Another day off equals another adventure! Today I set out for the National Zoo.
I think I have finally extrapolated what a zoo really means to a community. The zoo is merely a barometer for parents to gauge if their offspring that they themselves have bred are stronger than the previous generation. They gauge this by pushing their children through nap time and two hours past such the hour in hopes that they will not become the most obnoxious children on Earth. It usually ends with a parental brow beating and multiple threats of food or toys that they will not be receiving upon exiting the zoo.
I met this very nice couple from New Jersey today while I was looking on at the lionesses. They were quite active when we were there. The gentleman was questioning where the male lion was and simultaneously the lady and I said "probably in the next exhibit sleeping." Wouldn't you know it we were right on as we moved next door. I had to laugh at this eight year old, or so, boy that literally bowled the three of us over to see the lionesses screaming "Hey Lion, look at me, yah you. Look at me over here." His mother snapped at him saying "Jamal, say excuse me!" So he says "Hey Lion, excuse me, excuse me, look at me over here!" While I didn't enjoy being run over by a child, I did find this quite comical.
It is a very weird feeling to walk into an establishment such as the zoo and not pay admission. So many things are free here in DC! For now at least. They are contemplating charging a nominal fee for the museums.
I love zoos because we are able to see animals we otherwise would be unable to see, though I do hate to see the animals all caged up. I didn't recall that this zoo really tries to exercise their animals and keep their instincts raw to the best of their abilities. They have something called the "O-line" where the orangutans can cross a cable from their outdoor exhibit to a platform 46 feet above the walkway where all the voyeur humans walk, giving them the chance to evacuate their bowels. Just a suggestion if they are angry about being in captivity. They also have a quarter mile elephant walk that they use to exercise the elephants with random toys and logs along it. Beats the indoor facility and outdoor playpen, I guess. Several animals had little tweaks like this that showed that the zoo really cared about the mental vitality of the animals. Nice to see.
It was a very nice and cool day to be outside. It was sunny and 65 degrees. Tomorrow shall bring some bike riding of some fashion. It is going to be a bit warmer though, so perhaps in the afternoon.
I don't mean to complain, but being a part time nurse and part time tourist is an exhausting job. :-) I wouldn't change a thing though. I love it!
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Saturday, May 11, 2013
A day of mammals, mummies, bones, archives, and art.
The radar last night showed strong storms for today. So I cancelled my hike and made it a museum day. I set out to visit the Museum of Natural History, the National Archives, and the National Museum of Art.
The Museum of Natural History was very cool yet very creepy. Every animal you can imagine was stuffed and on display. There were mammals, mummies, amphibians, and black widows oh my! My favorite part due to my medical background, no doubt, was the bones exhibit. They showed bones post mortem (after death) affected by disease, repaired with metal rods, and afflicted by different types of fractures. I found this quite interesting. If I went through this in the 7th grade, I sure don't remember it.
My next stop was the National Archives. I do recall this. Viewing the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights just never grows old. They had such nice handwriting back then. No pictures from this stop, but no worries I asked the question that was most important. I questioned the armed guard at the entrance of the rotunda. My question was "so in the movie National Treasure, it was stated that the above three documents are dropped 25 feet down into a bomb shelter and highly guarded with multiple security vaults, is this accurate?" Her reply was vague but per protocol, no doubt. "Many years ago, yes that was accurate. But due to new technology and new security protocols, I cannot comment on what happens to them at night." My response, "Oh, so if you told me you would have to kill me?" She replied, "If I told you I would lose my job and yes then I would kill you, because I love my job." No problem lady, I get it. Very cool to see John Hancock and George Washington's signatures. How come it is always, can I get your "John Hancock" and not your "George Washington?" I am going to start a new trend.
My last stop was a surprise. It was the National Museum of Art. I arrived about 45 minutes before closing, thinking it wouldn't much interest me. I was royally wrong! I already have plans to return. I really rushed through it. There were cool busts scattered about mixed with naked statues and cool paintings. Really an unexpected liking on my part.
