DavidFR

I first saw The Poseidon Adventure on TV when I was 16, the night before I was to take my first ever boat crossing, a 17 hour trip from Newcastle, England to Esbjerg, Denmark. Scared the life out of me but the trip turned out fine. Still think it's an all time great film. Disaster films are usually corny rubbish, but this one stands out, largely due to the great actors.

Tea. Strong black tea with a dash of milk as it's drunk in the UK and Ireland. Living in France most of the "tea" they sell here is coloured water. It has to be Indian Assam or a blend containing it. If I shouldn't mention brand names here the mods will edit it out, but I'll take a chance. I buy in bulk when I'm visiting or online: PG Tips from the UK or Barry's from Ireland. My post-shift survival drink is a glass of red wine: A Spanish tempranillo or a French Pinot Noir. Or after a really bad one, vodka.

I saw this last week and I second what you say. I reallly enjoyed this film. I liked that the central character was a typical, working class guy and that they didn't try to sanitise things.

Could you be clearer as to what you mean by boundaries? This could mean different things to different people. My own boundaries are not going in early and not staying late unless it's absolutely necessary (martyr syndrome leads to burnout), keeping a professional distance from patients (be empathetic and kind but remember they're not your friends) and socialising with friends who are neither nurses nor in related occupations so as not to talk shop all the time. Have interests and activities that are nothing to do with nursing. Having good working conditions is a key factor in avoiding burnout. Easier said than done, but I would say that if you have a choice don't stay at a facility if you feel you're being abused. Favour a facility that allows unions and be an active member of a union to protect your rights.

Sooo agree that nursing does not need to be a passion or encompass your whole life. Such nurses are often "too much" and not as good at the job as those who have a good work/home/social life balance, which I've always thought was precious. Good luck as you continue. So good to see somebody coming back and updating us.

Not a Pope fan either and certainly not a fan of the Catholic church, but I agree entirely. JD Vance overlooks the fact that the Vatican City is a sovereign state. Hence the Pope is a head of state as well as being a religious leader. I often don't like it when Popes pronounce either, however as a head of state, it's perfectly appropriate that the Pope makes political statements. That Vance evidently doesn't understand that is atrocious in a vice-president. However, given that it's Vance, it doesn't shock me that he doesn't get it.

I think you are a little harsh on the OP. I'm not black but I don't lecture black people on racism because I've never walked in their shoes. If you're not black, you shouldn't either. I do have black colleagues who have had the repeated experience of walking into a room and being asked "Are you the care assistant?" Automatic assumption of the lowest grade in seeing a black skin. I've had that myself for my foreign accent - not a chip on my shoulder but genuine xenophobia. Doesn't happen often to me in France but it does sometimes happen. I gather from your screen name you're possibly Welsh? I grew up in England and I know all the stereotypes about Welsh people. I've also had enough Welsh friends to know those sterotypes are not true. If such stereotyping annoys you as a Welsh person (if you are Welsh), you have every right to be aggrieved because that is xenophobia. As a gay man nobody will lecture me on homophobia. I've heard the "chip on your shoulder" rubbish before but unless you've walked in my shoes and lived with homophobia, you have no idea. Like neither you nor I have any idea of the OP's experiences as a black woman.

As an ex English teacher I agree with this. No need to capitalise (sorry, I'll use the British spelling), at every use of the word marine.

Well I gave him an up vote for that post, so you should be able to work it out.

I'll refer you to the International section/UK nursing where Grumpy and myself have disagreed on the issue of taking your breaks within the confines of the floor/unit environment where you're working. Yes we had a differing point of view! We argued our differences with respect and maturity. Try it.

Yes, Tweety gave a very intelligent and thoughtful response. Something we've yet to see forthcoming from yourself.

