Friday September 6th 2024

No Stars In My Eyes · Sep 6, 2024

Woke up at 8:50 AM. Had to pee and feed Momo, then I came back to bed with my cup of coffee and took my meds. Things are not as achey as they were yesterday, thank goodness. But I am not sure if I will stay up or go back to sleep. [Stay tuned for an update 🤔]

No Stars In My Eyes · Sep 6, 2024

I dozed some until Noontime, and when I got up to get dressed I heard Nannie stirring around. When I came down she was sitting in the recliner with her pj bottoms and a jersey on. She's probably wet because I forgot to put the jumbo pad on her last night, Oh well. Not sure about her bedding yet. She is finishing her breakfast and pointing out things on the patio....the white iron chairs (that have 'never' been there before but she has had for at least 50 years) and the big light outside on the wall by the door , and, believe it or not,,,,she says "Nobody is out in the yard." I don't know why she expects there to be a lot of people to be out in the yard all the time! Better get her up and get her into the bathroom and get her dressed. MAYBE she will nap a bit after I do that? One can always hope!

..........So she is smiling and patting the sleeves of her blazer: "Oh! I LIKE this!" It has bright splashes of big, red flowers. I told her I knew she was a sucker for bright colors. The only thing 'wrong' with the blazer is that it has no buttons for her to fool with all day. And the sleeves of her jersey come out a decent amount from the sleeves of the blazer, so she won't need to keep readjusting those. Honestly she fiddles with the buttons and sleeves of anything she wears, so often it could drive Mother Theresa insane. I just don't watch her when she does it, if I can help it! Of course, since she looks so spiffy, she will probably ask soon if we are going out. As far as I know, we aren't going anywhere! I'd like to go get my nails done, but that takes a while and I don't feel like taking her with me, and anyway she had her nails repainted 3 days ago when SiL had her.

Fortunately her bed wasn't wet, so the only laundry I have of hers to do are some clothes that I tossed in there yesterday morning and this morning. And there are only a few glasses and pieces of silverware up in the kitchen sink that I can wash quickly. Other than that, depending on whether or not Nannie naps, I don't have anything planned. Oh, and since the trash pick-up has already occurred, I should bring the bin back to the house. But I am hoping for an otherwise QUIET, somewhat dull day.

Editorial Team / Admin · Sep 6, 2024

Hello all!

No Stars, Nannie picking at her buttons reminds me of the "activity quilts" I have seen. They are basically a small quilt (maybe a yard wide and a yard long), and filled with buttons, zippers, velcro, -- all kinds of things for toddlers (or whoever!) to open and close and manipulate. Would be easy to make, I think (am not suggesting you make this, as I know how much 'spare time' you have!!).

Joe, I hope work goes well today, and you have something nice planned for the weekend.

We are still holed up in the air-conditioned house, waiting for this heat wave to pass. Next week *should* be a little better. Yesterday I finally hemmed my shower curtain (rather than raise up the Spring-loaded bar from which the curtain hangs), and then, since the sewing machine was out, I worked on new curtains for the kitchen. I am not entirely satisfied with them but hey, they're better than what I had. I converted some white linen sheets (that were worn and torn) into curtains for the side window, and converted large curtains into a valance for the main window (facing the street) and also two side pieces matching the valance, sandwiching white curtains above the kitchen sink. I also replaced the large white curtains facing the neighbor's place. Where it routinely leaks (disappointingly, even after we got the roof re-done recently). 😞 Got to sometime get someone out to check that out and repair it.

We have cancelled two potential Disneyland outings, as it is just plain too hot for us to be out walking around. I need to go to the grocery store for a few things today, and do some laundry. Other than those two exciting things, the day will be low-key.

Have a good day and evening!

Ado Annie, ASN, RN · Sep 6, 2024

Greetings, all!

Stars, yay for a productive day. It really does mean a lot to have a space that's truly your own. And TMB is not wrong that you should be able to plan/schedule life and let others know when you will not be available. Whether your activity of choice is boxing or not is up to you 🙂

dianah, I agree that each person here (the regulars and the ones who drop in from time to time) brings unique insights and humanity and joyful moments. It's a beautiful little community!

The nursing home of choice denied Gma's respite care. Hubs said it was because of some medication she's on. She's not on much at all, so I suppose it must be the topical Haldol (that doesn't do much anyway) so they assume she'll be a behavioral problem. To be fair, she probably will get angry about toileting, bathing, and dressing. Hubs has scratch marks up and down his arms. So I don't know. We'll see about the last remaining facility.

I do try to avoid drama, though as we all know there is plenty of drama associated with working in a hospital.

We had a "mock" survey that turned up some things that need some work. Most of it is minor.

One thing about living and working in a small town is that we often know our patients or know their families or friends. I learned this week of the recent death of a woman we took care of back in 2021 when she had Covid. It was during the really bad days of the pandemic and we had to put her on a vent and needed to transfer her out but there was NO PLACE for her to go; we ended up sending her out of state by airplane. She recovered enough to go home but I guess it took enough of a toll on her health that she was never back to baseline. It just really hit me again how hard those days were. It infuriates me when people deny how bad it was.

nursej22, MSN, RN · Sep 6, 2024

Hi all. Another warm one here, but should not get as hot as yesterday. We took the 2 dogs to the vet for their shots, and to get Punch microchipped. Vet said they look good, and although Punch is not overweight, he should not gain any more. I asked about his eyes, which seem red and teary. I thought maybe allergies, but it appears both eyes have an entropion, the lower lids roll in and block the lower tear ducts. Will watch to make sure they don't get too gunky, and I need to wash the skin folds under his eyes 2-3 times a day. We stopped for Starbucks on the way home and each dog got a Pupcup. Their smooshie faces had trouble reaching the bottom of the cups, but they seemed to enjoy them. The vet told us that there was a bat found in our county that was positive for Rabies, so I'm glad the dogs got their shots.

Oof, I think I need to try to lose weight so that clothes fit better, sigh.

An activity quilt sounds intriguing. I have made curtains and drapes in the past. Now I just stick with shades and a valance. the new shades I ordered are here, but dh says it's too hot to put them up.

Annie, I used to run into people I knew at my old job, and if someone was a long time local, we could find an acquaintance in common. And we had some frequent fliers that we got quite fond of on our cardiac floor, and their passings were always sobering. It does seem surreal that COVID did so much and people act like it never happened.

I may start painting today, but I shall have to see what I have in supplies. I may just toss all the weird sized rollers and pans and start with new. I think that will be easier than trying to find matching pieces/parts.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Sep 7, 2024

G'day.

Hope you have a good evening.

Worked the floor today and had 6:1 and stayed busy. Patients seemed appreciative.