a day late and a dollar short

Guess who finally called me. No, not a boy. DC Children's Hospital. Too bad I decided not to move to DC right now. Too bad I took another job. Too bad they want an interview. Maybe next year. It was nice though, because now I feel like I wasn't completely rejected. I love my job. I am not moving anytime in the next year. Then we will see. At least that is the current plan.

Amazing things

Yesterday was my first day at Primary Children's. Well, the first day I actually got paid for taking care of patients. It was a really good day. I took care of the cutest little girls. I had a great discussion with some parents about "defects" that kids are born with. There are some people who think that automatic abortion should occur with certain types of defects. The trouble with this school of thought is that you don't ever know how the kids will turn out until they are born and get a chance to live. Who is to say that children with disabilities can't have good lives? It was really interesting to talk to this family. They understand things on a whole different level than most. Life isn't about what you have, it is about how you live. I am glad that this mom and dad were aware enough to not choose to have an abortion. I suppose there are cases where an abortion is a good idea, but those cases are few and far between. Really far between. I learned a little more about love yesterday. I only wish I could tell you the whole story. It really is quite miraculous. However, HIPAA is a good thing, and it is one of the things that rules my career.

a temp

I am officially a "temporary registered nurse". Just thought you would all like to know. This means I can do anything that an RN can do. I am working under my manager's license. As soon as I take my test (and pass it) I will to a real registered nurse. The beauty of this temp license is that I can do more. Otherwise, I would be stuck checking vital signs and changing diapers all day.
Tomorrow is my first real day at work. I will be with another nurse "training". I am not sure how it will be different from my capstone experience, but I will continue to jump through whatever hoops they feel necessary. This three shifts a week thing is going to be really nice, by the way.

Goodbye Gilmore Girls

As many of you know, I am in love with a TV show. Only one. Gilmore Girls. After 7 wonderful seasons, Gilmore Girls ended on Tuesday. It is tragic. I am really sad about it. I think it was a good time for it to end, but I will still miss the girls. My tuesday nights are back open again. However, there are always reruns to watch.

Getting to know you, getting to know all about you

So, my sister-in-law did this on her blog, and I thought it would be fun to do. Also, I had no good stories to tell. So, here goes. Please comment. I love comments. No one ever comments. Let me clarify, Liz comments, and therefore she is the only one I love.

1. Were you named after anyone? Nope, my parents just liked the name. Had I been a boy, I think I would have been Andrew.
2. When was the last time you cried? Tuesday, by myself at the computer. Gilmore Girls didn't get recorded and I was really sad and trying to figure out how to watch it. I know, I am lame.
3. Do you like your handwriting? Yes, when I write nice. Otherwise, it looks like boy handwriting.
4. What is your favorite lunch meat? I don't really like lunch meat.
5. Do you have kids? None that I am aware of.
6. If you were another person, would you be friends with you? Of course! I am awesome. Just ask anyone :)
7. Do you use sarcasm a lot? What answer is this looking for?
8. Do you still have your tonsils? Pretty sure the only thing I am missing are my wisdom teeth. Soon I will be missing a chunk of my face too.
9. Would you bungee jump? Not a chance. I am afraid I would get serious whiplash, or break my spine or something. I am sometimes adventurous, but I am not crazy.
10. What is your favorite cereal? Cereal is not my favorite in general. I guess I would go with Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds.
11. Do you untie your shoes or just take them off? My shoes velcro. I undo the velcro before I take them off. Gosh, I sound like a little kid who doesn't know how to tie her shoes.
12. Do you think you are strong? Even if I think I am, I know I am not. However, don't mess with me because I know self defense, and carry a weapon.
13. What is your favorite ice cream? Ice cream makes my tummy hurt. If I were to go for the tummy ache anyway, I would choose something fruity. Or vanilla, I love vanilla.
14. What is the first thing you notice about people? If they smile or not. Everyone should smile. It makes me sad when people are sad in their eyes.
15. What is your favorite color, red or pink? Pink. I love pink. I used to wear pink every day.
16. What is your least favorite thing about yourself? My uncanny ability to sleep far too long.
17. What do you miss the most? Traveling. I need a trip.
18. Do you want everyone to send this back to you? Sure, what the heck.
19. What color pants and shoes are you wearing? Black shorts (about to go running), no shoes.
20. What was the last thing you ate? Muesli for breakfast. Yum.
21. What are you listening to right now? The sound of the birds chirping, and someone in my backyard pounding. I think it is my neighbor. I am too afraid to actually check.
22. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Lime Green.
23. Favorite smells? Spring. Rain. Flowers.
24. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? My mom.
25. Do you like the person that sent this to you? No one actually "sent" it to me. But I love Liz for putting it on her blog and not caring that I copy her idea.
27. Favorite sports to watch? I really don't enjoy watching sports very much. I like golf when Tiger Woods is playing. I like basketball when it is the playoffs. I like soccer when it is live. I like baseball with friends.
28. Hair color? I used to think my hair was blond. It is not. It is brown. It was blond when I was little though. Now, it is very very brown.
29. Eye color? Green. My mom says they change color.
30. Do you wear contacts? Yes. Just one. My left eye sees just fine. I know, I am weird.
31. Favorite food? Fruit.
32. Scary movies or happy endings? Scary movies are not good for my ability to get into a car at night. I love happy endings. It is the only way to go.
33. Last movie you watched? Spider Man 3. It is really good. Really long, and a little too complicated, but really good.
34. What color shirt are you wearing? Red.
35. Summer or Winter? Summer. Well, spring and fall are actually my favorites. I like the mild temperatures.
36. Hugs or kisses? Hugs.
37. Favorite dessert? I am not a huge fan of dessert. I do like rainbow chip cake with rainbow chip frosting.
38. Most likely to respond? Probably nobody. I would love it if you copied and pasted your answers into a comment though. Then, I would know people actually look at my blog.
39. Least likely to respond? Probably everyone.
40. What book are you reading? Just finished an autobiography of Sabine Dardenne (very good). Now working on a biography of Princess Diana (dull so far).
41. What is on your mouse pad? Don't even have a mouse pad. What kind of low budget joint am I living at??!!
42. What did you watch on TV last night? I watched Leno/Letterman with my dad.
43. Favorite sounds? Nature. You know, water running, birds chirping. Oh, and of course, laughter.
44. Rolling Stones or Beatles? Beatles.
45. What is the furthest you have been from home? Accra, Ghana, Africa.
46. Do you have a special talent? They always say everyone is special. I don't know what that means. I can sing really bad karaoke in my dreams. Does that count.
47. Where were you born? Salt Lake City, UT, St. Marks Hospital. Dr. Hughes.
48. Whose answers are you looking forward to getting back? I would love any answers.
49. Do you have any grandchildren? Please refer back to question 5. Unless this is some sort of twisted, I am my own grandpa, situation.
50. Where do you live? At my parents house in Murray, UT. Livin large.

