I heart San Francisco...

Hola muchachos!! I am LOVIN San Francisco!! I went sightseeing yesterday when I got off work. I stayed up for like 28 hours straight! What was I thinking? I had a blast, though! I went around with my first San Francisco friend, Gokul. He's my new Indian brother. Tee hee... We had so much fun going around the city being goofballs. That's the best way to be, right?

The hospital I'm working in is pretty cool, but it's like feeder-grower city in there and apparently the norm is to have 3-to-1s....blah. There was an intubated baby the other night and he got extubated to CPAP before the end of the shift. Ho-hum... I like a NICU with a little action happening...or at least with a couple of big, fat trach babies! Other than that, everybody is VERY nice and helpful...TOTALLY opposite of the crazies in New Orleans!

California Dreamin...

So...I'm on my way to San Francisco!! I'm VERY excited about it. I'm praying that i'll have a MUCH better experience than I did in New Orleans. So far the journey has been kinda stinky, though. The Nashville airport had a hellacious line this morning and I almost missed my flight. I had to literally run to my gate...which was like the farthest one in the whole airport. Since I was late, I had to sit in the back...between people. The guy to my left smelt like cheese or something. Maybe he was farting...I don't know. It was stankin and I was miserable.

Now I'm stuck in the San Diego Airport. WORST. AIRPORT. EVER. As my Granny would say, "it's tee ninechy," meaning it's WAY too small. All the damn Southwest flights are running behind, so there are pissed off people laying around EVERYWHERE. I was sitting on the floor for a while, but I finally got a seat. Now I'm just a'waitin...

*sigh*

New Orleans...a reflection...

Ummmm...it SUCKED.

It's freakin snowing in New Orleans!!!

These pictures suck cuz I was not about to get out of my pajamas in my toasty apartment to get some live action snow shots. So....I took these pictures through my windows. Did I mention it's FREAKIN SNOWING IN NEW ORLEANS??!!!

"Merry Christmas to all, til I see ya some mo..."

This is how they do Christmas in Cajun Country. Santa drives a boat...led by alligators...

Hot Diggidity Dog!!!!

I'm going to San Francisco next!!!!!!! Woo-hooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

A little bit of sunshine...

In other news....I WENT TO THE LAKERS GAME LAST NIGHT!!!! WOO-HOO!!! It was so much fun!! Through all the bullcrap I've dealt with down here, I'm SO glad I managed to meet 2 cool people. We had so much fun at the game. They hated on me and my Lakers shirt, but oh well....ya'll already know who won...those are the pics...

In the words of Michelle Tanner, "How Rude!"

Ok...so this is what I heard at 7:30 this morning..."God, she's such a bitch. These bitchy little contract nurses blah, blah, blah..." Who said it? The CHARGE nurse. To whom? ME. Why? Because I didn't smile in return to HER attitude towards ME. Oh...she said it as she was walking away from me in front of like 7 people. She had asked me if I knew I had 3 babies...like I'm a jackass and can't read the damn assignment board. I just turned around and said, "yeah." And y'all know me...I kinda have a mean face. So sometimes I look mad/mean even when I'm really not. But nonetheless...that is no cause for someone that is "supposedly" in a position of "authority" to act like a damn CHILD. Excuse me, but I thought we were all adults?? Are u serious?? This place is SO freakin warped that I keep thinking that I'm having a long-ass dream and that this couldn't POSSIBLY be happening in real life. It's like a bizarro world or something. AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

Sheesh...

It's been a LONG time since I've blogged. I didn't realize it had been this long. I guess I just really havent been in the bloggin mood. Ah well...

So...just 5 more weeks, 15 shifts, until my assignment is OVA!!! I cant freakin wait!!! It is gonna feel so f-in good to pack up my truck and hit the road OUT of New Orleans and I wont look back! Actually, I made a cool friend down here, Lauren, so I might come hang with her for Mardi Gras next year. Other than that, New Orleans can kiss my beautiful black...

I can't wait to move back to Nashville for a couple weeks for the Holidays. I really, really miss my sweet Lola. I bought her a Mrs. Claus coat at Target. She's gonna be so freakin cute in it! I'll post pictures.

Speakin of pictures...here are a couple of me and my NO girls...

Haven't blogged in a while...

