I know I'm rare, You stop & stare.

Finished with classes, off work for a day, & finally able to blog. Here I am with my pumpkin flavored coffee & coffee creamer. My obsession is getting a little ridiculous. I had to stock up on pumpkin things since they're are only seasonal. I've been thinking about how I have abandoned you all; not sure how you function properly without my blog:) Believe you me (what does that even mean?), there is so much I've wanted to share. However, I've been a little Van Gough, Picasso, DaVinci, if I may, these past few weeks! Ha. Getting ready for Christmas time & presents! It seems as if I am still in the 3rd grade homemaking gifts. Hah. One problem is that I paint a canvas, then I grow to it, and don't want to give them up! In addition, I've been a working machine with all the beautiful babies & tots! OMG, I love them so much. Someone left a newborn, barely a wk old, in a bag on the street. Thank the Lord up above, someone found it, & took it to the hospital. It just so happened to be on our unit!! Yayay! A horrible situation, but a beautiful baby boy, who a week later, is already in loving, adoring hands of a foster family. It's shocking how many patients we have with broken homes, or not even having a home. There's no doubt that they get enough love on our unit. All the nurses, doctors, assistants I work with are AMAZING.

MY BIRTHDAY IS IN 14dys!!! Yipppee dooo dahhh day!

Grades should be released today. Hmm. I'm no shining star this time- B's & a C that I "earned". My classes weren't even really hard, but there was ZERO effective communication throughout the whole semester. My old people class, whom the Geriatric, herself, teaches was beyond ridic. I read all the chapters, PowerPoint's, & kind of went to class. You're thinking- there's your problem. No sir. She scurries along like a little mouse with a low voice. She makes no sense, & probably could be diagnosed with dementia. Aw, JK. These teachers are stuck in 1989. They probably still use an ENIAC, nah, that was invented in 1946. They at least use a:

Hahhahahahha. Well the last class I missed, they put on gloves & glasses with yellow lenses to see what it's like to be an elder. Really? I pay my own $tuition$ for that? Peace out. See ya old lady! (Sorry for being insensitive to the elder population, it's just her that I don't like). I went to the next class in which we watched "A Trip to Bountiful", a movie we could all go on living a wonderful life without ever seeing. 25Q's on our final came from those 2 classes. Ug. In the middle of the movie, she puts out 50 study guides for the final. I sit in the middle & never saw her lay them down. I checked when I walked in for notes, but there weren't any. She doesn't post them on the net like every other professor. I asked her about them at the end of the class. She informs me that only 50ppl come to class every Mon., so that's all she brought. Also, she would not be posting it on the net. I send her a respectful email letting her know in no way is it fair to only pass out 50 guides when an easy 80 people were at class, and then not post it? No ma'am. She replies find one & make a copy. Puhhhhhhh.

As a child, my sister Ry, taught me the necessities...how to tie my shoes, ride a bike, braid hair (hahahha, braid!). Before you read this story, keep in mind that I was premature, in which I like to blame for all my ill-logicalness (not a word, I know) & slow to catch on jokes. Hey, it can impair your cognitive ability. I was a good 9yrs old when I learned how to ride a 2wheel bike. I didn't even have stinking training wheels- it was straight up red tricycle. Spring break 1994ish, my older sister is babysitting Ry & I. By that I mean, letting us do anything we want. Until age 12, we were only allowed to ride our bikes in the yard...OH HOW FUN, Dad! The little devils we were, we're cruising up & down Snow Dr. Alriggggggggght! Then............see a blinker, a car, oh a car we recognize, oh no, it 's Dad & my 2 uncles arriving WAY early from work. We have done it now! I'm in the middle of road pedaling my chipped red tricycle like a son of a gun! Ry's on some Huffy 12 or something, haha. "Girls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Go to your room. CLEAN IT! I'll be in there in five." One huge hand print later on the bum, I am crying my eyes out. "Stop crying. I'll do it again." Hahhaha. Dang, Dad. You weren't in the military, eh? That was the only time we really couldn't sit down after a spanking. He used to threaten it, & I tell you what, OUCH!