Now I am enjoying a very cool thunderstorm from my balcony. Back to work tomorrow. This work nonsense is really putting a wrench in my tourism plans. I am thinking the zoo and back to the art museum on my next day off. I gotta get some bike riding in too.
The Museum of Natural History was very cool yet very creepy. Every animal you can imagine was stuffed and on display. There were mammals, mummies, amphibians, and black widows oh my! My favorite part due to my medical background, no doubt, was the bones exhibit. They showed bones post mortem (after death) affected by disease, repaired with metal rods, and afflicted by different types of fractures. I found this quite interesting. If I went through this in the 7th grade, I sure don't remember it.
My next stop was the National Archives. I do recall this. Viewing the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights just never grows old. They had such nice handwriting back then. No pictures from this stop, but no worries I asked the question that was most important. I questioned the armed guard at the entrance of the rotunda. My question was "so in the movie National Treasure, it was stated that the above three documents are dropped 25 feet down into a bomb shelter and highly guarded with multiple security vaults, is this accurate?" Her reply was vague but per protocol, no doubt. "Many years ago, yes that was accurate. But due to new technology and new security protocols, I cannot comment on what happens to them at night." My response, "Oh, so if you told me you would have to kill me?" She replied, "If I told you I would lose my job and yes then I would kill you, because I love my job." No problem lady, I get it. Very cool to see John Hancock and George Washington's signatures. How come it is always, can I get your "John Hancock" and not your "George Washington?" I am going to start a new trend.
My last stop was a surprise. It was the National Museum of Art. I arrived about 45 minutes before closing, thinking it wouldn't much interest me. I was royally wrong! I already have plans to return. I really rushed through it. There were cool busts scattered about mixed with naked statues and cool paintings. Really an unexpected liking on my part.
Now I am enjoying a very cool thunderstorm from my balcony. Back to work tomorrow. This work nonsense is really putting a wrench in my tourism plans. I am thinking the zoo and back to the art museum on my next day off. I gotta get some bike riding in too.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Stubborn as a mule and sleeping standing like a horse.
I have been a nurse for almost ten years and I have learned there are some days that are miserable during your shift, but you can only laugh about afterwards. This account is not to desecrate the demeanor of the gentleman I am talking about. But I have to write about my accounts for the day because it must have been funny, because my coworkers could only laugh and mock me ALL day.
One of the main things I love about this area is the diversity of people from all over the world. Well, I got my spoon full of diversity this day at work for sure. I arrived at work 5-10 minutes early, as I always do, (To my TCH coworkers, I turned over a new leaf and arrive earlier.) only to hear a gentleman smacking his son around and yelling at the nurse practitioner that is removing his chest tubes. I refused to look at the dry erase board to see my assignment and tried to ignore the room that the yells were coming from, because I only knew my name was written all over it. So after charge report was over, the huddle broke and as I suspected Mr. Combative Pakistan man was all mine for the day!
So I decided he should probably get my first bit of attention. As I walked in and introduced myself the son says hello to me and states, "My father is a little upset and wants to go home." I concurred that he is a little upset. This gentleman is around 82 years old, as his age was estimated when he came from Pakistan to the US, and he had heart surgery the day before. This gentleman understood a fair amount of English but speaks very little. So I really wanted to call my awesome SW from dialysis at TCH, Jewel Porter, and have her make the situation all better. That is really what she does. From best I could tell, the situation became explosive when the language barrier essentially clouded the reality of what heart surgery meant for this gentleman. He did not realize that it meant being in the hospital for 3-5 days and that he would have to be attached to monitors and have chest tubes and a foley catheter attached to him. He is an extremely independent man. This gentleman is also disoriented to everything but person as he believes we are in Pakistan and still very clouded from anesthesia from the day before. All very normal activity for an elderly individual that goes under anesthesia. This reminds me of when my grandma would get anesthesia, she would always hallucinate and see a little girl standing in the corner with a pail of water and would often dump the pail on my grandma. I stayed the night with my grandma after a surgery and as sincerely as she could say it she asked that I go get a cup of water and douse the little girl standing in the corner. I still laugh about that. Interesting that should had this same reaction each time with anesthesia.