Hola! I haven't blogged in a while...sorry. I'm not really in the bloggin mood right now either, but I'll briefly give an update.

1. I've hung out in the quarter a couple times so far with 2 friends I've made in the unit and I took some pictures, but for some reason my freakin camera won't upload the pics to my laptop....GRRRR!! I'll keep workin on it and post them when I get a chance.

2. I still hate the hospital I work at...well actually, I don't hate the entire hospital....just the scuttlebutt bitches in the NICU. I'm not saying that everyone in the unit is a scuttlebutt bitch, but there is definitely about a 98% scuttlebutt bitch quota being met. They're just a bunch of hatin-ass jerks! Period. (I KNOW I'm sounding like a bitch myself, but you'd have to understand my circumstances.)

3. Sarah Palin has to be about the biggest airhead I've ever seen in my whole entire life. I mean, is she serious??? Is the republican party serious??? I don't understand! If she and John McCain win this election, I'm gonna denounce my citizenship and move to the Bahamas! Anybody with me???? NURSES FOR OBAMA!!!!!!!!

BARACK the Vote, Pimps!!

my b.u.t.t. itches...

Not really, but this little kid said it on Wife Swap and it cracked me up! The funniest part was that he was dead serious. The new mom was like, "that means u need to take a shower." Now that's what I call comedy.

Anywho...the reason I'm writing is because I've been thinking and I think I've been a Debbie Downer lately. I mean true, my assignment is less than ideal to me, but I could do a whole heck of a lot better on focusing on the positives. For example...I'm getting paid a pretty nice chunk of change to do something I love--nursing. I'm living rent-free. I no longer have to worry about working overtime. I'm able to experience living in a new city and meet new people. Also...all the things that I go through that I think suck, they will all ultimately help me to become a more well-rounded person in the long run. So for all these things, I'm thankful.

And oh yeah....today was PAY DAY!!!! Woo-hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I haven't gotten a paycheck in like 6-7 weeks!! Getting a direct deposit this morning felt FABULOUS! It wasn't a full check, but it's a start.

I don't know what to title this...

So I'm gonna cut to the chase....I HATE my assignment!! It sucks and I hate it! I've worked in the PICU more than I've worked in the NICU. Every MORNING (yeah that's making me sick, too) that I have to drive to work I'm in fear of where they will have "floated" me too. Luckily, I've only been floated to the PI so far. I'm more familiar with the PI staff than I am the staff in the NICU...that's sad. But, I know the day will come when they float me to the floor and I have like 4 big, grown-ass kids. I had a 6y/o in the PI the other day...but he had CP and he had a trach, and y'all know how I LOVE those trachs. So that kinda made it better. (Am I a sicko or what??)

So besides being floated, I'm not too crazy about the NICU itself. They brag about being a Level III, but they aint shit. They have old-timey equipment and they are WAY behind on safety protocols and initiatives when it comes to the neonatal population. They barely even put babies in isolettes! I could write a book on all the ways this place ain't Vanderbilt, or any reputable Level III for that matter. Oh, by the way...the manager's a bitch...with a capital B, I, T, C, and H, ya dig? I can't stand her or that funky-ass yellow Hanes Her Way hoodie she wears everyday.

The entire hospital is clearly mismanaged from the top on down. I hate it. Hate is a strong word, but I find it to be the most appropriate.

So what does this all mean for me?? As of right now, I'm gonna continue to try to stick it out in the Big Easy and finish my assignment. I'm definitely not ready to move back to Tennessee. (Go ahead...wipe your tears...) But I damn sure have a list of questions to ask my next potential employer. And in the meantime, my recruiter is shopping out my file to hospitals with openings for late October/November...just to keep my options open. But like I said, I'm gonna try to stick it out til December. After that...I'm throwin up the dueces to the N.O. I've had about enough of this two-bit town.

Lastly...after some intense pondering and inner reflection...I've decided that I was born to be some rich man's wife. It's gotta be my destiny. It's just gotta. At this point I'd be content with a Sugar Daddy, ya know? Ah well...I'll keep being a nurse in the meantime.

More to come later...

I haven't blogged in a while, but working day shift has gotten me all discombobulated. Is that how u spell that?? I don't really care.

Anywho...I'm just getting over a stomach flu/virus type-thing. I got floated to the PICU on thursday and some little JERK kid coughed right in my face while I was trying to hold her down for a lab draw. 24 hours later I started yakkin my brains out. Little jerk. That's EXACTLY why I DON'T DO big kids!!!

