Hello? Anybody Home?

Is anyone reading this blog? I don't think so, but I sure have enjoyed writing. I don't write as much as I used to; school, work, and salsa are taking their toll on me, but I can't seem to sacrifice any one of them. I had a fabulous time this past weekend! I basically spent the majority of it in the ballroom dancing my butt off. It was great. Can't wait to do it all over again this weekend!

It's back to work tonight. They say Mondays are the hardest days. We return to work and have to get back into the groove. I enjoy Monday nights. I look forward to what awaits me there. Patient turnover in the ICU is a bit high. Some patients stay longer than others, of course, but for the most part we get 'em in and out ASAP. I always look forward to seeing what Mondays have in store for me. Things have been pretty mellow at work. No codes, no deaths, and no violent situations in about a week or two. For a while, that was all we were getting.

We got a middle aged man some weeks ago who put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger. Motive? He had been diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic cancer, and didn't wish to contine with therapy. His wife heard the gunshot and ran into the room to find him on the floor in a pool of blood...alive. By the time he got to us he was a mess, obviously. I have never seen anything like this before: the entrance and exit wounds were clearly visible, and his eyes and face were severely swollen and blue. Needless to say, he didn't make it through the night. The very next night we had another patient who had come to us for respiratory failure secondary to a brain tumor. She suffered from mental retardation due to child abuse. To look at the young girl was to look at an angel. She was in her late twenties, but looked half that. She had become a ward of the state and was living in a nursing home when she fell ill. With no family and no friends at her bedside, she quietly passed away, clutching to a stuffed teddy bear. There wasn't a dry eye in the house.

I'll tell anyone...working where I work -even as a low on the totem pole, know-nothing tech -is not easy. But so far, it has been one of the best things I've ever done. Yes, I have to commute almost an hour five days a week and lose sleep, but I believe once PA school starts, I will realize just how fundamental this position has been for me.

This week is all that stands between me and a final exam for my music history class. Then I start chemistry next week. The fun never ends! 7 months to go before PA school. I can't wait!