All coming together…

Since I quit my job to go back to school 6 years ago I have felt like I was living in limbo…. Always in transition…. Sitting on the fence. After I graduated, the feeling remained. First with the Camp Nurse job with Concordia Language Villages in Bemidji knowing that that was a temporary gig.  Then I worked the night shift at Sunrise Nursing Home in Two Harbors. This job built my confidence and was actually a very fun place to work… but my heart was in the Twin Cities so I knew it wouldn’t last. On the fence I remained.  Then I took the night shift facility charge nurse position at a facility north of the twin cities that will remain nameless, simply because it was a nightmare. While there I questioned why I had even become a nurse in the first place.  It made me incredibly sad that I hated going to work while I had only been an RN 6 months. It taught me a valuable lesson however. It taught me what kind of nurse I did NOT want to be.

I applied to many positions during this time and all the interviews seemed to happen in a two week window. I had 3 job offers on the table: 1) a very well paying position as a Unit Charge Nurse, day shift, in a dementia unit of a large LTC and rehab facility. 2) RN Case Manager with Hospice of the Twin Cities, with my area being Minneapolis with most patients coming from Hennepin County Medical Center, and 3) an evening shift RN in a very nice long term care facility 10 minutes from my home.  I followed my heart and took the hospice RN position and have never been happier!

I have found that I wear many different nursing hats in my new role. A concept that I truly embraced while at St Scholastica was the concept of holistic healing – treating the mind, body, and spirit.  I am able to work this concept every day and with every client.  It is so much more than simply meeting the medical needs of a dying client. It may be providing respite for a caregiver… or it might mean bringing in the music, massage, or pet therapist in to help someone with their pain or anxiety.  I work in neighborhoods that are typically low income and filled with a variety of different people.   Somali, Hmong, Hispanic, Russian, Polish, African American… all races and cultures with one thing in common. All have a terminal illness and their days are numbered.

In the month that I have been in this position, I have seen many different people in a variety of circumstance.  

I have seen beautiful old homes filled with antiques, studio apartments in low income developments, small neat homes in scary neighborhoods, and homes neglected and mistreated for years.  I have seen a patient on a mattress in the living room with every space filled with caring family and friends. .. and  I have seen a small studio apartment, neat , tidy and organized with many things but the patient alone with no one to care for him but our hospice team.

I have seen patients with the question on their hearts on why God hasn’t taken them yet… and patients wondering why God is taking them this soon.

I finally feel that I am where I am meant to be, doing what I do best.  I have so much to learn but I am sure I will continue to feel this way throughout my career.  My team includes a team leader, 2 RNs other than me, 2 night RNs, 2 LPNs, 2 Aides, a Homemaker, a Social Worker, a music therapist, a pet therapist, a massage therapist, and a chaplain.  Together, we are amazing.

The pukers have all gone home.

We shipped out the latest bunch of Villagers on Saturday and the new ones arrived on Monday. The kids were great, but good riddance! Too much puking!

I had my first 24 hours off this past weekend… awesome! Jeff hit the road early and drove up here to attend the closing ceremony with me Saturday morning. Wowee was he a sight for sore eyes! Tears were shed!

It was also my birthday on Saturday. I have decided that this will be the last birthday I will be celebrating. 45 is definitely my limit. 45?! Really?! Wasn’t I just 25 a couple of years ago?

58 new Villagers arrived in my Village on Monday. After a crazy day of checking everyone in along with their meds, it has been a very peaceful Health Center (aka Club Med). I only hope it continues!View from Paris towards Club Med

  Paris

Today was an absolutely beautiful day. Sunny and 75 degrees with a slight breeze. I actually had the opportunity to enjoy the weather today! Spent some time weeding the garden that is next to Paris.  The sun was warm, Guillame was playing the piano inside Paris and the music carried outside ever so lightly, and the smell of bread baking was wafting from the kitchen. When I closed my eyes I could almost imagine myself actually in France. After lunch I even got to spend a nice two hours lying in the sun on the dock.  Heaven!

Hmmm… if only all the days as a Camp Nurse were like this one.

