Spring Has Sprung

 

          Happy first day of Spring 2025!!! Though it has felt like Spring already here in Florida for a bit now, LOL. The weather has been nice, and my trees are getting so full of leaves in the backyard. Today, it is super windy and sunny—perfect for Spring. I just wish I could be out enjoying it, but alas, it is off to work with me tonight.

          Hopefully, work goes smoothly. It seems so many violent acts against nurses are being reported these days, that it is getting a bit scary to go to work. We even have the police and security rounding on our floor every couple of hours, ensuring we are safe. All I know is I already have my hiding spot picked out and if anybody even slightly is threatening, then I am walking away. No job is worth my life.

          Ack, that was too depressing for a Spring post LOL. I like Spring and getting my yard blooming. I have a couple of big pots I want to plant some flowers in. I mowed the backyard on Tuesday so it looks good. I really would like to figure out what veggies I can grow but with the challenging summer heat. This year no theme parks for us. Too much construction going on with them. We will wait until it is all done to go back. Until then, we will just enjoy stuff around Florida LOL that is if I can get motivated enough to drive and get my kids in the car LOL we are such homebodies.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

 

     "May you have all the happiness

And luck that life can hold
And at the end of all your rainbows
May you find a pot of gold.

May the roof over your head
always be strong
May you be in Heaven a half hour
before the Devil knows you’re dead!"

          Top of the morning to ya LOL it is a high holiday around my house today. My kids and I are Irish so we love celebrating St. Patrick's Day. We all have on our glorious green outfits and the animals have as well, though they aren't too happy about it LOL. 

          I will of course be making corned beef and cabbage with potatoes and Irish soda bread LOL. We have the living room all decked out in green and gold. Shamrocks are everywhere LOL. I consider myself very lucky to do this with my kids. They love being Irish. We have our family tree dated back to the 1600's in Ireland. It is very cool to know that we have such a rich history.

What a Weekend

 

          Oh my goodness, what a weekend. I was the victim of one and then almost two crimes. First one I almost experienced was this creepy guy approaching me in his car in the parking lot as I was heading into work. It was literally about forty feet from the ER entrance. This sketchy looking guy kept trying to get me to help him into the ER. He was not old or feeble looking. He looked in his 30's and healthy. He kept saying he was having a heart attack. Well he was conscious, alert, and there was nothing I could do for him in the parking lot, so I directed him to drive over to the ER entrance. He kept insisting he could not do that. No reason I could see that he couldn't. So I just said sorry, reiterated go to ER, and I went into work. I did stop at security desk to tell them to go check on the guy, but he had already disappeared. Not a chance am I going to get myself in a situation where I could be kidnapped. When I first started working at this hospital a nurse was kidnapped in the parking lot. I am not going to let that happen to me.

          The second crime was somebody hacked into my Walmart/Capital One credit card and ordered $490.78 worth of stuff. Only reason I noticed it so quickly was I tried to use my Walmart app and I couldn't get in. So I checked credit card site online and saw the crazy charge and immediately called both Capital One and Walmart to file a fraud alert. Both companies were great. They both said they would not charge me for the amount. So I am not out the money, but I do have the hassle of closing the accounts and having to get all new cards. My son noticed the amount was $10 short of the thresh hold to it being an actual crime the police would investigate. Whoever did it most likely was checking to see if it would get noticed before trying something bigger.  I am so thankful I was out of coffee creamer because that it what led me to wanting to place order and discovering it so fast. God was watching out for me big time this weekend :)

Happy Mardi Gras 2025

 

          Mardi Gras 2025 is off to a strange start in New Orleans. Apparently very windy and stormy there so parades started early this morning. Which is good because so many people traveled there and the krewes spent so much time creating their floats, it would have been a shame to cancel it. I found me a site that lets me watch live parade coverage LOL the people in the crowds are hilarious when they get on camera. 

          As for here, I have the ingredients to make jambalaya today and that is about it LOL I so want King Cake but that would waste all my points. Might have to get creative with something sweet.

Gorgeous weather outside right now but storms are coming per my weather bug app. As long as I don't have to go out in it, I love storms LOL.

March Mayhem Begins

 

          March Mayhem has begun. Lots of fun stuff for March. Tomorrow it is already Mardi Gras, so I have to make some jambalaya as requested by my son LOL and then I have my Honeybees’ birthday on Wednesday. My puppy girl is turning seven years old already. Friday is another friend’s birthday. Saint Patrick’s Day is on the 17^th, then the first day of spring is on the 20th, and finally, my niece’s birthday is on the 23^rd.

          I have already decorated inside for St. Patrick’s LOL, my tree is all green and gold with leprechaun gnomes all over it. With all the green around, we have discovered our shy kitty likes green. She normally is very skittish, but when she is on anything green she lets us cuddle and pet her. So weird LOL so the green blanket on the couch will be staying.

          Brrrrr why is it that when I get up I am all warm and toasty and it feels great to open the patio door and windows so I can listen to the birds, but once I sit here I get chilly and have to put a shawl on LOL. Oh well, it is still my favorite time of the day. Okay, now it is time to get this day moving along. I have school and grocery shopping to do LOL, not wanting to do either.

Nursing Is Not Okay

 

          I try really hard to not talk about work, but this past week nurses in Florida got some horrible news. One of our own was viciously and savagely attacked by a patient they were caring for. The patient beat her so badly that almost every bone in her face was broken and she most likely will lose both eyes. 

          When I became a nurse almost 27 years ago, patients would never think being mean or disrespectful to us was okay. They knew we were there to help them and they appreciated it. We did not fear for our safety. We did not stress that we were in danger of being physically or mentally abused, but these days that seems all too common. Nurses understand that the patients are not feeling well and that everything seems confusing and they have no control over what is happening to their bodies, but stop attacking the nurses as if it is their fault.

            I am not talking just physical attacks, though I have been hit and kicked before at work, I am talking the verbal attacks and threats against us. We are not your enemy, your waitress, your maid, or your family. So, stop treating us as if we are. Yelling and being rude to us will get you nowhere. In fact, it will have the opposite effect. We will just give you the basic care that is ordered and keep you safe. A smart patient knows that if they are respectful and kind to the nurse, that nurse will go out of their way to help you feel better. We want to help you, but we also want to be safe doing that, mentally and physically.

          Okay, I will get off my soapbox, like I said, I hate talking this much about work, but I needed to vent. Now I am going to try and relax. I had to call off work because I tweaked my back a bit and can not safely take care of the patients tonight. I need to take care of me instead.

Bee Enough

 

          Pooh Bear always has good advice. I have had to make some adjustments to my imagined life, but I am content with what I have. Every now and then, I get a twinge of what might have been, specifically a partner to grow old with, but then I think about all the drama and responsibilities that comes from that, and I am glad I am single LOL I am too set in my ways to tolerate another human being full time. I like having the freedom to do what I want when I want, and how I want.

          The past two days have been more productive than I planned. I ended up mowing my front and back yards, they are now ready for Spring. I also am all caught up on my reviews and school work. I already have ordered my grocery delivery LOL I am being lazy and having somebody else shop for me. It tends to be cheaper. I am not tempted by impulse buys. Once the kids get up, I will start laundry and cooking for the weekend at work. I even found somebody else to sign up to be the charge nurse, so I am off the hook, LOL.