Where oh, where???

So I have a huge dilemma- do I keep traveling in hopes to find the perfect place to settle down and plant roots, or do I go back home tail between my legs and try to survive there for a few more years. My hubby has made it pretty clear that he does not want to live "forever" in my home town. My son is dead set on staying put- he has a best friend. My uncle keeps trying to convince me to go to Fresno, my sister wants me in Dallas. And me, I would love to live back home, only if I knew I was going to stay. I actually wouldn't mind staying here if I could get a job. I have applied at every hospital in this area and no one has called me back. They all have openings posted, but the recruiters don't return phone calls. So far my favorite places have been Tulsa, OK; Cour d lane Idaho; Maui; Albuquerque, New Mexico. I guess my time in Tucson was nice, but the pay was lousy and the schools were not great. Georgia seems nice, and so does Texas. I have heard that the Carolina's are beautiful. I really just want a place I can call home, maybe have a house. I would love for my son to go to the same school all of his life, and give him siblings. It would be nice to have friends and family where we live too. I know that I am asking for a lot here. If anyone knows where I should go I am open to opinions.

JAN (Just a nurse)

OK, I have been holding out for a while about posting this but maybe once I do I will finally be able to let it go... But, maybe not
OK here is the scene. very sick liver failure pt with enlarging belly and possible GI bleed comes in. This pt arrives by EMS in another RN's station. I drop what I am doing to help out. While primary RN is doing the NGT I am starting lines, drawing blood etc. in walks attending ER MD and resident ER MD
Attending- (not knowing he was asking the resident) "What is in the NGT?
Me- "Lots of blood- mud like really"
Attending- (icy stare and icier tone)"are you the Stanford ER resident?"
Me- "Why no, not today."
So I quickly finish helping the other RN and go back to my team tail between my legs. a little bit later I hear the liver patient yelling. I go into the room to see what he needs, he asks for pain meds. I go to attending
ME- "the liver guys wants something for pain"
Attending "Are you serious? Did he just ask for something?"
Me (while walking away) "Well I am no Stanford Er resident, but that is what he said"
Attending "I was joking when I said that earlier"
Me "Yeah it sounding very joking when you stared me down and said that"
So fast forward a couple of shifts. same attending different critical pt. This one liver failure no BP renal failure
Attending "What is wrong with this pt?"
Me- "Well I am no Stanford ER resident but I think he is not feeling well today." (as I walk away)
About 2 hours later and after several requests for a central line to give all the meds and blood said pt needs. Attending is at bedside while I am mixing meds. I come back to the room as Attending says to ICU fellow "NO I am not the nurse! I am the Dr. forget the nurse work you saw me doing."
ME- "nurse work? I am so sorry you had to do nurse work"
Attending " didn't see you there, the ICU MD thought I was the nurse."
me "OIC, I am not a Stanford ER resident after all."
Attending "Well you are just as good as a resident."
ME- look of disgust.- (nothing personally wrong with residents here, but after being an ER nurse for so many years, I would think that I knew a little bit more than the new residents.) "Thank so much!"
So now I am not really sure if the attending does not like ER nurses, does not trust the nurses or thinks we are stupid. Either way, I try to make myself a valuable part of the team. I don't think I am better than anyone else, I don't think that any one else is necessarily better than me, but we are a team. Each person is an integral part of this team as we can not function as one person alone. I try to learn something new and expand my knowledge daily, and I do know that there is always more than one way to skin a cat. Anyway I think that my blog has quickly become one rant after another. I feel a little better about getting this out. Although I can not guarantee that I will not throw the Stanford Er resident thing in Attending's face again. AS I do lack the filter between my brain and my mouth

Things that irk me

Something that have really annoy me:
*Some days I feel as though I we should have a sign out that says Marriott resort. I often wonder why people think we have room service in the ER. No I can not drop everything to bring you another warm blanket, no we do not have a pillow.
*And I am really sorry that you have not eaten all day, but you have only been in the ER for a total of 20 minutes so why is it so important that I find you food? What were you doing all day that made it impossible for you to feed yourself? *Asking "how long will I be here?" or "How long is the wait? don't have an exact time, but if you are in that much of a hurry why did you come in? And If I don't know the answer the probability of one of the other people walking buy your room knowing is pretty slim.
*When patients ask me to dress them, feed them or wipe there ass. when 20 minutes before stepping into the ER they were able to care for themselves without help. It is one thing if you truly can not do it yourself, but pure laziness is deplorable.
*When you ask a patient what they came in for and the answer is "You are the nurse/or Dr, you should know!" Well let me consult my magic eight ball for that answer.
So when you come to the ER remember This is not Burger King we do not do your way