She better not let me catch her ass in the streets...

If I were a cartoon character, I'd have smoke comin out of my ears...

So, I've been in Nursing orientation for the past 2 days. It's been pretty cool. There are 3 other travelers and one full-time staff nurse going to the NICU. Everybody seems pretty cool so far. Me and one of the other travelers, we'll call her "CC," realized that we both like to drink and party, so we were already makin plans to hit up the French Quarter and Bourbon St. this weekend. We had even planned to get some drinks and then go on one of these "ghost tours" or something that they have in the city.

BACKGROUND INFO: When I accepted the assignment, I was told that there would be a day/night rotating schedule. Since I LOVE night shift (cuz we're the COOLEST!!!), I told her, the NICU manager, that I'd be more than happy to do nights if anybody else preferred days. She said that since that was the case, it'd be likely that I'd get the majority night shifts. That sounded good enough to me. I kindly reminded her on SEVERAL occasions that I would work nights. And there are 4 travelers and 2 of us prefer nights and 2 prefer days. Sounds simple enough, right? 50/50...

What did I get when she gave me my schedule for the next 2 weeks.............ALL. F-IN. DAY SHIFTS!!!!!! I was like what the hell??? I haven't worked a 12 hour day in almost 3 years!! The bullshit is...she scheduled CC all night shifts...and she specifically requested days. Does this make sense to y'all?? Why didn't she just give me the nights and CC the days??? So we asked her if we could switch and she gave us a response that basically said, "I'm the law around here...this is my unit...fuck you...get to work." Ok, ok...maybe it wasn't that harsh. Maybe I've taken the liberty to embellish a little bit---it makes for a much juicier story--- but she gave no explanations or apologies for the schedule. And she screwed CC even worse by giving her 4 nights IN A ROW!!! Now I've worked 4 nights in a row many a time, but that's DEFINITELY NOT something you schedule SOMEONE ELSE to do!!! That's some bullshit if I've ever seen it...

Meanwhile, I wanna vomit. Day shift right off the bat?? And by right off the bat I mean starting this Saturday! So basically I will have been working for 5 days in a row. Now granted...the first 3 were 6-hour days, but it's the prinicipal! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

She sucked us all in by telling us what we wanted to hear on the phone. She made sure to sound all nice and sweet...now she's bitch-slappin us all over the joint!

Ok...I'm gonna calm down. This experience is only gonna be what I make it to be. If I roll in Saturday morning with a shitty attitude, then I'm gonna have a shitty day, ya know? So...gray skies are gonna clear up...you know the rest of the song. I guess by Saturday...at 5 f-in AM...i'll put on my happy face.

I miss VCH.
I miss self-scheduling.
I miss being a nurse.
I miss working nights.

Oh...to make this all worse...me and CC arent gonna be able to get tipsy and hang with the voodoo priestesses this saturday night on the ghost tour! Not only that...we've been put on opposite weekends!! damn....Damn....DAMN!!! But you know...maybe I'll meet a hot, sexy-fine doctor on day shift that I wouldn't be able to see on nights... Tee hee... Shit...with my luck...I'll get hit on by all the cleaning crew and stock boys like I usually do! Am I a roody-poo magnet or what??

I need a drink...

Peace out, PIIIIIIIIIMPS!!

I got the blues...

I'm starting to miss my family and friends. Not bad enough to like feel really bad or anything, but i'm a little bummed. It's friday night and I don't have anybody to call to go out with or ask what's going on. The weather's a little weird down here tonight too, so it's not the best time to venture out and explore.

I called my mama to ask about Lola and it sounds like Lola is having the time of her life. I'm happy that she's happy, but i'm sad that she's not here. And...I know that she wouldn't be having as much fun with me. Up here, it's just me. In Nashville she's got my mama, my brother, and my mama's fiance's dog to play with.

So....I got the blues...and I'm not talkin about Kraft macaroni and cheese...

Blah.

Thanks guys...

Just wanted to say I appreciate the comments I've gotten so far. I'm glad to see people care about what I'm up to...ha, ha

Woo-Hoo!!!

