks that I'm so far away from them. I think I knew that would be the hardest part about moving here. But at least we live in an age of Skype. I love seeing them respond to my face on the computer. Last night Xavi was sticking his tongue out at me and smiling whenever I said his name. Pretty great, but not quite as good as being there. It's amazing that when you're a baby, people love you just for being (at least they do if you're blessed enough to have the amazing kind of family that I have).

That's it for now. You can expect a J-squared Visit Seattle post in a few days!

Springing forward is not enjoyable

- Each day when I get off of work, I exit the hospital through the doors right outside the Emergency Department. Frequently there are patients milling around outside, lately in 30-40 degree weather wearing only hospital gowns, who proposition me for cigarettes and/or a light. They are often standing or seated in a wheelchair directly beneath a large red NO SMOKING sign. I think that the irony of the situation is probably lost on these people.

- Earlier this week I had to work with a notoriously unpleasant surgeon. I set up the back table with all the instruments, then I was relieved for my lunch break. When I got back the case was underway, and the surgeon was loudly berating my relief person. The tension in the room was thick, and nobody was saying much. As the circulator was tying up my gown, she whispered in my ear "don't feel bad if he yells at you." And I was determined not to. I got a report and took my place next to the surgeon. I handed him what he asked for, and responded pleasantly whenever a response was necessary. And he was fine for the rest of the case and throughout the following one. Not that it will always happen like that, but sometimes being respectful and polite to someone who is being a jerk causes that person to realize "oh, I am being a jerk" and maybe then they will decide to stop being a jerk.

- The construction on my building is entering the final phase, which unfortunately means there is scaffolding outside my window. Last night as I was trying to fall asleep there was a loud clank of metal out on the scaffolding, and I spent the next twenty minutes forming an action plan in my head for a possible intruder. I need to buy a baseball bat. The upside to Construction: Final Phase is that the scaffolding will soon come off the other side of the building, and we will be free to enjoy our patio again! Now I have to find some good patio furniture. My dream is to find a great deal on some Adirondack chairs, but the chances of that are slim.

- Spring is coming! And with it...thunderstorms. Apparently they're kind of rare here, someone told me "the sound of thunder usually gets absorbed into the mountains." So the other night on the news, they spent 10 minutes talking about this thunderstorm, showing pictures of lightning and saying things like "look how eerie it was over Bellevue earlier with the dark clouds." Seriously, people?! Thunderstorms?! I guess I didn't realize that they weren't commonplace everywhere.  Then yesterday I was driving to a friend's house (while it was sleeting) and I saw a huge flash of light. It totally confused me until I heard the thunder a few seconds later. I guess because it's cloudy and rainy here a lot, it seems like there isn't much warning for the prospect of thunder and lightning. So maybe the freak-out is justified. 

Deja vu and a cruise

Today I woke up with deja vu. Something about the way the air smelled and the sound of birds chirping outside makes me feel like I've lived this day before. Weird. 

So last Saturday my roommate and I went on a cruise through Seattle. The weather was great, and it was just a fun day out on the water learning things about the city and experiencing it from a different point of view. For instance, I learned that Seattle was named after the native american chief of the Duwamish tribe (who apparently lived in the area way back when). Here are some pictures with more fun facts:

The roomie and I enjoying the sunshine.

Tour guide Zack who has an impressive collection of facts, and the ability to speak for a couple of hours without stopping, in spite of random tourists who clearly weren't paying much attention to what he was saying.

The blue building on the pier is the aquarium, which I've heard good things about but never actually visited. It's on my list.

This is one of the bluffs in the Magnolia neighborhood of Seattle. Apparently there are landslides every so often, but people continue to build very expensive homes here anyway. 

This is the Ballard Drawbridge that I drive over everyday on my way to work. I've only gotten stuck in bridge-being-up traffic twice so far, and it is not fun. Our cruise boat was small enough to fit under.

View of the city from Lake Union. These yachts reminded Kara and I to keep working on our goal of meeting someone with a boat who wants to be friends.