Just lost a response due to inactivity and automatic log out, so if this appears as a doublon, apologies. I take your point that name calling is neither mature nor intellectual. I would normally refrain, however through sheer frustration, your current administration leads me to falter. Trump is the president who called a journalist "Piggy" and Vance is the vice president who viciously attacked Zelenskyy not for his words, not for his position, but because the knackered leader of a war torn country wasn't wearing a suit. I have no respect for Trump or Vance but yes, your point is valid. I propose the Alaska secnario not because I think it's remotely likely, but as a hypothetical situation to demonstrate that no sovereign nation should just say "Oh alright then" to an illegal invasion. Giving up US territory to an aggressor would be unacceptable to Trump; why should Zelenskyy be expected to accept different standards? No sovereign state should be hacked in two because an aggressor invades illegally and says "I want this." Appeasing dictators never works. We didn't act over Crimea - Putin wanted more. Give him the Donbass and he'll want the rest of Ukraine. Give him Ukraine and he'll want the Baltics. We tried to appease Hitler in the 30's. That didn't end well did it? Russia and Ukraine have complex intertwined histories but they did evolve as seperate peoples with their own language and culture. Russia has had designs on Ukraine since forever. My Ukrainian father fled for his life at the age of 19 at the outbreak of WW2. Like many others he was cut off from his homeland and his family for 49 years due to Russian/Soviet occupation. The joy of independence and the freedom to go home was undescribable. Now Russia once again has its claws into a sovereign, free, independent Ukraine. I cannot tell you the anger I felt seeing Zelenskyy insulted and humiliated by Trump and Vance, only to be followed by the murdering dictator Putin receiving the red carpet treatment in Alaska. Perhaps that's why in this case I resort to name calling. Indeed. I don't believe Trump makes plans. He flip flops from one day to the next. I sincerely believe he makes it up as he goes along. It amazes me the way he works, seemingly surrounded by yes men. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think we see the checks and balances which seem to be taken for granted in other western democracies. You flatter him and you're a great guy. A week later and you're weak, or stupid, or you've "disappointed" him. I too have trouble processing Israel and the middle east situation. Of course I want to see democracy in Iran, and a peaceful 2 state solution for Israel and Palestine. I don't think Trump and Netanyahu are the guys who are going to get us there.

Do tell us what you find amusing, rather than yet again, coming back with a glib one-liner.

Lower tariffs. But as I said, the effect doesn't last long. Baby Trump gets upset and his toys fly out of the cot again. Dare I suggest Netanhayu has manipulated Trump into this war on Iran? Who knows what the deal is? Favourable property developing rights on the envisaged luxury resort of Mar-a-Gaza? Once the Gazans themselves have been evicted? And who knows what gets said between Trump and Putin? How come the so called leader of the free world can publicly insult and humiliate a president who's country has been illegally invaded, yet is manipulated into giving a murdering dictator the red carpet treatment in Alaska? Why doesn't Trump put the effort he's putting into bombing Iran into helping defend Ukraine? That's what a president who really cared about freedom and democracy would be doing. Imagine Russia came the other way and decided they wanted Alaska back on the grounds it was Russian once. Alaska is under Russian control and the rest of the world says "You know Donald, you're just going to have to concede some territory in order to have peace. Let Putin keep Alaska." Would that be acceptable to him? And if JD Dunce and others are going to get upset about Zelenskyy not wearing a suit (visiting the tailor would hardly be Zelenskyy's priority at the moment) maybe baby Donald should set the example by abandoning those stupid caps he wears.

Oh come on, are you asleep? We see leader after leader sitting with Trump in front of all that garish cheap gold cringing and trying to be as diplomatic as possible so as not to make the baby scream. Prime example was Keir Starmer soft soaping him with a second state visit to the UK. Do you think many British people actually wanted that? Let alone the King! Or Starmer himself and the members of his government. It worked for a little while then the effect wore off and I wish world leaders would see he is too unpredictable for it to ever work long term. He is a bully and needs to be stood up to. Pedro Sanchez is one of the rare world leaders I have any respect for at the moment. Y viva España.