'Tis the season...for nosebleeds. This stupid hot/cold/humid/dry weather has me all out of wack. Nosebleed here, nosebleed there, nosebleed everywhere! Man o man. Hope no one thinks I have a recreational drug problem. Hah. Yes, I would be worried about that. My recycling habit has become a little obsessive. It consumes my life. I've got to stop. "My name is Megan, & I'm addicted to recycling."

I hit a car last Friday. No biggie. Around 612a, I defrosting my car for work. After it all clears up, I reverse. Pladunk (that's the sound of me hitting a truck). The little punk made his own parking space. I'm not sure if I couldn't see it b/c it was navy or if I just wasn't paying attention. Ha. He already had a dent, I think, so I drove away. Now my car...another 'ole bumper mark! Dang it!

Last story, promise....This past summer I was at a coffee shop doing a little studying, just enjoying my scone & amaretto expresso something. I walk out, hop in the car. As a buckle, I see a note on my windshield. That's really the most embarrassing part. I hate having to get things off the windshield after I've already hopped in. It's a little note explaining that someone side swiped my car!!! Embarrassing moment #2- having to look at my car in front of everyone. Well, you sure did, missy. Really, I think the only reason she even left a note is b/c she saw my lab coat for nursing school, which resembles the med students, & she herself was a med student. Leaves a number for me to call. 4 anxiety attacks later, I muster up the courage to call her. 'Hey, this is Megan. I think you hit my car?!" hahha. She doesn't want to claim it on her insurance; she'll just pay out of pocket. I have it appraised. With $798 worth of damage, I'm too embarrassed to ask someone for that kind of mulah, so I never called back. Six months later, I'm thinking that was a dumb decision. It's my car with red scratches. My freaking car is white!!! Just pray Little Honda makes it another yr or so! I'll still get out of her with my head held high with scratches, dents, scrapes from buggies. hhahahah.

Okay, I'm done! Be back soon!

Do's & Don'ts

Oh my word, all the things I need to share with you! It has been quite the adventure, my life. Don't act surprised.

My 18hr ride with Mom, Grandma, & Aunt to TX went surprisingly great! (I didn't doubt it would, but you never know.) It was the complete Adventures of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood! Fun, drinking, feuding, old ladies, ..haha. Seven long yrs have passed since my last road trip to the cowboy state, but I remembered everything like it was yesterday. The 25 mile bridge with swampy, alligator infested waters, the city of Houston with it's roller coaster of freeways, overpasses, & interstate, the outrageous #s of Whataburger's. As an 'adult', I'm still just as scared as I was as a tot of the architecture in Houston. Agoraphobic, that's me. Just another noun to add to my labels.

Scared and excited at the same time, I was anxious about joining in with the cousins, worrying about if I would fit in and such.My sister backed out at the last minute. Hey, what are they for? They took me in as if I were their own & as if we had hung out last wk. We surely missed out during our childhood/teenage yrs. We could have caused some damage! Rockport, TX is a gorgeous place! It's a small town like my own hometown, but there is so much to offer. The water & views are priceless. Tourism is a big hit, but they still keep their small town mentality. One grocery store & a Wal-Mart with lots of condos!!! Kind of peculiar.

You should recall how wonderful my Grandma is. She comes into town, and it's amazing just to see how much love she has for everyone. Cousins, neices, nephews, siblings all come together. Mind you Grandma is 74, kicking it like she's 34. I learned more about family history on the road. She worked in a burn unit for 7yrs! I just can't help but admire her more & more everyday. A burn unit? I'm afraid my Special Care Unit will be the highest acuity in which I'll attempt to work. It takes a certain personality to be able to work in a burn unit, especially in a huge hospital in Galveston. All of my life she has worked in the OR and L&D, which is also highly respectable. I feel like we have our special bond since I will, hopefully, follow in her footsteps with our careers. I've been aware of her humongous, extremely forgiving, family-bound heart for yrs, but her work on a burn unit just opened a whole new doorway. Seems silly, but since she is older (sorry!), it's easy to forget that she too once was young bouncing around a hospital, elbow deep in IVs, meds, poop. (hah, it's true.)

