I'm working on my nursing school applications -- odd things, these applications.
UIC (my top choice) decides almost completely on essays - your writing skills and leadership potential count for 2/3 of their decision. Truman College (a good choice, despite this chilling fact) only determines admission based on grades, coursework and an odd calculation of life experience. The other contenders want a mix of an application - essays, letters of recommendation, transcripts, and all that.
I'm writing essays, re-reading what I've written, editing and thinking about all these questions. I think about reasons I want to be a nurse -- helping people, working hands-on, utilizing my toughness regarding/interest in all things gross and all that. I'm not a nurse and I can't be a nurse until I'm a nurse. Before I was a teacher I taught. Before I took a single journalism course I wrote. But I won't know what it means to be a nurse until I'm a nurse or at least a nursing student.
I read this column in The New York Times and it's a nice picture of what it means to be a nurse. I want to be that person who helps when you're sick.
I want to be the nurse who explains what all the beeping is when your dad is hooked up to six machines. I want to be the nurse who laughs along with you as you and your husband talk about getting married even if his face isn't moving as long as he can shower and drink at the wedding. I want to be that nurse who calms down people without discounting them. I want to be a nurse who helps and comforts. I want to be the nurse who answers questions even if they've been asked a hundred times. I want to be a nurse who is tough, kind, brave, competent, learning and unafraid. I've seen nurses like these - and so have most people who spent time in a hospital.
I want to be a nurse.
I hope I can put those things into words. And for places that don't care about those things - places where grades are worth more than caring or tenacity - I'll apply and see how it goes. But I'm watching my words and hoping that I can paint myself as someone who will be a great nurse because of my experiences and because of who I am.
We are excited to host New Year's Eve again this year. We're trying to keep things under control, but also festive and merry. Right now, our menu:
- Crackers with cheese
- Crackers with onion dip
- Crackers with more dips (dips, dips, dips!)
- Bacon-wrapped dates
- Mac-n-cheese bites - made by dear friend Karin who is a cheese expert
- Roasted nuts
- Frosted sugar cookies by Brian
We might need more food... but I think we're OK.... Still figuring this all out.
Feeling superbly recovered from the whole sick thing of recent days. Feeling so good, in fact, that I'm writing a list of things that bring me cheer.
- Diet Ginger Ale
- Diet Squirt or Fresca (refreshing diet grapefruit pop!)
- The Bears
- The new boots which I will pick out and buy tomorrow, perhaps
- Hosting a New Year's Eve party
- Deciding a menu (which will surely include crackers and dips and wondrous treats) for a party
- Coffee - We use our Mr. Coffee Thermal - the java stays warm from B's early rising to my less-early-rising and into the morning.
- Moleskine books - my planner, my new address book, my new notebook. I don't have a smartphone so I actually use these devices to keep track of my life. It's actually quite wonderful.
- Mail - I've been to the post office several times these last few weeks and I declare that I am the most postal-competent person my age. No one seems to know how to handle mailing anything at my post office.
- Working on my nursing school applications - complicated and scary, but exciting.
After feeling sick for a few days - just an upset stomach and some aches - I'm on the lovely, speedy road to recovery. Thankfully my mild illness didn't keep us from an incredibly fun whirlwind of Christmas. According to the song there are 12 Days of Christmas. According to our lineup, we had just 5 days of Christmas, followed by 1 Day of Bears. Here's the rundown: - B's Dad's Family Christmas Saturday - The furthest from our home, this celebration was a fun time with our nieces hopping around, dogs running around and a good time for all. After lots of food, lots of puppy/baby time and a long drive we rushed home, hopped into bed and rested up for...
- Cousin's Party Sunday - This is a huge tradition in B's family. It's planning has been - somehow, sneakily - passed down to B's generation. As a planning type I took command of the food and Cousin's Party was a little work. We set up tables of food, a lineup of crockpots, dishes, napkins, etc... This year's fare was summertime eats so we at Vienna Beef hot dogs with fixings, pasta salads, fruit, sandwiches and more. It was terrific! We also had a crazy Junk Auction. This celebration is an event - and it's always fun. We had a few day's respite until the long and treacherous...
- Princeton Trip - B and I drove out of the sunshine of Chicago into the rain-then-snow of Rockford. Then the whole family piled into the car to drive through the snow to Princeton to see my extended family in all their glory. The trip was snowy and slow, but we had a wonderful time seeing everyone, drinking a few beers at the Princeton Inn, singing carols with family, and all that fun stuff. We snuck away a little early to get back on the road. We made it home in good time and dozed off as Santa stopped by for...
- Criner Christmas Morning was quite laid back. Fancy breakfast casserole, orange rolls, toast with jams, bacon, juice, coffee - fantastic! Everything my mom cooks is amazing to me, even with a stomach bug. We opened presents in traditional Criner fashion and a good time was had by all. Then we were on the (well-cleared) road again. To...
- B's Mom's House for turkey dinner and family congregation. Turkey dinner was super laid-back, delicious and calm. We sipped a little wine, relaxed by the tree and chatted with family. Before too long we rushed out the door to meet my brother at our house for Bear's Game Eve.