So enough introduction, I spent a lot of time walking with this gentleman as that is really the only thing that kept him from throwing punches at everyone around him and calmed the yelling. Did I mention that he was a retired boxer in Pakistan? Dude had a mean right hook. The first two hours of my day I spent walking this gentleman around the unit and to any window with a view. We returned to his room and he was sitting in a chair, finally. As I was preparing his medication, I was turned from him about 45 degrees and he was yelling at me in Ehrdu. Speaking to him really only made it worse. So I just listened. Then silence. My thought: he finally took a breath and is exhausted. Reality, he is back in the hallway. I literally took my eyes off of him for 10 seconds. So about 3 rooms down, I caught up with him and tried to coax him back to his room. Again, a lot of yelling. Two sons were there and trying to translate only for the sons to get really mad and they left. Here I was again, trying to rationalize with a man that is only yelling Ehrdu at me. He wouldn't walk back to his room, nor would he sit in a wheelchair. He merely just stood there yelling. Best case scenario for Shannon! And if I tried to steady him as he was swaying looking like he would fall, punches are being thrown. My manager, whom is really nice and sweet and petite, walks out and states the obvious. "He can't stay in the hallway yelling like this. Here let's try to walk him back to his room." My suggestion "Duck and weave to the left." She attempts and quickly understands what I mean. Eventually, he sat down on the floor in the hallway with just a gown on. Not my first option of choice, but he really just went limp like a two year old throwing a temper tantrum. (For the nurses out there, no incident report if your patient willingly lowers himself to the floor.) Eventually security was called and a after 35-40 minutes of really nothing he stood up and at least looked towards his room. He was thinking of walking back and our Hispanic housekeeper who is awesome yells, "Poppa come to me. Come on, Poppa!" That is really what got him moving. He was a bit more compliant from the IV Ativan I gave him too. Now he really looks drunk. It's finally 10:45 or so and we are back in the room again. Another dose of IV Ativan was given per my suggestion because I was not going to do this all day, just my first half. The next two hours we stood just inside the door near the wall and fought sleep like an infant and tried to remain standing. Any attempt to make him sit or walk was like making a mule walk where he didn't want to go. So my job was to watch him stand and sway sleeping standing up like a hourse, because his fall is on my name. Not cool. I really didn't think my day could get worse until the Lasix that I gave him kicked in and the yelling started again only to end when he peed on the wall. My response, "You have got to be kidding me!" Thirty more minutes pass and we have walked 4 ft at least closer to the bed and completely unannounced this time he pees on the floor and now we are both standing in a pool of urine. All my coworkers could hear was, "NO NO NO NO, what are you doing?" It's all fun and games until you are the nurse standing in the pool of urine, that is not your own. Eventually around 12:30 my Ativan was taking full effect and I got him to lie down in the bed with the coaxing of yet another son. A very long 5 hours!!! Thank goodness someone else was taking care of my other patients.
Long story short, I have never met a more stubborn human being. I not only should learn some Spanglish but maybe I should learn some Ehrdu. I am sure he is a very nice gentleman but man is he stubborn.
Oh a day in the life of a nurse! Happy Nurses Week everyone!
One of the main things I love about this area is the diversity of people from all over the world. Well, I got my spoon full of diversity this day at work for sure. I arrived at work 5-10 minutes early, as I always do, (To my TCH coworkers, I turned over a new leaf and arrive earlier.) only to hear a gentleman smacking his son around and yelling at the nurse practitioner that is removing his chest tubes. I refused to look at the dry erase board to see my assignment and tried to ignore the room that the yells were coming from, because I only knew my name was written all over it. So after charge report was over, the huddle broke and as I suspected Mr. Combative Pakistan man was all mine for the day!