I FINALLY GOT CABLE! I FINALLY GOT CABLE! I FINALLY GOT CABLE! If I had to watch another f-in DVD, I was gonna LOSE IT!! Now I can watch football! YEEEEEESSSSSSS! (I just did the arm movement that goes along with that...tee hee...)

"Tiffany Does New Orleans".....take 2.....ACTION!

Well...I'm back in the Big Easy (that's the nickname for New Orleans, right? If not...oops!) Anyway...I got back yesterday evening. I left Lo-Lo in Nashville for a while until I get settled and am able to find her some freakin grass! She's cool though...she's got another dog to play with and several people to keep her entertained. She may never wanna come back on the road with me...

In case you haven't heard...there may be another Hurricane A'Comin!! What the hell, man!!! This is the biggest bunch of bullshit I've ever encountered in my whole life. A part of me wants to pack up all my shit and leave New Orleans for good if I have to evacuate again. But then the other half of me wants to stick with it and stay in New Orleans until the end of my assignment....if I ever even start. Shit...I'm tempted to head for the coast and start Shrimpin' like Forrest Gump! I need to be makin some M-O-N-E-Y!

Today I used my GPS to basically get lost in the city. I found the hospital...definitely NOT Vanderbilt-ish. I don't even think I saw a parking garage. Anyway...I got lost trying to get back on the interstate. My navigation system was telling me where to turn, but I must be an idiot or something. Yeah...that sounds about right. While I was lost, I think I may have come across a dead guy on the side of the road. I tried to look and see if I saw any chest movement, but I didn't see any. I was in my car and my windows are tinted AND I'm just a NICU nurse, so what do I know? He might have just been sleepin one off.

When I got back to my side of town I decided to see what the mall was all about. It was LAME!!! There was a fake-ass "Build-A-Bear" called Jazzy Bears or some shit and there was also a SAS shoe store. Awesome. I've been meaning to get me a pair of SAS's. Those shoes are the whole reason I went into nursing. You're not really a nurse until you clomp around in a pair of SAS's!! I'm so lucky that I have a SAS shoe store so close by!!!

Next on my To-Do List: FIND A BETTER MALL! And I guess I'll go ahead and get a month-to-month gym membership somewhere. I found a gym right up the street, so I'll check it out tomorrow. I need to get the scoop on some good Happy Hours so I can throw a couple back and maybe meet some locals. I have yet to see/meet any of my neighbors and I was too shy to chat with the Grannies in the SAS store, so I havent made any friends yet. But hey...I've only been here a total of 48 hours. And providing the whole town doesn't get blown away in a hurricane, I'll have plenty of time to meet some people.

Adios, muchachos!

The wait continues...

What up pimps??? Well...I have yet to start my assignment. Heck...I was only in New Orleans for a little less than 24 hours before I "evacuated." Anywho...before the hurricane hit, I was told that orientation had been moved from the 3rd to the 8th. So, I had planned to make my way back to New Orleans friday or saturday. Well...today I talked to the nurse manager in the NICU and she informed me that orientation had been moved to the 17th!!!! WHAT?????? I'm not getting paid people!!! I got my last check from Vandy at the end of August and it doesn't look like I'll be getting another check until October. Sheesh...thank God for credit cards!

Anyway...everything's cool. I got an assignment in New Orleans for a reason. It must be where God wants me to be right now, so I'll continue to be patient and wait to get down there and start saving lives again =) I miss being a nurse. I haven't worked in almost a month. Oh well... I'll be back on the grind soon enough. But in the meantime I'm B.....O.....R.....E.....D!!!!!

Seriously...?

UGGGGGGHHHHH!!! My little traveling adventure is not getting off to the greatest start. Lola and I made it to New Orleans wednesday afternoon without any problems. We got to our new apartment, checked in and unpacked. I like the new place. I think it's pretty cute =) I have a 2BR apartment b/c they were out of 1BRs. I was a little annoyed that the furniture delivery people put the bedroom furniture in the NON-master bedroom, but I got over that pretty quickly. I tried to be superwoman and move the furniture into the master bedroom all by myself, but after I got the damn dresser wedged stuck in the hallway I gave it up. (I felt like Austin Powers in the first one when he got that golf cart stuck in between those 2 walls)

Problem #1: There is VERY little grass in the apartment complex. I didn't realize it until I took Lola out to potty. I was like, "what the heck???" There are plenty of trees, bushes and dirt, but no grass. I had to walk like 3 buildings down to find a SMALL area of grass for her to use. I'm used to just walking out the door and down the stairs to some grass. Not here. And plus, Lola doesn't pee and poo in the same piece of grass, so making it work got a little tricky. GRRRRRRR!!!