Bonjour. Welcome to Camp PukeALot.

Bonjour. Mon nom est Gabi. J’ai quitte la Chine en France.

Hello. My name is Gabi. I have moved from China to France.

Can you say culture shock?! I had to quickly close out two sessions in Chinese, train in the new nurse, and then race over to French to be trained in by that leaving nurse. Not to mention pack up all my stuff, move it, and then unpack.

My first meal was dinner… it included rice but not sticky rice (mi fan) and it had veggies in it. And it included fresh homemade baked baguettes and butter. I almost cried. Seriously.

The new nurse gave me a very quick short tour and introduced me to a couple of key people and then left. Estelle (my health care assistant) was instructed to finish the tour with me later. Within no more than 10 minutes after the current nurse leaving, a Villager came in and puked in our garbage can. Welcome to French Bemidji.

French Bemidji has had an interesting summer so far. The Norwalk virus went through and they had 23 puking and pooping Villagers at one time. They set up a “sick bay” in one of the activity buildings and brought in other nurses and health care assistants from other villages to help. I came in at the tail end and have had 3 pukers of my own.

The nights have been rough since everything seems to happen in the middle of my slumber. I have had one full night of sleep since getting here this past Saturday. This is the hardest part of being a Camp Nurse. Well, that and I miss my family and friends.

 

Let’s talk about my Chinese Village. The kids there were amazing… they were fun, and sweet, and quite entertaining at times. I had more free time there than here and more opportunity to get to know them. Above are my very first patients as an RN. They were very excited when I told them this later and we all took pictures. Both have been coming to the Chinese camp for several years and can speak it quite well (of course, how would I know?!). The gal wants to be a nurse when she grows up so we had lots of conversations about nursing and nursing school.

This is Da Wei my First Aider and right hand man. He’s a very talented young man and it’ll be interesting to see where life takes him. He had been at Chinese for the first half at the summer and was moving to Portuguese for the second half. I would have been lost without him there.

I haven’t taken any pictures of my Village yet…been a little busy! Watch for a new blog soon…

Playing Tourist

Had 12 hours off on Saturday so I spent the day in Bemidji  playing solo tourist. Camp was crazy that morning (I swear all the girls are menstruating at one time) and I locked myself out of the cabin so  Hua Ai wasn’t able to turn back into Evelyn until 30 minutes later than planned.

I started my day at the local Dunn Bros since I was craving a Latte (Lordy, too many days since my last Latte!).  I had planned on spending some time applying for jobs, but their internet kept cutting out and I felt like I was wasting too much of my valuable free time.  My first stop was to visit Paul Bunyan and his giant blue Ox Babe, of course.

Does anyone know why Bemidji is tied to Paul Bunyan? I checked a respectable historical resource, Walt Disney, and didn’t come up with an answer.

From the website RoadsideAmerica.com, there are the following Paul Bunyan’s in Minnesota:

Minnesota

• Akeley:Kneeling Paul Bunyan 20 feet tall (maybe the claimed 33 feet, if he was standing), across from Paul's Purple Cow Ice Cream Parlor. Akeley is "Birthplace and Home of World's Largest Paul Bunyan Statue." His cradle was here when we visited.
• Bloomington: a 19-foot Bunyan, part of the Mall of America
• Bemidji: Paul Bunyan and Babe Statues, built in the 1930's.
• Blackduck: Paul Bunyan's Duck.

• Brainerd: The 26 feet tall Talking Bunyan, long a fixture at the now defunct Paul Bunyan Amusement Center, can now be seen at This Old Farm outside of town, along with Babe the Blue Ox and Sport the Dog.