Gasworks Park...another Seattle spot on our list of places to go. Apparently it's the place to be on occasions with fireworks (i.e. 4th of July, New Year's Eve, Obama winning the election, etc), due to the reflective property of water :)

 

This is the 4-bedroom, 2-bathroom houseboat featured in the movie Sleepless in Seattle. It's currently for sale with an asking price of $1.2 million.

My first week of work went really well. There were certainly moments that were VERY stressful, but I feel like I've learned as much in one week as I did in the previous 6 months. I've been reading this book called The Survivors Club (which is fascinating, but probably not a book for people who tend towards paranoia), and found a quote that both inspired me and granted some perspective:

"What we really need to survive--breathing, sleeping, eating, eliminating--is very different from what we think we need... People think they need approval. They think they need to be right. They think they need to be perfect. But none of that is essential to survival."

It brings to mind the time that I spent in Benin, and helps me to remember that I am capable of more than I think I am...and reminds me to believe what is true, which is not necessarily what my brain/the world around me is saying.

Changes and crazy thoughts

I can't believe that in one week it will be my six-month moving to Seattle anniversary. It still sort of feels like I just got here.

In one week I will officially be finished with orientation at my job, and "on my own." This is both scary and exciting. It will be nice not to have a preceptor by my side, micromanaging my every move. It will be terrifying not to have a preceptor by my side when I don't know what to do. I'm sure that I will make mistakes, and feel awkward, and have impatient doctors be frustrated with me. My roommate and I were talking the other day about how being a nurse, you sort of feel like you have 50 bosses. Not that the doctors can fire you or have any real control over you...but you have to keep them happy. And that can be really hard to do sometimes, especially with surgeons, and especially as a new person. So I would really appreciate prayer over the next few weeks...for wisdom and boldness at work, but also that I would remember that mistakes are okay (in the sense that they don't detract from my value, not that I shouldn't try not to make them), and that it doesn't matter what other people think or say about me.

My roommate and I went to the symphony last night. It was fun to get all dressed up and go somewhere, even if pretty much everyone else was a couple on a Valentine's Day date. Our seats were up in a box on the side, with freaky low railings (I guess so you could see over them once you sat down). Pretty much any time I am in quiet, reverent situations such as the symphony or a play or weddings and funerals, I am overcome with wildly inappropriate thoughts. For instance, during the first twenty minutes of the performance, (while enjoying the music), all I could think about was what would happen if I stood up, yelled "BOOGERS" as loudly as possible, and tore my program into pieces and threw them onto the people below. It's so bizarre. I would never actually do something like that, but I always think about it. I think it's rooted in a desire to see how a large group of people would respond to sudden and unexpected craziness in their midst. Maybe I should have gotten a degree in social anthropology or something.

Forks or Bust

Because pronunciation doesn't translate to the written word, I'm giving my roommate Kara and my friend Kara special blog nicknames. The roommate will hereafter be referred to as Nurse Kara, and the friend will be K-Dub (her last name begins with a W, and she said people frequently call her this).

So this Thursday K-Dub, Amy, and I took a little road trip to the Olympic peninsula. Our destination was Forks, Washington, the setting for the Twilight series (and the rainiest town in the U.S.). For those who don't know what Twilight is, I'm referring to Stephanie Meyer's quartet of books describing the angst-filled romance between a teenage human and a vampire...of which K-Dub and I are fans. We planned to visit all the places mentioned in the books, including the beach at La Push, where the Quileute tribe lives. We were on the road by 6:30 am, anticipating a total drive time of 8 hours. Things were pretty foggy for the first few hours, but the sky was blue and we could tell it was going to be a clear day. 

The drive there included the usual road trip shenanigans...the highlight being K-Dub's and my incredibly thorough verbal recounting of the plots of all four books in the Twilight series for Amy (who hasn't read them and now says she never needs to). Also a magical gas station/market where we stopped for a potty break and provisions, which I now want to move into. There was a flat screen tv in the bathroom! It was the nicest gas station I have ever chanced upon while road tripping. A clean and well-lit Shell station will never satisfy me again. 

