4 weeks from today

4 weeks from today...I will be done with school. Isn't that the most beautiful thing you've ever heard? Well, it's beautiful to me! No one will have to listen to my tales of woe involving this horrid adventure I call the last 9 months of my life. Will my life suddenly destress because this part is over? Absolutely not, but it might seem a little easier! I hope in four weeks I'll start seeing the benefit of all this torture...but not yet!

I'll have a new job 4 weeks from today. A new set of co-workers. A group of beautiful friends from a past job that will still love me and support me in my new job.

4 weeks from today my car will be fixed. I won't have a big dent in the back constantly reminding me of my stupidity.

4 weeks from today, I will have acquired a new wardrobe. My beautiful collection of scrubs will hang in my closet as a reminder of the carefree wardrobe I used to require. My closet will consist of grown up girl clothes, which I should have acquired long ago...but never have.

I will have attended a women's retreat...which my soul desperately needs. I will amazingly not be working weekends, which will allow me to regularly go to church, something I haven't been able to do in quite awhile. This going every other week thing is for the birds.

What else will be different in four weeks? Only time will tell.

And the beat goes on...

Well, I'm still in limbo about my job. I'm sure the guy who is supposed to fix the whole budget thing is back from vacation...but now my manager is out. So who knows? The manager of the solid organ transplant program says that I'll be on call when my fellow TC is at a conference, but I'd like to know what I'm doing before then! That would be nice right? :) I've gotten so many encouraging words from my friends and family about this new endeavor, and that's really a blessing to me to know that all those people think I'm going to do great! The patient that I saw transplanted actually went home yesterday (EIGHT days after transplant!), and I was able to do all the discharge teaching, so it's great practice for me!

Other than that whole job thing, I'd REALLY covet your prayers about my school situation. I've got five weeks left, and they are going to be really hard. I've got a lot of papers and projects due, but thankfully no more tests! :) I'm so burned out right now, and it is taking all of my strength and determination not to just give up now! But I CAN'T! I'm SO close to being done!

That's pretty much it at the moment. Trying to figure out what's going on...both with work and school!

First official duty!

Well, I'm really not in my new job yet...but yesterday, I sure got to act like it! I was minding my own business, sitting in Employee Health doing my Community Health clinicals. (ICK!) I saw my fellow coordinator coming down the hall, very purpose driven! Well, it turns out that a transplant was set to occur that evening and she sought me out so I could be a part of it. See, we don't always have someone waiting on the list, and even though this was the 6th transplant this year, they don't normally happen so often! It's important for me to see how it all works, so she wanted to let me in on that. It's such a long process! I found out at 1200 and we didn't end up actually getting to the OR until 6pm! I watched the whole thing...and what an amazing experience! The native heart (the heart the patient had to start with) continued to beat, even after it was removed! It just sat there in the preservation liquid and kept on going! Finally, it figured out that nothing was happening and stopped...but what a sight! To see a new heart, pulled from ice and VERY grey, be sewn in, warmed up, and start pumping blood all on its own! How amazing! And I got to be a part of that! :)

I am not in my official role yet, as there are some budget modifications that have to be done, and wouldn't you know...everyone is on vacation! That's okay though, I'm content to just finish out my days on the floor with my friends. That's gonna be the hardest part! Those women are my family and it's tough to say goodbye...although I really don't have to! I'll still interact with them on a daily basis, but is strange knowing that I'll be there and don't have those same responsibilities. That's my first nursing job, and it's weird to think I'm not doing it anymore. I'm so thankful for the almost 2.5 years of experience I have! This new job is absolutely a God-send! Who knew that they'd take someone without a masters with only 2 years of nursing experience! Hooray for me! :) I'm not sure when I'll actually start...but one would hope they will let me know SOON!


Okay, well seeing as I didn't get home last night until 1:30 and had to be up early this morning for work, I am EXHAUSTED. I will happily sleep...until 6:30....but that's a long time from now! :) HOORAY!

It finally happened!

Today, I got the call...and it's official! I'm the new heart transplant coordinator! AMAZING! More details to come...mostly cause I don't know much yet...but I'll let you know as soon as I know! HOORAY! :)

6 classes left!

After today, I only have 6 classes left! HOORAY! Of course, those classes will be filled with one test, about four papers, and endless hours of droning on by the most boring teachers around, but hey, I am still looking UP! I'm sitting outside the classroom right now, waiting for everyone else to finish today's test. I think I have another one in two weeks...then that's it for the testing! I turned in my "graduation application" today...which is just another fancy way that UTA steals money from me. I love that...you have to PAY to graduate, as if you haven't already given them every blasted cent! Alright, so Children's has given them all the cents...but whatever. You see my reasoning. :) Let's just say that 2 months from Saturday, I will officially be Stephanie Emerson, RN, BSN...and OH SO HAPPY!

I have been in SUCH a horrid mood the last couple of days! I guess it's because I've been at the hospital 9 out of 10 days, either working or doing something else class related. I'm finally done with my management clinical hours and am moving on next week to Community health. I'll be slaving away for free in the employee health office, so that is just fun. ICK. My teacher keeps saying that I need to do my clinical hours somewhere I am interested in, but that's just not going to happen. I am all about getting stuff done. At this point, I just want to be finished! :)

I think that's all that's been going on. Work. School. Puppies. That's it. It's just Oliver and Liberty playing together lately, and poor Lib is missing her sister...but she can get over it. This morning, someone delightfully puked in my bed. EW. Disgusting. Now I have to go wash my sheets when I get home. Nasty.

Tomorrow, I am goign to get my car serviced (Oh so fun!), then back to work for skills day AGAIN. If I could only get away from that place :). I haven't heard anything about the job, although I did have two more interviews last week. I'm FINALLY done with those, so I'll hear sometime either end of this week or early next. I did call the Transplant manager, just to make sure. I didn't want to bug her, but I have a right to know, right? This stupid thing has been going on for a blasted MONTH! It's been long enough! :) At this point, I just want to know. If I am supposed to have it, then WONDERFUL...but if not, I'd like to just get on with my life.

Well, I suppose I should go back to my classroom now. I think everyone's done with the test, although we have a bit before class starts! Have a wonderful day!