• Brainerd: In 2005, a seated Paul Bunyan was erected outside a new welcome center 5 miles south of town.
• Chisholm: "There is a statue of Paul Bunyan inside one of the buildings at the Minnesota Museum of Mining. I know of this statue because it scared the living s**t out of my when I was a little kid in the '60's. I believe it's at the main curve of highway 169 in Chisholm...last visited in 1992." [Jon A. Egger, 3/24/97]
• Hackensack: Statue of Paul Bunyan's Sweetheart, Lucette Diana Kensack, 17 feet tall, on the east shore of Birch Lake.
• Kelliher: Paul Bunyan's Grave, in Paul Bunyan Memorial Park.
• Ortonville: Paul Bunyan's Anchor, weighs 225,000 lbs., and is mounted on four granite pillars. Looks like a big rectangular piece of rock with a chunk of metal chain sticking out of the top. At an overlook above Big Stone Lake.

My favorite, and one I must see is Paul Bunyan’s duck in Blackduck, Mn!

Inside the Visitor Center is this fireplace – The Fireplace of States. It was built in 1934. The mason wrote hundreds of letters to all the state governors, governors of Canada, the US President, and all the County Directors of MN, as well as all the National Parks and Monuments asking for stones for the fireplace. Some senders placed inscriptions on the stones.

Bemidji also has several statues of Native Americans, including Chief Bemidji.

The Beltrami County Historical Museum is also in Bemidji and is housed in the last depot built by James J. Hill.  Their current display is on the history of healthcare in Beltrami County – fascinating!

Here’s something common to most of Minnesota, except the North Shore – not a whole lot of grain being grown up there!. When I see one of these it always makes me think of Henning, the town where my grandparents lived when they retired.

 

 

 

Drove a few miles over to see the County Courthouse and discovered a beautiful little park area just outside of it. It’s one of the prettiest courthouses I have seen.

 

 

Remember the Snoopy statues that were all over St Paul several years ago? Well, Bemidji did the Beaver.

I also took a drive down the “Gold Coast",” which is Bemidji’s version of St. Paul’s Summit Avenue.

It was hot and humid on Saturday, so after hours of sightseeing I decided to head to the theatre and sit in air conditioning for awhile. Not really knowing what movies were out there, I picked Grown Ups since it had SNL comedians in it and I was in the mood for something funny. Boy, did I choose wrong. I won’t spend much time on details, but I will say this: Don’t waste your money or time, Sandler is just out to make some dough the lazy way.

I went out to dinner at the Green Mill which is one of the most beautiful Green Mills I have ever been to.  Right on Lake Bemidji and with a very nice patio area. I wanted something far far from Chinese… decided on a deep dish Canadian Bacon and Pineapple pizza. And lots of Diet Coke.  Nummy.

Got back to camp, and every meal since Saturday has had rice in it. Every meal. I am not exaggerating. For breakfast it’s either Soupy Rice, or Rice Krispies. No joke.

My first days as Camp Nurse at Sen Lin Hu

My name is Hua Ai and I am the Hu Shi at Sen Lin Hu. Nihao.
There are currently 73 Villagers, about 20 Counselors, and about 10 other staff (kitchen, office, maintenance) here at the Chinese Village. Many of the counselors are from China and speak very little or no English. The Villagers are from about 8 years old to 18 and are here for 2 or 4 weeks. I am the only RN on staff; I have an assistant who has been trained in First Aid etc and is very fluent in Chinese who helps me when he can.  He is also a head counselor and “go to” guy for many things.
I felt very overwhelmed when I first arrived… new nurse, new place, new people, new foods, new culture, new language.  A lot of newness in one big dose. My clinic was not organized and so I spent Sunday, my day off, cleaning, organizing, and checking expiration dates.  After this, I felt much better about my job and responsibilities.
This is the nurse’s clinic. It has my office, waiting area, bathroom and shower, my sleeping quarters, and a sick room for Villagers/Staff who need to spend the night because of illness. So far I have not had any overnight guests!
The Concordia Language Villages teaches by immersion – it truly feels like I am in China! All the meals are Chinese (and not American Chinese, I might add) – rice has been served at 98% of the meals.  The meals are generally very healthy – lots of fruits and veggies… no bread and butter… I miss the bread and butter. English is really only suppose to be spoken with the Nurse, and the kids are rewarded each day they accomplish this.
So far I have had quite a few skinned knees and elbows, bug bites, tummy aches, and sore throats. Hopefully this trend will continue! I have also helped rescue a bird from a cabin, find the home of a lost dog scared by the fireworks, and helped feed a baby bird (who later died).