Breaking Free

I had a dream last night. It needs a little background.
1. Last weekend I went to a house warming party for a friend of mine. We had a great time. We played Karaoke Revolution, among other things. My friend Jessica wanted to go down and sing because the people singing sounded terrible. So, we went down. I was going to do a duet with her. Then she decided not to sing. I was terribly embarrassed. I didn't know the song and I am sure I sounded absolutely terrible. Consolation- I got platinum in the game. Pretty good.
2. I like High School Musical and have seen it several times. I think the black kid with the afro is attractive.
So, now for my dream. I rarely have dreams. Or, I guess I should say, I rarely remember my dreams. Last night was an exception. I had a dream that I was singing a duet of the song Breaking Free with the afro kid from High School Musical, karaoke-style. I didn't know the words. I didn't know the part. We even were dancing like on the movie. It was just like the movie except it was me and the afro kid. It was all very embarrassing. And surreal. I woke up feeling really stupid. It was so real. I could have sworn it happened. Very upsetting.
Moral of this story: I shouldn't watch movies so often, and I should never sing karaoke ever again.

The Bachelor

I first must say, I really don't like shows like this. First, they are based on nothing that even closely related to real love. Second, they force people to get together much too quickly. Third, the relationships never last more than a few months. Needless to say, there is another nurse at my work who watches the Bachelor avidly. And, I am sorry to say, she has got me hooked. She even called me at work last night while she was home to let me know what had happened on the show. All I can say is I want him to choose Tessa. Lets be honest, I know almost nothing about either of the girls left, or the bachelor himself (I don't even remember his name), but I think I like Tessa better. This is more evidence of just how easy it is to come up with opinions based on absolutely nothing. Also, the way I see it, this is nearly (if not) immoral and unethical. Fully dating 12 women at the same time doesn't seem right.... wait, it sounds a bit like polygamy gone way way wrong. So, what it comes down to, is no matter how worried you are about me never getting married, I never never never want to be involved in this type of situation. I will find my man my way. Thank you very much.

The Birds

Have you ever seen that old Hitchcock movie "The Birds"? I saw it at a Halloween party back when I was in Junior High. I think it is supposed to be scary. I also think it is about people getting attacked by birds. That is all I remember about it. Well, I am having flashbacks. This last weekend while I was in Provo my car got attacked by birds. They used my car as their personal toilet. My friends thought it was gross (as did I), and I wasn't sure if they would even get in the car. Well, today I went out to my car after work, and what did I find... even more bird poop on my car. Was I parked under a tree? No. Did I hurt one of their friends? No. Did I put a giant target on the top of my car? No. I just don't understand. Why are they attacking my car? Boom (my car) has enough to deal with, without all this extra bird poop. So, if you find out what I have done to offend the bird community, please let me know. Until then, I am going to do my best to make amends. I just hope they don't start attacking me instead of my car. Being pooped on is not fun (and I would know, having been pooped on by more than just birds.)
Maybe it is time for a good Hitchcock movie night. Wait Until Dark anyone?