There was some truly beautiful scenery on our drive that we didn't get to spend much time enjoying, so we decided we are going back to visit the Hoh Rainforest (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoh_rainforest) in the future. 

Our excitement mounted as we neared Forks. What we found when we arrived...was a bit anticlimactic. A typical small town in a lot of ways, but with signs on almost all the local businesses that said things like "Twilighters welcome here", "Try Bella's berry smoothie", "Team Edward", "Stay in the Edward and Bella Suite." We stopped at the high school to take some pictures, then decided we really didn't feel the need to try and find other landmarks from the books. 

We found a store called Dazzled By Twilight on the main strip and decided to check it out. Inside was a Twilight fan's dream. Tons and tons of merchandise devoted solely to Twilight. We picked up a few souvenirs and talked to the people who run the store and who were thrilled to have us there. We found out later that one of the women who works there actually moved herself and her family to Forks after reading the books. And that the citizens of Forks love their newfound fame, and are trying to get some of the stars of the movie to come out. Amy, K-Dub, and I concurred that this is not likely to happen.

Having significantly boosted the local economy, and all becoming slightly depressed by the small town desperation in the air (and total lack of vampires)...we decided to head to our next destination. First Beach at La Push, where the Quileute tribe resides. The beach itself was seriously beautiful (although it would have been nicer if it was 20 degrees warmer and sunny), but the poverty was sobering. We decided that the Quileutes should open a Twilight-themed casino. If they built it, people would come. 

We ate our overpriced bag lunches from Forks, then spent some time playing on the beach and taking pictures. There was one island about 200 feet from the shore that had a giant cave entrance in it's side, and I decided that if I ever go back to La Push when it's warm, I'm exploring it. We met a youth pastor from Colorado who is bringing a bunch of students for a mission trip in June. He was very nice and took our picture for us, but we found it difficult not to laugh at his extreme use of Christian phrases. 

The trip home seemed kind of never-ending, but it was a good day overall. Fun was had, and I can now say that I've been to Forks. And I can also say with confidence to any Twilight fans out there that can't make this trip in one day...save your vacation days for something else. If I mysteriously disappear in the next few days, it's probably because the Forks Chamber of Commerce sent a team of assassins after me.

The lovely Lake Crescent. Kind of made me wish I had a canoe, and could spend the day paddling around it. Also made me think of my brother Jon, as the surface of the lake is probably ideal for wake-boarding.

Note the excitement level of our faces.

See how the excitement has waned. We were kind of glad all the blinds were closed, so the students of Forks High couldn't see us being geeky.

Me and Amy and a giant tree. Hopefully after our trip to the Hoh rainforest we will have pictures of ourselves and giant living trees. Although it was cool to see signs telling us when the last harvest was (1984), when the current trees were planted (1994), and when they would be harvested (2036).
Practicing my cool vampire face. We got free teeth in Forks that provided lots of entertainment. But we all agreed that sucking the spit out of them afterwards is gross. Funny how I didn't seem to mind when I was a kid.

I told Amy that this picture makes her look like a homeless person who's about to lead a revolution. 
My mom would not have liked this beach, but it was fun to climb on the piles of driftwood. That island in the background is the one with the cave. In addition to exploring the cave, I think it would be fun to climb to the top of the island.

Me being King of the stump. K-Dub's expression in this picture is awesome. I zoomed in and showed it to her, and her exact words were "I look like Smeagol!"

This picture sort of makes me wish that I had brown eyes, too.

If I mysteriously disappear in the next few days, it's probably because the Forks Chamber of Commerce sent a team of assassins after me

Snippets of Seattle

Last week as I was leaving work, a mildly suspicious looking but very articulate woman approached me and said, "excuse me, ma'am, do you have a quarter?" My response was awkward, for several reasons. First, because I am so used to saying "Sorry, I don't" to every crazy person on the street who asks if I have a (insert increment of money/bus pass here). Secondly, because I keep a change purse full of quarters in my locker at work and was trying to remember if I had any in my wallet. I was close enough to the hospital that I would have felt comfortable digging into my bag to find a quarter to give this woman. So I responded kind of slowly and awkwardly, "sorry, I don't have one on me right now." Almost before I got the words out the woman hissed, "LIAR" and walked away. 