Each day is different as the Hu Shi at Sen Lin Hu!

To see more of Sen Lin Hu, please visit: http://senlinhu.villagepages.org/

It’s the end of the world as we know it…

My life has been turned upside down, twisted around, and shaken up into a whole new form over the last month.  My last semester in college did not consist of a "senior slide" as I often heard it would be. Even though there wasn't a lot of sit-down studying as I had been accustomed to, there was 130 clinical hours at St. Luke's, a giant community health project that I worked on with the Boys & Girls Club of the Northland, and two "normal" classes with the usual papers and tests.  My community health class also consisted of visiting "public health" type facilities such as the Damiano Center and CHUM (and of course writing papers about them) and spending some time with the Public Health nurse in Two Harbors. On top of all of this, I began re-creating my resume and starting the application process, compiling the paperwork necessary to graduate, and worked on studying for my board exam (NCLEX). I truly felt like I was being pulled in a hundred different directions at once. Instead of a Senior Slide, it was more like a Senior Scramble!

As the end drew near, I found myself an emotional wreck… ecstatic one minute, insanely sad the next, and filled with worry nearly constantly.  I don’t like the unknown… I like to know exactly where I am going and when, and how I will get there. My life was in complete limbo, and it’s a very scary feeling. While the majority of my other classmates were overjoyed as we finished our classes, I fought back tears.  Even though school was more difficult and more time consuming that I ever imagined, I loved it. Yes, I felt lonely and out of place at times, not to mention overwhelmed, but generally speaking I loved the learning process, the challenges, and the environment. And I will miss it.

My parents and Jeff and the boys all were in attendance for the Pinning Ceremony and Commencement. The Pinning Ceremony is just for the graduating nursing class… I had Jeff and Brandon “pin me.”  They butchered Brandon’s name (Brayndon?), but otherwise was a very nice ceremony.   

I expected to be bawling like a big baby at Commencement, but instead could not stop smiling. I smiled so big and for so long that by the end of the day my cheeks hurt!I have never felt so proud of myself. It was a long, hard, and scary 5 years but I did it! And not only did I finish, but I graduated cum laude and was inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, the International Honor Society of Nursing (thus the purple cord)! I never felt smart in high school; maybe that’s because my best friend ended up being Valedictorian and rarely had to study while I studied my heart out to get C’s, or maybe it was just a confidence thing, but if someone had told me 25 years ago that I would be graduating cum laude, I wouldn’t have believed them. It’s a giant accomplishment, especially adding in being a single parent and home owner, and something I will always be proud of.  There were two single moms in my class with me, and I am sure they feel as proud of themselves as I do.

After commencement, I took a week off and did very little, and wow did that feel good! Then I began cramming for the scary NCLEX exam. I studied every day, all day. I studied until I cried. Literally. And then I studied some more. I decided to take my test right before I headed to Wilderness First Aid Training, so that gave me about 10 days. There was so much riding on this test… if I failed I wouldn’t be able to be a Camp Nurse. If I failed I would have to wait 45 days to retake it.  If I failed I wouldn’t be able to put down on job applications that I was a licensed nurse. If I failed, I FAILED. That is an awful lot of pressure for an old gal like me.

I also got a job interview in Staples, MN (of all places) the day before… so there went a day of studying.  Urgh.

I arrived at the test center in plenty of time, but found myself shaking as I signed in, was fingerprinted, photographed, and had my palm veins read. I asked to use a restroom before going in because I thought I was going to puke. I went into the handicapped stall and instead of puking did some deep breathing and a yoga move or two to relax.