Problem #2: My allergies have been going NUTS! Itchy, runny eyes, itchy throat, sneezing. I take Zyrtec everyday already, so I don't know what the heck is goin on. I hope I feel better soon. Oh...it's hot as hell down here too!! Phew!!

Problem #3: THERE'S A HURRICANE A'COMIN!!!! I knew the risk of hurricanes when I accepted this assignment, but damn....the day after I freakin get down there??? Not cool, man. I had originally planned to fly back to Nashville on friday for my family reunion. I had also planned to board Lola in New Orleans while I was gone. So this morning I called the place to make the arrangements and they informed me that they are not taking pets due to the HURRICANE A'COMIN! My flight was on Southwest and they don't fly pets. The customer service rep suggested that I try American Airlines b/c they do fly pets. Yeah....round trip, WITH stops, would have been well over $1000!!! My round trip flight on southwest was only $178, so I was like HELL NAW!!!! So what did I do??? I drove my happy ass right back to Nashville. Gross. I drove almost 1200 f-in miles in 2 f-in days. All because of Princess Lola. Speaking of Lola....her ass might stay in Nashville for a while. I havent decided completely yet, but I'm thinking about it. My apartment is just not well-suited for a dog (i.e., no reasonable amount of grass OR walking space). And to think...I gave up the chance to live in a fancy downtown highrise... DAMN!!

Anyway...once Gustav's ass does whatever he's supposed to do (which will hopefully be NOTHING---Gustav's the hurricane, not my secret Hispanic lover), I'll be heading back to N'awlins to start my assignment. Hopefully things will go a little better. I'm optimistic =)

Cheyanna Banana!!

I have a better video of Cheyann playin Patty Cake, but it's too large to upload on here. So...here's one of her being silly. She is getting SO big and she is SO stinkin CUTE!

Boxes galore...

Moving SUCKS!!!! Ugggghhhh...and I gotta do this shit every three months??!!! What the hell was I thinking?? I keep trying to cut done on the stuff I'm taking, but I'm still gonna end up taking a whole bunch of stuff... Oh well...

Meanwhile...Lola is walking around here being completely useless. Just running around chewin up shit. I'm like pack a box, run the vacuum, do SOMETHING!! But then I remember she's just a dog... Maybe I should have gotten a chimp or something instead. I bet I could have taught it how to pack and tape up a box. Damn it! Hindsight is always 20/20...

Bittersweet Goodbye...

So this is my next to last night at VCH... I got a teeny-tiny bit sad on the way to work tonight. What's crazy is that I'm finally feeling like I've made a niche for myself here, and now I'm leaving. Life's kinda funny like that.

I will miss all the buddies that I made. I will miss the familiar faces. I will miss the comfort of working in familiar surroundings. Oh well. It's time for a change and some excitement. Not that Nashville wasn't exciting enough for me...wait...it WASN'T! That's why I'm leaving! Maybe I'll find my way back...

What lies ahead for me, I don't know. But I am VERY excited about trying to find that out. For the first time in my life I will be completely alone. Well...except for my little Lolita. But she doesn't count. What I mean is that I'll be without family or friends in a new city...for the first time...ever. I guess it's time to see what I'm made of. I'm optimistic. My glass is definitely half-full. Wanna sip....?

My blog...

Hey! I've never had a blog before and I thought that this would be a good time to try it out. As you know, me and Ms. Lola Bad Ass (my Italian Greyhound---for those of you that don't know) are gonna be hittin the road in September! First stop....NEW ORLEANS!!! I'm excited...and a little nervous...but I have a feeling it's gonna be great! And if it sucks...I can always bring my ass right back to Vanderbilt : ) I'm sure me and Lola will find plenty of trouble to get into and have lots of fun.

Anywho...I started this blog to have a way to keep in touch with everybody and to give y'all updates and post pictures of our travels. Speaking of pictures...I'm gonna try to get some up of me and Lola (if I don't sell her to the gypsies first). I'm only kidding...she's bad as hell, but I love her. Check back soon for updates...