I had a 2 year break. I did a TEFL course and taught English as a Foreign Language in a language school. I was re-locating to Paris so it was good way of working in English until my French was up to scratch. It was great fun put the pay was abysmal. Try anything you fancy but maintain your licence. Keep you hand in with the occasional agency shift. I didn't think I'd come back to full time nursing but doing so after a 2 year break was the perfect cure for burn out. I came back loving it and 22 years later, have thoroughly enjoyed this "second" nursing career.

https://patientinfolibrary.royalmarsden.nhs.uk/how-flush-nephrostomy-tube This is exactly how we do it where I work, but Davy is right, check your local policy.

I stand corrected on Hindu objection, or at least the extent of it, you having prompted me to look it up. I have heard of Hindu objection from Gujarati friends in London, but you're right, this wasn't the reason for the ban.

I live in the Paris region and was here for the Chralie Hebdo attack. A journalist friend of mine once worked with Cabou, who was killed in the attack. I went on the soldarity march and I think it's important to emphasise that there were many muslims there saying "not in our name" as well as Imams condemning the violence. Interesting you mention Salman Rushdie. I have read "The Satanic Verses" and it is honestly one of the best books I have ever read. It was originally banned in India as extremist Hindus were "offended" too. Frankly it's one of these occasions where you can be offended if you want to be. It's an excellent piece of literature. I read much of it on duty on quiet nights in the presence of a muslim colleague from Mali. She wasn't offended that I was reading it, indeed, she had a healthy intellectual interest to know more about it.

On the contrary, I'm commenting on what you say. Goodbye and have a nice life.

You make references to Islamic jihadis and brown skinned people from the middle east wanting to set up terrorist cells. Then you ask the direct question aren't people disturbed by Muslim violence? I'm disturbed by violence period. Before accusing me of putting words into your mouth please consider what you actually wrote. You talk of people arriving in the US with no intention of integrating. In the UK I came across Greek, Italian, Cypriot and Polish families where grandma had largely been confined to the kitchen for 50 years and spoke no English. Some of these families stuck largely to their own communities, never married out and had no intention of integrating. They were all Christian. I in no way insinuate that these behaviours are in any way a reflection on their communities as a whole, nor do I associate it with Christianty. I equally acknowledge that the same can be found in Muslim families of Bangladeshi and Pakistani origin, while other families from those communities integrate successfully. Therein lies the difference in our approach to this issue. What IS clear is that higher levels of insularity tend to occur in the more religious families, wary of the "other". I've come across as much "my daughter can't marry a non-Catholic" as "my daughter can't marry a non-Muslim", and as an ex-Catholic I do know what I of speak of, and yes I have witnessed much religious bigotry first hand.

You seem to be hung up on a Muslims = bad, Christians = good rhetoric. I don't think it's the particular religion that's the problem but the extremes to which people take their religion. By the very fact that the definition of faith means believeing in something for which you have no scientific proof, then surely on that shaky intellectual basis all religions have the potential to go to extreme lengths - and they often do, inculding Christianity. You claim above that Christians aren't violent yet the Crusades weren't exactly peaceful, and in more recent times some of your fellow Christians have bombed abortion clinics, or in some countries of eastern Europe beaten up gays at Pride celebrations while brandishing crosses. So, muslims don't have a monopoly on religious violence as you seem to think. They are themselves increasingly the victims of Hindu extremism in Morodi's India. The problem for me is not this or that religion, but ALL religions once they get too zealous and especially when they acheive political power and /or influence. Religion that becomes government is always dangerous. Israel a case in point. Islamic republics likewise. And look how much freer and open societies such as Ireland, Spain and Portugal have become since throwing off the yoke of church dictating government policy. You in the US are going backwards, letting the religious zealots have too much influence over civil issues. It's a very dangerous path.

Agree on philosophy 100%. A major difference between general education in the land where I grew up (UK) and my adopted home (France) is that philosophy is a major component of general high school education in France. French schoolchildren are thus taught not what to think but how think. Love it.

Sometimes patients just die. Their time has come. From your description it sounds like you were surveying your patient correctly. Really nothing more you could have done. First death is always traumatic. Don't beat yourself up. Sounds like you did OK. You're a nurse, not a magician.

Agree. I've enjoyed the civilised discussion. Thanks.