The test is computerized and everyone is asked a certain percentage of questions on various topics. With each question you answer, it predicts whether you are passing or failing. At 75 questions, if it is like 98% sure you are passing, it will shut down. If it is 98% sure you are failing, it will shut down. If it is too close too tell, it will keep going. Or if you are one of the randomly selected poor souls who will be taking the whole damn thing, it will keep going. It kept going for me. At question 150 I was sure I was failing and began to feel really sick and started sweating profusely. I was afraid of having to pee during the test, so I didn’t drink much, plus going in I thought I would be done in 2 hours and 21 minutes which is the average time… I was sure I was dehydrating.  I skipped all my breaks because you have a time limit of 6 hours… I did the math and if I was given all 265 questions, I would barely make it. I ended up getting all 265 questions and it took me about 5 hours and 20 minutes. 5 hours and 20 minutes of pure hell.

I left and sat in my car and cried. I didn’t want to talk about it to anyone. I knew I had failed.

The next day I left for Wilderness First Aid Training and orientation. I will be Camp Nurse at the Concordia Language Villages for July and August, specifically the Chinese Village in Cass Lake, and the French Village in Bemidji.  I passed the First Aid Course (yay!) and made some great friends along the way. The camp is much nicer than I expected and the responsibilities much greater. It combines my love of nursing, my love of children, my love of the camp atmosphere, my love of foreign languages and culture, and my love of food so it should be an amazing experience!

Everyone in training knew I had just taken my test and was waiting for the results. I paid an extra $8 to find out in 48 hours instead of 4-6 weeks. I took my test on Thursday, so I expected to hear late Monday. I had Jeff checking for me… On Saturday I headed to Waldsee (German Village) for dinner. About 20 nurses and nursing aides, plus many Lifeguards, counselors, and kitchen staff were in attendance during this week. At each meal I think there was about 100 people in attendance (but I’m a really bad judge of these things). I noticed that Jeff had been trying to call and worried there was a problem. As I was looking at my phone, the following text message appeared:

“You passed. Congratulations! I am very proud of you!”

I immediately started yelling, “OMG – I passed! I PASSED!!!” and started to cry. Everybody around me from my class was yelling and hugging me! It was crazy! And very emotional. At the end of the meal, they have time for announcements (which are often in a foreign language), and my nurse manager stood up and introduced me as the Camp Nurse for Chinese and French and told them that a half hour ago I became a licensed RN! Everyone was clapping and cheering and then they all went into this Hip Hip Hooray deal! It was a really fantastic place to end this crazy roller coaster journey I have been on for 5 years… becoming licensed at the very place I will be starting my career. For days afterward, complete strangers from around the globe were congratulating me. I felt insanely happy.

I will write more about the CLV later, but want to take one more paragraph to thank everyone for sticking by me and supporting me over the last 5 years. I know I have been neglectful and cranky, whiny and unpleasant at times and yet not one of you gave up on me. Your support and continual encouragement was my life-line and I will never forget it. I could never have done this without all of you behind me every step of the way.

Insurance Blues

I have health insurance. Since I currently am unemployed and a full-time college student, I am able to purchase “Student Health Insurance” through the BCS Insurance Company.

Today I found out about another medical procedure that I had done was not covered. This time it was the bone density test my dr suggested I have done back in September. I have broken two bones in 4 years and he was worried that I may have some bone density loss since I was on the Depo Provera birth control shot for over 10-years. Studies released in 2004 show that Depo Provera is associated with a loss of bone density resulting in an increased risk of osteoporosis. This bone loss appears not to be reversed when the woman goes off Depo Provera. Depo is not recommended for long term use. Women on Depo are advised to exercise and take in plenty of calcium. The recommendation is that if  you have taken Depo Provera for more than two years, you should get a bone density test.

I understand why my doctor wanted me to have the test. The recommendation makes sense... if the results had shown that I did have bone loss, he could advise me to take extra measures (calcium supplements, strength-training, etc.) now so that it doesn’t progress into a more serious case of osteoporosis later.  Thus, it would save money in the long run. Thankfully, my bone density test results showed no bone loss… in fact, my bone density is at 110%.