Kangaroo Power

My work has been the topic of recent local and (soon to be) national news. As many of you know, I work with older adults with dementia. My work also has a daycare, and somewhat of a zoo. We have many animals. Our most recent addition is a kangaroo. Yep, you read that right, we have a baby kangaroo. His name is Elliot, and he bounces around with his diaper on. He really is quite cute. Well ABC4 heard about this and did a story. You can also watch the video (I think you need to use IE, not Mozilla).
Then, this afternoon Good Morning America came to do a story on it, so we will be national. You really can't buy this kind of publicity. Meanwhile, I get to spend time with a super cute kangaroo. He is great for the residents, they really love him. He is quite therapeutic for them. You should come visit our residents, and you might get to see our new baby.
And just for fun: the Dingo ate your baby!

shhhh

I know this may surprise you, but I enjoy quiet. Don't get me wrong, I love music and talking and fun, but I need my quiet times. Yesterday at work I realized this a little more. There is a nurse at work who is very high energy, and at the same time very high stress. He likes to have music playing (I don't blame him). However, the room is fairly small and there are usually a lot of people in the room and it gets crowded and people start talking really loudly, and well, I go into sensory overload. I think the stressful atmosphere makes it harder for me to handle all the stimulation. I think I just really enjoy organized sound. I love music, I love talking, I love a lot of sources of noise. But sometimes the stress of it all actually makes my insides start twisting in knots. It really isn't a very pleasant experience. I think I just like to be able to process everything, and too much going on does not allow that. I am the same way when riding in the backseat with the music up loud. It is too hard to hear people talking and to listen to the music. I end up leaving the conversation, or yelling so that people can hear me. I know, I am weird. Maybe I have hearing problems. I wouldn't put it past me. So, next time you see me go to my quiet happy place, you will know why. Too much happening can make a girl go insane.

High School Musical

I shouldn't check movies out from the library. I love movies, which is the root of the problem. This week I checked out High School Musical, which quickly climbed the ranks into the hard to reach status of being one of my favorite movies. Not my favorite, but it is up there. The first time I saw it I thought "gee, this is a really silly movie, I am not too impressed." I then had no desire to see it again. Thanks to my friend who gave me a graduation CD of songs that are applicable to such an occasion, I began to open up to High School Musical once again. Three of the songs on the CD were from High School Musical: Breaking Free, Start of Something New, and What I've Been Looking For. Then, this weekend, I was with some friends and we were trying to decide what to do (a peril of hanging out). I mentioned that it would be fun to watch High School Musical (since it is currently somewhat of an obsession). So, we searched for a copy and found one (thank you cheesy Provo-ites). I must say, this movie gets better with every viewing. I probably get less mature with every viewing, but that is a risk I am willing to take. Now begins the long wait until the next High School Musical comes out in September. Pretty sure I am going to have a party so we can all watch it together. Yes, you are invited. Until then, Bop bop bop to the top.

run run run

Since, I am not entirely convinced that anyone actually ever reads my blog, I am now going to praise myself. Yep, a huge pat on the back for Andrea.
My sister-in-law and I are going to run a 5K on July 4. I have run 2 in the past, so I am excited because I realize how much fun races are. We are not planning on "racing" per se, more just finishing. It is her first 5K. I am out of shape, so I am getting back into running (when I say running, I always mean jogging, by the way) again. I went running on the 30th, yesterday and today. I am going farther, running longer and going quicker. All good things. Don't get me wrong, I am no speed demon. Mostly I just run for the sake of getting in shape. That means, if I get excessively tired, I stop and walk for a while. I know, I am not very competitive. So, I have been running around the 3.1 miles that a 5K is to get my time better. Hopefully I will start running fast so that I am not the last one to finish the race. One good thing, today I kept pushing myself after I started getting really tired, and got a second wind, meaning I ran almost twice as long as yesterday before my first walking break. Good job Andrea.
Oh, and I do about an hour and a half of pilates every day, too. You could say I have a lot of time on my hands right now. What better way to spend it than to get in shape. Summer, here I come!

And the verdict is

I am going to be in Salt Lake. At least for a while. I spent a long time figuring out where I should be. I prayed and prayed and prayed and thought and thought. So, after all is said and done, I am staying here. It will be good to get myself set up in life before I move far far away. So, if you need me, come find me. If you want me, even better. Unfortunately, I am still mourning the loss of DC. So, in order to feel better about moving, I have made a list of good things about staying in SLC:
1. I already have a job.
2. I already have a place to live (no moving required).
3. I will get to see my friends a lot.
4. I am close to Provo to visit.
5. I get to be near 6/9ths of my immediate family.
6. I get to ride TRAX, which I love!
7. I can afford to buy a car.
8. I get to work with babies!!
9. I get to spend more time with my grandpa and grandma.
10. I can still visit DC, Cali, NYC,...pretty much wherever.
There it is. Any other ideas as to why this is a good thing? Let me know.