I love ERnurseys blog about the same stuff. I guess we are all in the same boat, without a paddle and we know where this creek is headed

Just another night

Well it is just another night in the ER. Hard to believe that I get paid to do what I do.
So a typical night starts out a little crazy. 20 people in the lobby for hours waiting their turn for a coveted bed. Ambulances backed up in the halls that are littered with drunks and the cops that are waiting to take them away.
Tonight was more like a typical Friday or Saturday night with more Police officers than nurses. The police waiting for the "medically cleared for jail" dispo. And the gems that they bring in, I mean how many people can go to work to be called "cock sucking slut, faggot, f#$%^ing bitch nigger"? I think that Tourette's syndrome is more and more common these days. How else can you explain the things that come out of the mouths of the 20 somethings will thrashing about on a stretcher. You would think that it was my fault that Jr decided to drink, do a little meth and then ram his car into someone while going 95MPH. So you have to wonder why would anyone would want this job? I ask myself this question frequently. Maybe the adrenaline rush of getting that STEMI off to the cath lab in under 60 minutes, or starting the Stroke protocol. I know that I have to do this job, some days not because I want to, but because it is what I was born to do. I do like to take care of my share of "train wrecks", I actually prefer them. I also love to take of the Peds. But it is very difficult to take the constant disrespect from the many jerks out there. I can not count the number of times I have spit on, kicked, swung at, pissed on and cursed at by the belligerent drunks and drug addicts. I understand that alcoholism is a disease and that addiction is horrible, but when did society decide to make it OK for these people to treat everyone like a roach. Some days it is almost to hard to take and I find myself fantasizing about knocking their teeth out. But for now I guess I will have to settle for being "cock sucking slut, faggot, f#$%^ing bitch nigger" while I get you that warm blanket and boxed meal. I will sign this JAN- (just a nurse)

Orifices

Never a dull moment in the ER
OK, it has to be said, enough is enough
Ladies- when you put something in your vagina it will need to come out! You really can't leave it in forever, and please for the love of God do not forget that you put it in there!
You would not believe how many times we have to fish something out of there that has been in for only God knows how long. Do you not realize it has a foul odor? I mean really. They put the strings on the tampons for a reason! Maybe should you set your cell phone alarm when you place one in so that in 5 hours you remember to take it out.
I understand the occasional lost condom, and you just need someone to pull it out.
Another thing nurses are not completely stupid- if you have sex there is a chance you could be pregnant. You would not believe how many females come into the ER with abdominal pain and try to tell us that there is no way they could be pregnant and low and behold they are crowning. I love that they just can't be pregnant even with their amniotic fluid running down their legs.
So this really goes to my theory that maybe people should have to have a license or permit to procreate. Maybe pass a test, be able to prove that they can actually take care of another living being, and to be able to understand that you can buy a thermometer and Tylenol at the store Another thing when you have a fever do not wear everything in your closet to come to the ER while carrying the largest blanket you could find. And it is OK to take Tylenol or Motrin before coming in if you have a fever. And if you are vomiting do not ask me if you can have something to eat or drink. I will tell you go right on ahead, but I will not hold your hair, or clean up your vomit!
OK enough said for today.

MUD!

This is my last day off for a little while and I decided it would be mud day. Collin my 4 year old and his friend played in a huge mud pit for a few hours today. They were both head to toe mud. I should have taken pictures.
They are so lucky to have parents that will actually make the mud for them. I filled a dirt area of the backyard with water, trucks and sand toys, they did the rest. I hope that as Collin grows we can still do that sort of thing. I really would like for him to have everything I didn't, including mud days!
Mud day started the other night when we went to a friends house for dessert and Collin and his friend disappeared into the backyard. The two of them were a little too quiet, and when we found them they had mud all over their backsides. They had used a little hill in the backyard as a mud slide. All we could do was laugh, then of course strip them naked to get a bath. So today was officialy mud day to make up for the short lived mud play they had the other night. The next door neighbor saw the boys and just laughed. It sure was fun to watch the boys cover themselves with mud. Maybe tomorrow could be official bubble day.

New to me

So this whole blogging thing is pretty new to me. I just happened on a blog tonight while looking for new shoes.
Apparently there is a blog between irate nurses and Dr's about who is treated worse. I would have to say the nurses probably get it worse. Anyway I thought people were really getting worked up over something that really didn't matter much. People with power are not always kind, some are worse then others. Get over it and move on. I love my job for the most part, but there are days when it is really difficult to maintain composure when some new intern or resident decides they are god. I know what my role is and I try to do the best I can.
Anyway enough about that. I am still looking for better shoes and now I am blogging instead of looking. Oh, well, I guess tomorrow I can look again. You never know what Google will turn up in a search for nursing shoes.