Prior to this, my insurance didn’t cover my crutches from when I broke my leg. They also considered that an “elective.”  Really? Like you have a choice whether to use crutches or not with a broken leg?! What the hell?! I could understand if I had a prior broken leg and they already paid for my crutches… I obviously wouldn’t need new crutches. I would agree that that would be a waste of insurance money… but my scenario isn’t like that and without crutches I would have been bed-ridden for months. But yet, how would I even get to the bed after my surgery without crutches? I guess I could have crawled…

Healthcare in America and more Extreme thoughts

First of all thank you to those who responded with comments or emails on my latest blog on my Extreme thoughts. I want to clarify that I do think the Extreme Home Makeover show is a great show that does great things -- especially compared to a lot of the other trash on tv these days. And I'm happy that the house built in South Range is eco-friendly and much, much smaller than the typical houses they build. Like GooChick, I have always thought that it would be nice if they could spread the wealth a little -- build smaller homes so that they could help more families. I was very touched by the outpouring of volunteers and donations especially knowing how bad our economy is up here right now. I only wonder where all these volunteers have been before Hollywood came to town? Lausten commented on my earlier post about how Extreme Home Makeover shows people that volunteering can be fun -- something they may not have realized before. My concern was that many of these volunteers were volunteering simply to get on tv or meet a star, but even if this is the case, maybe it will spark them to continue volunteering on a smaller scale.

But I also saw how Extreme volunteering made people crazy. Where it became their only focus and they had no regard for those close to them. Parents spent more time in the last several weeks than they did with their kids... hard feelings were caused between coworkers... local companies bickered amongst one another about levels of publicity... Would these people have gone this crazy if it had been for the local food shelf?

Moving on to my other soapbox: Healthcare in America.

I know this is a heated topic right now, and I encourage you to watch this video:



Something has to change. We are the richest country in the world and yet there are millions of people who go without medical treatment because they can't afford it. Currently 47 million Americans have no health insurance. Nearly 9 million are children. This will continue as long as our health insurance companies are "for profit." A "for profit" company's purpose is to make money... period. And as you can see from the video, UHC has been very successful -- they are able to pay their CEO $102K an hour! This country is turning into a place where only the very rich and the very poor will have medical care and receive higher education. The rest of us will be choosing between prescription meds or food on the table. In America, NO ONE should go without healthcare. Healthcare costs are rising at 5 times the rate of inflation! A major reason for this is greed -- the insurance companies' top dogs want bigger mansions and fancier private jets.

The bottom line is that insurance companies should not make a profit. Switzerland's healthcare plan would be a good place for America to model after (if we could only put our arrogance aside -- yes, other countries are better than us in some areas). If you'd like to read more on this, follow this link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92106731

No one should have to choose between food and healthcare, and that is what is happening right here in the good ole' USA.

My Extreme Experience and Thoughts

As many of you know, the Extreme Makeover Home Edition recently filmed an episode here in our Twin Ports area (South Range, WI to be exact). Five area families were competing for the spot but the Huber family was chosen. Rumors have it that one of the reasons the Hubers were chosen was because Duluth was uncooperative in pushing through the permit requirements etc to meet the show's schedule. Once again, Duluth -- and Minnesota in general -- pushes away a big money making opportunity and a boost to our economy (think Leatherheads and Public Enemies).

I didn't take many pics, but here are a few. The people in the red shirts are the paid employees from Builders Commonwealth and their selected family/friends. The blue shirts are the regular volunteers from the community. The black shirts are the stars of the show... well, except for Paige who wore pink right down to her hard hat.

First let me tell you what I liked about the show being here in town...

I went out to the site twice. The first time was with Jenn and because her employer donated goods, she had passes to the VIP tent. Parking was in a giant mowed field that a neighbor had donated. Because of my broken leg, they let us park up close and then shuttled us in to the site with a golf cart -- impressive! The VIP tent had free food and places to sit in the shade -- the food was okay at best; the view was better in the general spectator area; but the opportunity to sit was awesome. Standing on one leg gets tiresome pretty quickly.

We were there on Day 3 and watched them spend oodles of time filming one scene with Ty placing the first part of the houses frame. After they finished filming it, a crane took the wall piece away and the workers continued doing something else. Ah, hollywood...