Off track, surprise. The wedding was absolutely stunning! Beautiful bride, handsome groom, great wedding party! I looked at my grandma in the food line, dancing already! The champagne effects didn't take too long to kick in. Of course, I don't think it took too long for any of us. We were all Dancing in the Moonlight before long. My cousin sang "Ava Maria" & "At Last" Yes, she's phenomenal. American Idol, can I get a vote?

Basically, my family is beautiful and always has the best time. Duh! If you couldn't tell that by now, you need not read any further! JK!

Time to depart came all too soon :( 18hrs away back to Alabama, we go. This was the turning point-where we all kind of stopped liking each other. Mom was being unpleasant. We got lost. My iPOD had low battery. Grandma wanted kid's meal from Krystals, after I proceeded to tell her they do not sell those, but that I would get exactly what she wanted. "Just get me a kid's meal", she would say. Finally, I said, "OKAY Grandma." We had to stop at every specialy meat place there was. Gurosss! I don't even like jerky, weird sausage, dried up meat products. Aggravated just a little, I say just take me to McDonald's, one of the biggest mistakes of my life. Not a fan. Never really have been, and DEFINITELY never will be. 24hrs later, somebody' got a case of freaking Shigella. Not really, but some severe food poisoning.

Very unpleasant. I couldn't even keep ice chips down. We made the wise decision to admit me into the hospital...ON THANKSGIVING! It's my favorite holiday! Are you kidding me? Please, say you're kidding. It's even worse being in nursing school because I'm watching everyone like a hawk, every move, every breath. Hah..stalker. I had to give every kind of 'sample' in the book. "OH, you are sick..I've never seen this before...I showed it to the other nurses...They've never seen it either...blah blah." Please, spare my dignity. A girl I graduated with had to wheel me down to XRay. I'm pretty stubborn too, so that was the last on my To-Do List. Mom & Dad saw each other. AWKWARD. My sister & ex-boyfriend had to be cordial. You could smell the awkwardness. The whole family visited, which was very nice!!..even though they had just stuffed their faces with turkey dinner while I forced jello down my throat. Bitterness? Nah. I shed a few lbs. over this, & that's enough to satisfy me.

Bed time. "I'll take the Phenergan, now." Knock, knock, the nurse enters, walks closer & closer, reaches for my IV. "Oh, I forgot to dilute it. I'll be right back." WHAT!!! Great, send me into a code and burn all my veins out; I don't need them. Then, of course, story of my life, I have an adverse reaction- dystonia movements. It's kind of like dyskinesia, uncontrolled moving of the muscles, especially in the limbs. Patients with Parkinson's experience this or it's caused by antipsychotics. For an hour, I looked like I was doing the Thriller dance. It was one of the most horrible times of my life. The phenergan was trying to knock me out, but the muscle contracting wouldn't let me. One of the nurses says it's probably your potassium. Had I been in my right mind, I would have said, no, you're wrong. I just took a medicine that causes extreme drowsiness, but all of a sudden, my muscles are contracting from low K+? Who are these people taking care of me? Eventually, I passed out. My doc said I should have asked for an order of Benadryl to immediately reverse those effects. Dang! I feel like the nurse should have used her critical thinking skills to solve the problem. 4 cans of chicken broth later, here I am, wondering how to make a pumpkin pie! Ha. I am grateful for the 5 bags of Lactated Ringer's within 24hrs, & the nurses really did do a good job in aiding with my recovery.

I must warn you: I've only had 2 cases of food poisoning, which were both severe enough to be hospitalized, and both were from MCDONALD's. Yeah, think twice about driving in for that $1 menu at Mickey D's. Two different states, two different items in two years. DONE! I'm done. No mas para mí. Nunca!

I hope I didn't overwhelm you all! I'll be back soon!
Love!