The Bears Game isn't a Christmas Event, but it was the day after Christmas. We got ourselves bundled up and stomped through the snow to O'Donovan's - a bar we love that has a brunch special and a shuttle bus to Soldier Field. We hopped the shuttle (Eric manned the keg on the ride there - a school bus with a keg!) and cheered ourselves silly at the best Bears game of the season. Bear Down! Now we are truly relaxing - an easy pasta dinner, a bottle of wine, a few episodes of How I Met Your Mother, lots of lounging... Christmas can wipe you out.
Several factors contributed to my fall last night.
I was dizzy and feeling sick. I've since spent more than my fair share of time in the bathroom and realize it's some stomach bugginess.
I was wearing sneakers, which may not have been entirely well-advised given the snow of recent days. And the important fact that several assholes in my neighborhood do not shovel their walks.
This is a big deal to me. I'm not an invalid. I run (I actually ran 1.5 miles just hours before I fell). I traverse sidewalks, paths, stairways, and anything Chicago can throw at me - without incident.
Last night was different. I felt dizzy and weak. I slipped on some icy-snowy-crap and fell on my face, scraping my forehead and cutting my nose. Grrrrrrrrrr!
People don't usually fall on their faces - because it makes far more physiological sense to fall on your butt or your torso, bracing yourself with your arms and legs. Naturally it's hard to go from an upright position to almost the complete opposite - face on the floor.
I fell because of negligence! I am not calling for a lawsuit. No, no!
The City of Chicago should ticket and fine people who do not tend to their walks. These asshounds choose to own property. I do not own property, so when it's snowing I do not give the idea of shoveling a second though. I clean my car windshield with a flip-flop. (Yes, I keep flip-flops in the car.)
From my frequent winter walks (bike rides and runs) I can assure you that the City would make a pretty penny indeed.
I'm sure that some property-owners ticketed under my new law will protest. "Wah, wah, I don't like to shovel," or "Boo-hoo, shoveling sucks," or "I am 100 years old - I do not wish to shovel my days away!" To them, and to the city - for their phamphlet about this new legislation - I offer a list of people who could shovel for these lazy, careless folks:
- Children/teenagers
- Unemployed people - put an ad on craigslist!
- Volunteers - don't teenagers have to volunteer?
- Shoveling companies (for real! Like Mr. Plow!)
- Mayoral candidates
- Kind neighbors
- Small-time criminals who need community service credit
- Your own child or pet, with training
I hope that Chicago's mayoral candidates are interested in this topic. I hope that you are too - whether you walk a little or a lot, or whether you like shoveling or not - it's important that we keep whatever bits of our neighborhoods safe.
By the way, B met me, cleaned up my wounds and helped me to bed. I spent today resting and I'm feeling much better.
This can only be a sign of good things to come...
Today I dashed home from watching my niece to change clothes, put away clean laundry and rush to meet some friends from my old job for dinner. I dawdled a bit - put on makeup, received a shipment of wine from our wine club and left thinking I'd be a dab tardy.
I hustled to the train, right behind a fancy-booted woman. I heard the train approaching. Fancy boots gave up her chase, I ran! Fast! As I saw the train pull in I feared the worst - could I make it?!? I zoomed up the stairs and hopped on the train - magical.
Seriously, I hopped on the magical CTA Holiday Train - the best train ever. The holiday train spends a few days of the holiday season on each train line, only makes a few runs and is a truly magical sight. It makes the most serious train-riders smile. It's got a beautiful holiday glow and chugs along, with Santa sitting atop one car (flanked by a couple union-type fellas) waving to all.
My dinner was wonderful too, and I'm not playing the lottery. I'll let my holiday train luck ride.
I don't want to alarm you, but it's actually December.
Yes, friends. It's December. Chicago is newly covered in crunchy snow and patches of un-shoveled-snow-turned-to-ice. Christmas is rapidly approaching, it starts getting dark at 4 p.m. and I start trying to figure out how the hell I kept warm last year.
Aside: Chicago Mayoral candidates, I will vote for whoever of you promises to fine these idiots who do not shovel properly - leaving a path of danger for walkers and joggers. Also, they are the same jerk homeowners who run their sprinklers over the sidewalk all spring, summer and fall.
School is nearly done - just one more test! Next semester I'll dive into the juicy material of Anatomy & Physiology II! We finished A&P I with the nervous system -- whoa! I'm a terrible student of muscles and I cannot understand how all these bones have all these parts -- but the nervous system? It's true love!
I'll get a pretty lovely break for the holidays. My plan is to hunker down to an extent -- I'm going to clean, toss junk, plan a kicking New Year's Eve party, apply to jobs and such things. B and I are enjoying the winter lifestyle dictated by our drafty apartment - lots of blankets, soup and hoodies.
Along with recalling the basics of winter (where are my gloves? do I have gloves?) from 9 months ago, I'm also trying to figure out how to keep up my bicycling to class without freezing myself silly. This is a work in progress.
I plan to blog a lot whilst on break. I gotta keep my amazing brain working, right?
