Busy Day & It’s Not Even 10

It all started with Nick’s voice asking me “What time do you need to be in today?”

Now, I work 7:30-4:00 PM, unless I pick up shifts which makes it 7:30-7:00. Since October, my hours have not changed. I look at the clock. It’s 6:50. I jump up cussing the alarm I know I set for 5:00 AM. I know, because I accidentally unplugged the clock and had to set it the time and the alarm. But I guess I made sure the alarm was set for AM, but I had the time set for AM when it was PM, so I mussed it all up. Thing is Nick was up at 5:30, watched me sleep and knows I leave the house at 7:00 every morning.

“I thought maybe you were going in late and I didn’t want to disturb you.”

I ran a brush through my hair, and a different brush through my teeth, and a third mascara brush through my lashes so I don’t look like a zombie and run out the door by 7:10. It only takes me 15 minutes to walk to work so I wasn’t late but I’m the type of person that needs to be early. Throws off my routine.

I get my morning things done, count the cash, make the nursing census, trust recon … blah blah, and dietary tells me they have an interview at 10:30, housekeeping tells me they have an interview at 10:00.

I have a resident sitting by me waiting for his ride that for an appointment that was originally scheduled in February … It started as a rash and this guy is just covered head to toe in scabs and sores. Thing was in February there was a problem with transportation, so we had to reschedule and today was the soonest he could get in. His ride is running late so I call transport and they say they don’t have a ride set for him at all. So I have to call and reschedule his appointment … for September 11th. I feel so horrible for him.

Well, the housekeeping interview shows up at 9:30 so I run around trying to find the director Josh, and he was up on second floor stripping/waxing a room. So he douses the floor with stripping liquid runs to down to meet her and has his new replacement (He got promoted and it’s this girls first day.) to do the interview for him. All of a sudden the fire alarm is going off and while I’m trying to figure out which room its coming from I see that the floor in 112 is flooded … Noticed later that 110 was at well … but because it dripped down the wall from upstairs it had blown out the electrical sockets. (Setting off the fire alarm!)

I run upstairs to tell Josh, and he’s like call Rodney in maintenance. I race back to my desk, and as I am about to call him on his cell someone in therapy calls to tell me that someone is here to see Rodney from Plunk-it? So I give him a call and he’s busy with a leaking pipe in the basement and vents to me about how stupid people don’t know how to do anything and packages come for me to deliver and someone from the college is at my desk looking to speak with who knows?

In between phone calls of people yelling at me because the nurse isn’t answering the phones. People get upset that the nurses don’t spend enough time with their loved ones, yet constantly expect them to be at the desk to answer their calls. The nurses have between 25-30 patients a piece. They are stretched so thin. I try to help them with as many little things that I can …

[11:32] Rodney comes by to tell me everything is back in order.

In the non work world, I had a nice Sunday off. Finally used my pool for the first time this year … it opened in May. I had been thinking about picking up the 3-7 shift in the kitchen, but my mom offered to take me to the casino on her dime, and if I won I could pay her back and if I didn’t oh well. I figured I stood to gain more at the casino than in a 4 hour shift so I went. I did not win. But then again, I rarely do.

It’s now a little after noon, coffee is wearing off, getting hungry and I’ve had to go to the bathroom since 10. When I went in, I noticed how much that mascara didn’t help the zombie like state, but not much can be done about it now. Another 7 hours until home, and then 12 hours before I do it all again. Last week was 7-7 every day but Monday, this week it’s every day but Friday. Which I actually prefer because I know that means when I leave at 4 I have the evening and then 2 full days off. What to do with all that free time?!