So I decided he should probably get my first bit of attention. As I walked in and introduced myself the son says hello to me and states, "My father is a little upset and wants to go home." I concurred that he is a little upset. This gentleman is around 82 years old, as his age was estimated when he came from Pakistan to the US, and he had heart surgery the day before. This gentleman understood a fair amount of English but speaks very little. So I really wanted to call my awesome SW from dialysis at TCH, Jewel Porter, and have her make the situation all better. That is really what she does. From best I could tell, the situation became explosive when the language barrier essentially clouded the reality of what heart surgery meant for this gentleman. He did not realize that it meant being in the hospital for 3-5 days and that he would have to be attached to monitors and have chest tubes and a foley catheter attached to him. He is an extremely independent man. This gentleman is also disoriented to everything but person as he believes we are in Pakistan and still very clouded from anesthesia from the day before. All very normal activity for an elderly individual that goes under anesthesia. This reminds me of when my grandma would get anesthesia, she would always hallucinate and see a little girl standing in the corner with a pail of water and would often dump the pail on my grandma. I stayed the night with my grandma after a surgery and as sincerely as she could say it she asked that I go get a cup of water and douse the little girl standing in the corner. I still laugh about that. Interesting that should had this same reaction each time with anesthesia.
So enough introduction, I spent a lot of time walking with this gentleman as that is really the only thing that kept him from throwing punches at everyone around him and calmed the yelling. Did I mention that he was a retired boxer in Pakistan? Dude had a mean right hook. The first two hours of my day I spent walking this gentleman around the unit and to any window with a view. We returned to his room and he was sitting in a chair, finally. As I was preparing his medication, I was turned from him about 45 degrees and he was yelling at me in Ehrdu. Speaking to him really only made it worse. So I just listened. Then silence. My thought: he finally took a breath and is exhausted. Reality, he is back in the hallway. I literally took my eyes off of him for 10 seconds. So about 3 rooms down, I caught up with him and tried to coax him back to his room. Again, a lot of yelling. Two sons were there and trying to translate only for the sons to get really mad and they left. Here I was again, trying to rationalize with a man that is only yelling Ehrdu at me. He wouldn't walk back to his room, nor would he sit in a wheelchair. He merely just stood there yelling. Best case scenario for Shannon! And if I tried to steady him as he was swaying looking like he would fall, punches are being thrown. My manager, whom is really nice and sweet and petite, walks out and states the obvious. "He can't stay in the hallway yelling like this. Here let's try to walk him back to his room." My suggestion "Duck and weave to the left." She attempts and quickly understands what I mean. Eventually, he sat down on the floor in the hallway with just a gown on. Not my first option of choice, but he really just went limp like a two year old throwing a temper tantrum. (For the nurses out there, no incident report if your patient willingly lowers himself to the floor.) Eventually security was called and a after 35-40 minutes of really nothing he stood up and at least looked towards his room. He was thinking of walking back and our Hispanic housekeeper who is awesome yells, "Poppa come to me. Come on, Poppa!" That is really what got him moving. He was a bit more compliant from the IV Ativan I gave him too. Now he really looks drunk. It's finally 10:45 or so and we are back in the room again. Another dose of IV Ativan was given per my suggestion because I was not going to do this all day, just my first half. The next two hours we stood just inside the door near the wall and fought sleep like an infant and tried to remain standing. Any attempt to make him sit or walk was like making a mule walk where he didn't want to go. So my job was to watch him stand and sway sleeping standing up like a hourse, because his fall is on my name. Not cool. I really didn't think my day could get worse until the Lasix that I gave him kicked in and the yelling started again only to end when he peed on the wall. My response, "You have got to be kidding me!" Thirty more minutes pass and we have walked 4 ft at least closer to the bed and completely unannounced this time he pees on the floor and now we are both standing in a pool of urine. All my coworkers could hear was, "NO NO NO NO, what are you doing?" It's all fun and games until you are the nurse standing in the pool of urine, that is not your own. Eventually around 12:30 my Ativan was taking full effect and I got him to lie down in the bed with the coaxing of yet another son. A very long 5 hours!!! Thank goodness someone else was taking care of my other patients.
Long story short, I have never met a more stubborn human being. I not only should learn some Spanglish but maybe I should learn some Ehrdu. I am sure he is a very nice gentleman but man is he stubborn.
Oh a day in the life of a nurse! Happy Nurses Week everyone!