Ty Pennington was quieter than I expected. I expected him to be running around the site with his megaphone encouraging people to work faster. Instead he came out, waved to the small crowd of fans once in awhile, ran through his scene a couple times, had a pic taken with someone, and then headed back to his trailer. But what impressed me most was that on his way off the site -- and off camera, I might add -- he shook every volunteers' hand as he passed. Good job Ty!

Other than the filming, it wasn't very exciting. Lots of volunteers standing around doing next to nothing, and a smaller group actually building the house.

The second time I visited the site was this past Sunday. Jeff and I took the kids to see the site. This time we saw Paige and Eduardo from the show being filmed. The house was up and the landscaping was in. Other than that, it was again a lot of volunteers standing around, and a smaller group fervently working on the house.

I personally like the show. I think what they are doing is basically a very good thing ala Hollywood style. I liked it better when they would simply renovate the older house to better accomodate the family living there, rather than build brand new massive homes. The house done here was one of the smaller homes built, and it was also the greenest -- this makes me happy. I understand that many families had run into trouble later because they didn't know how to keep up with the money involved in living in a mansion. However, I heard that now people are brought in to teach the families money management etc before they are handed over the keys... nice to see that they have learned from their mistakes.

Okay, here is what I don't like.... keep in mind that this is just my own piddly personal opinion...

In my opinion, the communication was lacking at best. People who wanted to volunteer were directed to an email address. They were then requested to fill out an application and were told to expect a phone call. The show has certain requirements of i's volunteers (no cameras, work shoes were required, no asking of autographs etc.) but according to the facebook page dedicated to this event, many of the volunteers never received this important bit of communication. After they reached the number of volunteers needed, they closed down the email. Which left oodles of frustrated volunteers no place to go with questions. After a few days of this, they announced on the website for them to call the office at Commonwealth. But sadly, they had a teenager manning the phone who was unable to answer most of the callers questions. All of this seemed easily avoidable with a little common sense and planning. And by the way, I saw 6 volunteers wearing flip-flops, one in high spiky heels, and too many to count who were taking pics and asking for autographs...

The community was continually told to go to the website for up-to-the-minute changes in scheduling, announcements, and news and yet most times what was communicated was too late to matter. For example, until sometime after noon on Sunday they were not letting spectators in because of the "knee-deep mud puddles" from the rain the night before. We saw hundreds of cars drive out there and then have to turn around and head home. I wondered how many had driven further than Two Harbors to see the site and had to drive home disappointed. This announcement wasn't put on the website, facebook page, or Twitter, until much later. We were able to get in because we knew someone, and yes, it was muddy, but I saw no puddles that were knee-deep, nor did it seem necessary to send people away because of it.

I am impressed with the number of people that volunteered their time, and the number of businesses that donated supplies and equipment. Apparently, our small community had more people volunteer for this episode than any other episode in the history of the show. This is one of the reasons why they have decided to make this episode their 150th episode and the 2-hour season premier. This is something to be very proud of! But where are all these people when the cameras and tv-stars are gone? There are so many places in our areas that are desperate for volunteers year round and come up short. This saddens me. I've seen how some volunteers have let this opportunity take over their lives, leaving their own kids on the wayside nothing short of being forgotten. The Huber family benefits, but their own kids are neglected and feeling unimportant and left out. This saddens me most of all.

The Greatest Gift of All

The last few days I have just been worn out beyond belief. On Wednesday I also was running a low-grade fever, which of course sent up my red flag. Sure enough, I unwrapped my leg and found it much more red, swollen, and tender than it had been previously. Urg... that's all I need is an infection.

Knowing that an infection is never anything to be taken lightly, I immediately left a message for my surgeon in the cities, and also made an appointment with my doc in Two Harbors. The doc gave me a nice big shot and a 10-day supply of antibiotics and also commended me for coming in so promptly. She explained that especially when there is hardware involved (such as the plate and screws currently holding my leg together), it is very important that infections are treated quickly and kept a close eye on because if they get away from you it could require another surgery to clean the infection off of the plate. Don't want none of that, thank you very much!

