I don't know what happened for November. I blinked, and then we were a week into December. Time to deploy the bulleted list once more!
- If anyone did not see last week, I won NaNoWriMo! This was probably a significant factor into why November flew for me, given that any free time I had was slated into that space instead. There were some good swatches that came out and a few places where it was a performative, perfunctory mess. There is more to add when I get to the editing process, but it is a glorious thing to have the raw material to edit. It's nice to pause to bask in that idea as well as the accomplishment.
- Luna does not have a perfect grasp on the schedule, which included a stretch of time where she was barking at 0230 for about a week. There may have been some interesting outside force--a loose panel making noise from somewhere, an outside cat wandering around the area, etc.--but it was a frustrating week. It was around daylight savings time, which also probably added to the fun. She's mostly readjusted, in that she is adjusting to a schedule that is not consistent: when I have a shift (which is not standard from week to week), I take her out and feed her before I leave, meaning that food happens around 0630; on other days, Andy is more likely to get her rolling closer to 0800. She's a trooper. And a derp factory.
- Andy is still loving his job at Rivian and things are certain flavor of busy there with deliveries taking off. December promises to be equally if not more busy. We had the opportunity to go to the First Mile event, where Andy actually drove an R1T (I was in the backseat). It was a ton of fun.
- I have been orientation now for just shy of a month. Yes, I daresay it is finally starting to feel real, to the point where my initial discomfort in stating "I am a nurse," has officially dissipated--I'm in the club now. I have a sense of belonging that is settling in. I am carving a niche for myself in pieces: one of my roles is "pharmacy," since I keep my locker stocked with tylenol, ibuprofen, and the like. It's a small but important thing I can do to help support some of my team.
- There are also a lot of bizarre situations that happen on a shift, including (but not limited to) the following: patients insisting on the bullshit COVID "treatments" that they heard about online, some attempting to manipulate myself and other staff emotionally, family drama that we get pulled into, gentle (and not so gentle) reorienting of persons who are highly confused and/or forgetful, differences with opinions with the doctors, a sudden new symptom that had not been there earlier today that is simply weird, having something literally thrown at your body (which then leads to a call to security), a patient that has figured out the fall alarm is a quick way to get attention when they're feeling bored and just want to talk, and then walking into the next room like none of those pieces happened. A lot can happen in twelve hours. Yet, with all that, I feel that I am getting something of a footing--knowing that I can never know everything is oddly reassuring; knowing that I will also continue to ask questions and continue to learn is exciting to me. I am in a good place. It is exhausting, certainly, but I am being challenged in ways that I find fulfilling. That doesn't mean there are moments I want to Rage!Quit (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ and vent, but I accept this as an aspect of the day, finding those spaces where it is worth fighting. Hell, there have been a couple of places where I've stated with patients directly that "Nope, I'm setting a boundary here," and explain what it not okay. As a rule, I try to give grace to persons that cross a boundary that they did not know was there, but I will absolutely not tolerate someone that continues to cross a boundary that has been clarified. I am trying to learn where I need to set these sooner, before they reach critical mass.
- I have seen a few of my peers walking around in their blue scrubs--it's edifying to see us there together. I also enjoy collecting the names of the food staff, the housekeeping staff, restocking, and all else that help keep the hospital functioning. Though, I think I have definitely worried a few of them when I abruptly come in with "Hey, what's your name?" and my explanation of "I'm collecting names as I go," probably has not reassured many people, now that I think on it. Ah, well, at least they know I'm a certain flavor of strange--mostly harmless, but strange.
- I think it is fair to say that Mike is keenly remembering holiday seasons of Starbucks' past, and finding his own spaces to recuperate where need be.
- I did a bit of house decorating for the holidays, though I haven't broken out much for interior pieces yet. Mostly I'm proud of this idea, having taken down the messy nest of dead morning glory vines to change up this space with something simple but festive.
- Otherwise, a significant portion of my updates seem to hover over work at the moment. It is occupying much of my conscious thought, and, yes, I do hear IV and bed alarms when I try to go to sleep sometimes. I've been trying to reach out in spurts to people again, too, grabbing a meal here or a catch-up call there in a few places, and hoping someone else can take the initiative in others for a while.
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