Monday, May 6, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
A Flurry of Activity
Sixty five degrees and sunny brings everybody outdoors here in northern Virginia. As I stopped at the corner nearing a crosswalk, I looked around at the others waiting for the light to change with me. I counted 7 bicyclists, 2 unicyclists, 3 kids on skateboards, 2 roller bladers, 2 guys on "prostate" bikes as I call recumbent bikes, 3 women in full Muslim garb (just their eyes exposed), and 2 nuns in full habit. Needless to say I was busy counting during the wait. Wouldn't you know it, the nuns muscled their way to the front and beat all of us across the street. Two of the other people commented, "Bet you didn't expect that?" I couldn't agree more.
Today I set out to bike the Arlington Loop. As it would suggest, it is a loop that pretty much outlines the perimeter of Arlington, VA all via bike paths. A coworker gave me a Bike Arlington map, so I couldn't let her down. My first loop around I dedicated to measuring the distance and noticing the topography. It is a 16 mile loop from my apartment. So I decided to do this loop twice; though in my head I wanted to do it three times. Perhaps another day will evolve into three loops. Much like the Billy Goat hike, I again noticed that there were definitely more bicyclists riding towards me than with me. Yep, my direction was mostly uphill once you got past the airport. Though I wanted to reverse the second loop, I continued the tougher direction because I don't want anyone to accuse me of getting soft when I get back home for a visit.
Along with the activities mentioned above; the Potomac River was busy with kayakers, speed boats, jet ski's, and fisherman. Quite the eclectic group. What a beautiful day!
Call me simple, but the favorite part of my ride was an area called Gravelly Point. Gravelly Point is a park right on the river next to Reagan airport where you can watch planes land and take off, one after another after another..... There were picnics going on, very competitive wiffleball games, and plenty of onlookers just watching the planes. That is one busy runway. Key word there, RUNWAY. The planes taking off have to get off the runway quick because there is a plane hot on their tail ready to land. I always envisioned that airport much larger.
Well after two days of vigorous hiking and two days of biking, this girl officially feels like she has been ejected from a vehicle! So tomorrow, I shall lay low and rest up for my three days of work for the week.
Today I set out to bike the Arlington Loop. As it would suggest, it is a loop that pretty much outlines the perimeter of Arlington, VA all via bike paths. A coworker gave me a Bike Arlington map, so I couldn't let her down. My first loop around I dedicated to measuring the distance and noticing the topography. It is a 16 mile loop from my apartment. So I decided to do this loop twice; though in my head I wanted to do it three times. Perhaps another day will evolve into three loops. Much like the Billy Goat hike, I again noticed that there were definitely more bicyclists riding towards me than with me. Yep, my direction was mostly uphill once you got past the airport. Though I wanted to reverse the second loop, I continued the tougher direction because I don't want anyone to accuse me of getting soft when I get back home for a visit.
Along with the activities mentioned above; the Potomac River was busy with kayakers, speed boats, jet ski's, and fisherman. Quite the eclectic group. What a beautiful day!
Call me simple, but the favorite part of my ride was an area called Gravelly Point. Gravelly Point is a park right on the river next to Reagan airport where you can watch planes land and take off, one after another after another..... There were picnics going on, very competitive wiffleball games, and plenty of onlookers just watching the planes. That is one busy runway. Key word there, RUNWAY. The planes taking off have to get off the runway quick because there is a plane hot on their tail ready to land. I always envisioned that airport much larger.
Well after two days of vigorous hiking and two days of biking, this girl officially feels like she has been ejected from a vehicle! So tomorrow, I shall lay low and rest up for my three days of work for the week.
Friday, May 3, 2013
I love Goat Cheese! Bring on the Billy Goat!
Well you don't get skinny eating cupcakes all day! I already tried that a couple of months back. So Day two of hiking was on the agenda for today. I viewed it as my 15 year'ish orthopedic check up for knee surgeries and a test of my ankle strength. Strong work Dr. Ellis and Dr. Bilbo.
I went back to Chesapeake and Ohio National Park today to conquer their toughest hike, the Billy Goat Trail. The Billy Goat trail is divided into three trails A, B, and C. A being the toughest trail down to the most moderate. All three of these trails are below the falls that I saw yesterday. The Billy Goat trail A is on Bear Island which is sequestered between the canal and the Potomac River.