There is a special man at my bus stop every morning. He is probably in his late 50's-early 60's, is fairly overweight, and has coke-bottle glasses and a grayish/brown mustache. Every day he is dressed all in black, with a long black trench coat and one of those ski hats that covers your head but has a hole for your face. He has several black utility belt/fanny pack-ish articles strapped across his waist/back/chest. He walks with a black cane. I imagine several different scenarios for him: 

-he believes he is The Guardian of The Realm, who must hold back the forces of darkness

-he is a retired spy who has never acclimated to normal life

-the cane is just a prop and he is really some sort of vigilante/ninja who fights crime in the city at night

-he read somewhere that black is slimming and over-accessorizes because he's insecure

There's a new man in my life. We met last weekend. Isn't he beautiful? Conrad Xavier (Xavi).

We had such a good time together...lots of cuddling.

Here's Irene with some 'movie star' eyes. Beautiful baby niece AKA Droolygums McGee, who's probably cutting teeth based on the amount of time she spent gnawing on things this weekend.

Here's the Boomer-razzi and his well-trained minions. I would estimate the total number of pictures taken in the I house that weekend to be somewhere around 2 million.

The Chronicles of Rachel Continue

Sorry that it's been so long since my last post. To bring you all up to the present...

- The city began the Great Thaw on Christmas Eve. It took a couple of days for everything to melt completely, and all the buses to get back to normal. I had to walk 10 blocks up an enormous hill to the hospital, which caused me to wonder if one's heart can explode within one's chest. I should probably work out more...

- Christmas Day was pretty low-key, but good. I woke up and opened my presents from my family, then skyped with them and watched them open their presents from me. Then my friend Keri (who I work with and is also a transplant from the midwest) came over and we ate lots of food and watched Christmas movies all day.

A picture of my Christmas tree taken on Christmas with my new camera. And one sliver of my face.

- For New Year's Eve, my roommate Kara (pronounced Care-uh) and I went to a party that my friends (via my friend Amy), Kara (pronounced Car-uh) and Jon were having. Fun times were had, and the night seemed to fly by. It always felt like an eternity to reach midnight when I was younger...but we didn't even have time for the 3rd round of the Name Game. 

My roommate, Kara, and I getting ready to go to the party. It only took me 10 minutes of trying to figure out how to set the timer on my camera :)

Kara (the friend), and I, post-midnight. I kept the electric-blue noisemaker as a souvenir. 

It's weird how 'the holidays' are different when you don't get a solid month off from responsibilities. With my job, I'm lucky to even have the actual holiday itself off. It made things more stressful, but also more meaningful, if that makes sense. 

Lately I've mostly been working and hibernating. Everything is gray and rainy all the time, and that makes being snuggled in bed exponentially better. Work continues to drain my mental reserves. There are only five weeks left of our orientation, and we are now expected to 'do it all' (within reason...if it's a huge case we've never seen before or a persnickity doctor who has strange preferences, then we still have help). I'm trying to strike a balance between work and the rest of life, but right now it's kind of hard to do.

I had a dream the other night that included several top-notch dream components: flying, the beach, and a celebrity. In my dream, I was flying (only a couple of feet above the water) along the coast. The water was clear and a vivid turquoise color (like I've only ever seen in pictures), the sand was yellow (like in west africa), and the sky was deep blue (like in seattle on a sunny day). And Jamie Lee Curtis was flying a few feet in front of me. It didn't make sense or have much of a plot... I wasn't trying to go anywhere or flee from anyone, just flying because I could. I woke up smiling. 

My new hat from Target. I find that hats shaped like this one are the best for keeping my glasses dry on days when it's not raining hard enough for an umbrella...which happens a lot.