Diary of a Fickle White Woman

Hi. I'm an RN. I started work today. I have some weird orientation thing tomorrow for 8 hours, then am thrown right into night-shift this weekend, working both Friday & Saturday night, 7-7. I also got my schedule for the next 3 months. I work Thanksgiving night and Christmas night. I kind of love that I'm going into this whole working-world life completely balls to the wall. Let's see if I'm still saying that after a few night shifts ;) About NCLEX (aka, any one who is not going to be an RN, the rest of this post is boring), for those who will be taking it in the future, because I know this is a source of great stress and everyone wants to hear everyone's take on the exam. One can never have too many opinions regarding that blasted test, or so it seems. Anyway, I studied for 6 days. Yes, 6- where I actually paid attention to what I was reading and thinking through the questions and answers, not just guessing to get the answer. I'm thinking it's probably ...

I love that word. I love how it has a standard, everyday definition found in Webster's, but also takes on so many different meanings, depending on the individual. The definition is as evolving as the process itself. For me, as many of you know, life has been on the fast track for the better part of the past year. However, that chapter has closed and I am now starting a new one. Here's a little update on my life as of late. On August 11, 2012, myself and 17 of my new brothers and sisters graduated with a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing from Indiana Wesleyan University. The 11 months of school it took to complete that degree were easily the hardest 11 months of my life. There were meltdowns, tears, illness caused by stress, and feelings of being stupid and incompetent. There were also lots of laughs, amazing friendships formed, and patient stories that not only reaffirmed my love for the profession of nursing, but also gave me a better appreciation for life. The whole gang. ...

A few weeks ago I interviewed for an RN job on the neonatal intensive care unit that I volunteered at for over 2 years. Yesterday I was offered the job, contingent on me passing NCLEX. WOOOOOOO!!! I haven't accepted yet (and my dreams of moving to LA are still very real) and I have until I pass boards to formally accept, but the offer is there and, for all intents and purposes, I have a job 6 weeks before I graduate, which has me feeling all kinds of happy, blessed, and flattered. It's just crazy to me that everything I have worked so hard for for essentially 3 years is coming to an end and a new beginning is on the horizon. Truly is amazing how ANY dream can come true, all it takes is a little imagination, and a lot of resilience, dedication, and hard work.  

Well hello there. If there was an award for most sporadic blogger, I'd probably win, right? C'est la vie. Today was the first day of the new term and, after 8 hours of class, the last thing I want to do is work on homework, so I decided I'd post a little update. Apologies in advance for the angry, unpleasant tone in which this post may or may not take. The glorious news? I am finished with school in 67 days. Less than 10 weeks. This is how I feel about that: However, I may need a stint in rehab after these next {less than} 10 weeks because this shit is no joke and the intensity has been amplified 100 fold the past month, with no signs of ever slowing down, and my friend Jac and I have already decided that a nightly brew or 5 will help to take the edge off. I completed 4 credits in 10 days in May, which is now a total blur. Then I spent 4 days in Northern Indiana/Michigan "working" with Amish people. That was a total bust. I was with a midwife and...

A couple people recently reminded me that I have a (pathetic excuse for a) blog and seeing that I haven't posted anything in over 2 months, I thought I should maybe peak in and say hi. HI! Life is pretty same ole same ole, and really, do any of y'all (assuming at least a few people haven't forgotten about me) actually care about the ins and outs of nursing school? Heck, I'm not always sure that I even care. Just a real quick update: I am officially on the downward slope of school. As of the end of February, I am 50% finished with nursing school and I now have less than 5 months left until graduation. I made Dean's List in the fall (GPA over 3.5) and am hoping for that again the spring, but my grades last term weren't my best (and if I could verbalize why and know without a shadow of a doubt that no one from my school was reading, I would. But I'm not willing to take that chance. Let's just say every one in my program was ready to commit several crimes by...

About going back to school tomorrow: 57 days until spring break. Fifty. Seven. Days. Have a good week, y'all. I have clinical orientation 7:30-12 tomorrow, Wednesday class 7:50-1:50, then clinical 3-8 an hour away, and then clinical 6am-4pm Thursday at the same hospital as Wednesday. Welcome back.

It's hard to believe that 2011 is over already. The year went so fast and seems like a bit of a blur. Of course, the biggest event that happened to me in 2011 was getting accepted to and starting nursing school. Actually, that's really the only noteworthy thing that happened in 2011 haha. Here's to hoping 2012 is a little bit more memorable! Goals for 2012: Graduate nursing school Pass NCLEX on the first try and become an RN Get a job, preferably in peds Start paying off my student loans Take a trip with some friends (sometime after October, ideally for NYE) Get healthy. This is something I'm sick of saying I'll do but fail at. I need to lose a good amount of weight so I am better physically and mentally. Get myself out into the dating world. Although I say that and at the same time, I don't want a reason to stay in Indy any longer than I have to haha. Start saving money for my future. Not have a quarter life crisis. I am reallllllly struggling with the fact tha...