Have you ever been going against the grain of society and you wonder why everyone is coming at you but no one is following you? I have been marching to the beat of my own drum all my life in many different arenas, so this didn't bother me, but it did make me wonder. The Billy Goat trail A has two entrances from the towpath. Just for the record, I did google which entrance would have me scaling up the 50 ft traverse rather than going down. I really couldn't find much on it, so I took a guess. As you can imagine, I guessed oh so poorly. After, oh I don't know 25 people or so passed me; I asked a gentleman if I would be going up the cliff or down. He kind of giggled and said, "Sorry lady, you will be going down. Just be careful with your step." "Thanks buddy!" With all the scary signs and heavy traffic going against me, trepidation continued to build so I stopped on an overlook and called my pathetic brother Blake to say my goodbyes. :-) LOL!
What a beautiful area! So I was sitting atop a 200 foot cliff overlooking the Potomac river towards a comparable cliff on the Virginia side. Every thirty seconds or so a Blue Heron would soar through at about eye level and each one would amaze me as much as the last. Sorry to continue on about the Heron. These can be seen in Ky, but not in the numbers they are at this park. I have only seen a few back in Ky. They soar majestically in multitudes here comparable to robins back home. All the while, I was keeping my eyes peeled for a bald eagle. No such luck. I saw Herons, cliff swallows, Turkey Vultures, canadian geese with babies (as if they aren't mean enough, throw a few young in there and they will down right chase you.), and the cool bird of the day was a screeching peregrine falcon. I heard this guy before I saw him. These are cool falcons because of their fierce speed. When they are going after prey or an annoyance with determination; they can reach speeds up to 200 mph. He took off after a turkey vulture. Quite a difference in sizer there. I have Dr. Rambo, from NKU, to thank for my knowledge and love of birds.
After watching the birds for about 30 minutes or so I decided to press on. Easy to get lost in the beauty of the moment. I had to laugh several times because there would be a clearly beaten down dirt path that headed into the interior of the island that I would think was the trail and then as I looked for the blue blaze marking the trail it would be on these huge boulders screaming "This is the way over all two hundred of these huge boulders." I guess that was the path for those scared of heights.
So by the time I got to the cliff; it was a 200 foot drop in my mind. After climbing boulder after boulder then boom; there it is. Oh okay, Holy Billy Goat! Yep, now I understood why everyone was walking against my grain. This definitely would have been easier to scale up rather than to lower down. I conquered it and had a great remainder of the hike. I then hiked the B and C trails of Billy Goat. It was such a beautiful day there were people out doing all kinds of activities, as you will see in my pictures. Well, I need to figure out what to do the rest of my weekend outdoors as the great weather is to continue.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Hello Maryland the Beautiful!
Today I stepped out into nature enjoying the awesome weather! I headed up to Great Falls, MD to the falls that everyone recommends that I see. What a treat! I must admit that I got lost a time or three on the way there. I wanted to go during the week because the weekends bring humans in high volumes. I rode past this park a couple of weeks ago when I rode with the bike group that I joined. Everyone on the bike ride said it is a must see. Another attraction locals tell me about, knowing my love for biking, is the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal trail (C&O). This is a crushed gravel trail that was originally a towpath used for the mules that pulled the boats along the canal. I was feeling all ambitious and wanting to come back and ride the length of it. Then I delved into the maps and literature and it is 184 miles long. That is a haul on a mountain bike! Regardless, I shall return on bike to ride a good portion of it.
So along the towpath there are varying levels of hikes that shoot off of the towpath and either loop or reconnect further down. A recommended hike to me is the Billy Goat trail. I love the name! The signs are a bit daunting though. I spoke with 3 people that finished the trail today and I am definitely going back! Tomorrow I shall conquer the Billy Goat! Wish me luck! Here are some pics from today.
The awesome part about today were all of the Great Blue Herons flying above the water around the falls. The Herons were as plentiful as a Robin back home. They were everywhere. I just love this bird! I got some profile pics of them.
Feels good to be off after working a lot of days in a row!
Feels good to be off after working a lot of days in a row!
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