I also must praise the Minnesota Orthopaedic Specialists which is who took care of my surgery. Not only did they promptly call me back after I left a message, they also called me this morning to find out how my appointment in Two Harbors went. Now that's what I call "Personalized Customer Service." And that is all it takes to make me a lifelong loyal customer... although I sure hope I won't be needing them again anytime soon.

My parents have been here the last two days and have been busy as bees not only taking care of me but also taking care of stuff around my house. Normally I would rather die than let them see my house looking like this, but I realized that they love helping me and I really NEED the help. So I put my pride aside and let them in. My Dad has been taking care of what is left of my garden and potted plants as well as fixing small things that needed fixing around here. My mom has done oodles of laundry, cleaned my bathrooms, kitchen and dining room, baked and cooked like crazy, and cleaned and organized my fridge.

And being it's my birthday today, I usually find myself wondering about my biological parents and siblings... I wonder where they are and if they think of me today. But today instead I find myself ever so thankful that Larry and Eva chose me to take home to be their daughter. They are the greatest gift of all and I believe they were truly sent by God himself. I thank God every day for selecting them to be my parents.

Sorry I don't have a better choice of pictures to post, but most of my boxes of photos are tucked away in high places, unreachable by birthday girls on crutches.

as if my life wasn't interesting enough

Too make my life more challenging and interesting, I decided to walk down a hill wearing flip flops and break my leg. That's right, I BROKE MY LEG. And I couldn't be lucky and have it be my left leg... nooo... it has to be my RIGHT leg. And it couldn't just be a simple break, but has to require surgery involving plates and screws.

And it couldn't have happened with someone I know really really well so that I could scream and holler like the big baby I truly am... nooo... it has to happen with a guy I haven't seen in 27 years. But that's okay since I had plenty of opportunity to scream. holler and cry myself silly as I drove myself across the twin cities using my left foot through rush hour traffic.

But on the good side of things, it happened in the cities so that Jeff and my parents could take care of me in shifts. And it happened during summer, so I don't have to worry about long pants, snow and ice, or big heavy backpacks filled with textbooks. And I should be walking again by the time I go back to school. So, see? There is a silver lining.

The bad thing is that I haven't been able to put any weight on it since it happened 11 days ago. And summer is the time of year I love to spend outdoors gardening, and hiking, and KAYAKING! Yes, I just bought the darn thing and now I can't use it! And it's my last free summer, no less. And, my ankle is really, really ugly now.

The surgery went well and was educational. I had awesome nurses who all shared little bits of nursing career advice with me. And they all thought I was delightful (yes, they actually told me this. One male nurse, who also went back to school midlife like me, said I was his favorite patient of the week). My first words I remember saying as I came back from being put under was "Do I look okay?" -- well, at least my sense of humor was intact.

I'm now back at home and Brandon has been helping me and trying to stay smiling at the same time. My parents are coming up later in the week and Jeff will be coming up on Friday. In the meantime I have figured out how to hobble around the house in small exhausting spurts, take a shower without actually stepping in, and drive my car using my left foot. My biggest excitement today was that I figured out to balance on one foot and clean the toilet at the same time! It's been an interesting adventure to say the least!

I have an appointment on Monday in the cities to get the staples taken out and I'm hoping I'll then be able to put a little weight on it and start physical therapy. Hopefully life can start to get back to normal after that.

I have learned a few things along this bumpy journey:

• I've learned to put my pride aside and let people help me.
  
• I've learned to be patient.
• I've learned to slow down.
• I've learned that not everyone does everything exactly the way I would, and that's okay.
• I've learned that Malcolm in the Middle is on TV a lot... and that's a very good thing.
• I've learned how to keep my toes cool and dry inside a hot black boot.
• I've relearned that there are a lot of wonderfully good people out there in the world.
  

Warning: some of the photos below are pretty gruesome!


Okay, well maybe THIS one isn't so gruesome. Jeff had surprised me with a hotel stay that weekend as an early birthday gift... well, the easiest way to get me in and out of the hotel was by use of the baggage cart.












Post Op Day 2










For those who aren't completely familiar with my right foot, it is not normally as fat as it here!