A White Christmas

As I was working early Christmas morning I peeked out the window of my patients room and noticed it was raining. YAY, maybe the snow will melt enough so that I can get all the way home and to my sister's house for Christmas!!! Boy, was I ever WRONG... I ended up with about 7 or 8 more inches of snow on top of what I already had and I had to park my car at the bottom of the hill (where it is still stuck). As providence would have it, I happened to see a friend in her truck as I was trudging along the road making my way home, she graciously offered me a ride the rest of the way home.
I napped by my fireplace for a few hours and hitched a ride with Becky, Steve, and the their dog to Sean and Lisa's house. The festivities went as planned (mostly) with the highline being watching my mom try to play guitar hero. What a kick in the pants!

Barefoot in the Snow Up Hill Both Ways

I took the bus to work last night half anticipating that I might get stuck there in the morning waiting for day shift to come in with all the snow. I had "prepared" myself for such possibilities by packing an extra set of scrubs, socks and three times the amount of food as the usual.
All night long I found myself peeking out the window, each time expecting to see the promised snow. Finally at about 2am, I noticed some tiny flakes drifting sluggishly to the ground by the light of a lamp post. Next thing I knew it was 0730; the day shift was actually HERE and the snow was accumulating quickly.
I checked the sound transit website "just to make sure" and then headed out to catch my bus. We got rerouted on our way home due to road closures, bus spinnouts and thick layers of ice. By the time the bus finally dropped us off, I found myself in the northern portion of downtown Kirkland. So... It was nice morning walk up to the university campus in a winter wonderland wearing scrubbs and clogs. How invigoratine after having worked all night! Unfortunately the snow was little too deep for my shoes and I ended up with a good amount of snow in my clogs. (Yes, I actually had planned ahead for that too, but I had left my boots in the my car at the park and ride. I hadn't anticipated this bus reroute.)
When I arrived at the university, the campus was open and my nursing students were about to sit down to their final. Poor Dr. C. had left his house long before dawn to fill in and administer the test. I also learned (from the students) that he had left his car in Bellevue and walked over an hour and a half to get to campus. Now that's dedication. Had I beat him there I would have called him so he could get back home before he got too stuck and administered the test myself. We had roughly tied however, so it didn't matter; the exam was taken by all who showed up. Afterward I held a little improv. "Cable Chains 101" session with a student's car.
Fortunately I have the only office on the campus to contain 6 beds. Yep... I watched "the blanket show" in my little lab in the bed right next to my intubated Santa mannequin. When I awoke, it was still snowing!


I checked the internet once more before going back out and found that my busses had been canceled and all the other busses rerouted. Once again I had to walk to downtown only this time, no bus! Down to Lake Wa BLVD I went and finally got a different bus which at least got me across 520.

In a Good Place

It's that time of year again... Well yes, it's the holidays but that's not quite what I meant. What I'm talking about is the end of the semester with all it's finals to take, papers to grade, grades to report, etc.. Add all of those things on to working extra hours and the other sometimes not so pleasant surprises life throws at you and that can make for some overwhelming times for everybody!
Just last week I was lamenting over a situation in which I had zero power/ability to fix. I know, it's a nurse's worst nightmare. No matter how much I thought about it, there was nothing I could do to change the situation (or at least for the better). It wasn't longer however, before I was reminded by a friend that when you find yourself amidst (or even looking on) situations such as these in which you realize you are powerless and it looks like there is no hope that in actuality we are in a very good place. It is during these times we can rest in knowing that God holds all things in His hands, even this. (Whatever the 'this' might be.) We are forced to rely on His faithfulness to His promise. These are often the times where God grows our faith, reveals His truth, and draws us near. So... Before you have some "ineffective individual coping" just remember; if you know God you are in a good place.
Jer 29:11 (NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."