Tag: traveling nurse
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The Great Plains (Chapter 4)
I will be making another quick trip home this week (one day home and two days traveling). I am always so excited for the opportunity to go back home. I envision rest and relaxation, but really, it is always another competing prioritization situation, no different than work right now. Should I spend the day cooking/baking,…
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The Great Plains (Chapter 1)
We arrived to our new destination last week. We had a few days of warm weather to allow us time to make adjustments for winter. It isn’t easy to keep a camper maintained in cold weather. It can be a challenge to keep the interior warm when the walls and floors are so thin, and…
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Traveling On
It is hard to believe that I have been home for almost two months. It is the longest that I have been home in almost 2 years. During this time I have started another flock of guineas and chickens, planted herbs in my green house, performed fall cleaning/clean out of our home, baked bread weekly,…
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In a Border Town II
I had the opportunity to return to the facility on the border. This time I spent the 8 hour drive listening and learning Spanish instead of crying. I felt very excited and proud of my accomplishments when I left last week. I went into this assignment with confidence, but I was quickly humbled. I had…
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In A Border Town
I spent a few days this past week working per diem at a facility on the Texas border (8 hours from home). I have a few possible opportunities pending at home, but I wasn’t able to find any local per diem shifts to work while waiting for one of them to come to fruition. I…
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Leaving the Islands
We made it back to the islands with just a few weeks left on my assignment. We spent that time revisiting the places that we enjoyed the most, knowing that we may never be back. We have the best of intentions to return one day, but you never know what life has in store. It…
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The Islands (Week 7)
This past week was the one year anniversary of my twin sister’s death. It forced me to re-acknowledge that she is gone, which brought up a wealth of emotions. I realize now that I have spent this entire past year angry at her. Very few people know that. The anger has been strong enough that…
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The Islands (Week 6)
When we first arrived, I remember losing sleep and being slightly annoyed by the footsteps above me and the loud birds in the jungle surrounding us. Now I find it comforting (more evidence that perspective is relative). It is the first time in my existence that I have been alone. My husband went back home…
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The Islands (Week 4 & 5)
There are no pretentious people here. I mean that. I have yet to see one person in a suit and tie, high heels, or carrying a brand name purse. It is refreshing. There doesn’t seem to be a “rat race” and no one is chasing “the next best thing”. I have never been around a…
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The Islands (Week 3)
I just finished a stretch of 4 shifts in a row that have left me exhausted. When I chose the condo that I am currently in, I knew that it was 54 miles from the facility. To some people that may sound like a long commute, but I made that decision based on travel conditions…
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Intermission IV
Saying goodbye is always hard, as I have mentioned in the past. But this one was a Damn good, good bye (like Mike Ryan’s song). We went out with a bang that last night in Red Cloud, Nebraska. It was a wonderful time spent laughing, hugging, and reminiscing. The relationships that I developed on that…
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The Midwest (Week 10)
My husband is here for a visit which allows us the ability to explore (see previous post for more information). We visited the center of the contiguous United States this past weekend. It was a quiet little place with a covered area and picnic tables. We would have packed a lunch if we had known!…
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The Midwest (Week 9)
Isn’t this a beautiful car? I LOVE it. I love the rumble of the engine when it starts up, I love shifting through the gears, I love driving with the sun roof open. So many things…. Rant Warning——I can’t drive it right now. It has been almost a month of phone calls and begging for…
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The Midwest (Week 7 & 8)
This assignment is flying by! I seriously don’t know where the time is going. I have found myself in uncharted territory. The car trouble that I recently encountered has become compounded by the fact that there are no parts available to fix it. I purchased this car in January to ensure that I would not…
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The Midwest (Week 6)
What a wonderful weekend we just had! As I travel nurse, my husband team ropes, and the kids are grown and in different places -It becomes increasingly difficult for us to all be together. Our son came home to visit from the military (Army MP) and I was able to manage a trip home from…
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The Midwest (Week 5)
I experienced another “first” this past weekend. We went to the horse races! Neither one of us had ever experienced them before, so mark another item off of our list! We actually won a few bets, but never enough to break even. I am sure there is a science to it, but we had fun…
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The Midwest (Week 2)
My husband made it home from Arizona this past week. He dropped the horses off in Texas and came to visit us (hopefully we find a place for them here soon). Can you tell how much Wookie missed him? I think the feeling was mutual. The weather has been bitter cold here and it snowed…
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The Midwest (Week 1)
There was snow on the ground when we arrived this past week, much colder than where we had come from! I had to unpack Wookie’s little fleece suit. He was very excited to see it. We had not used it since being in the high desert. I think he had forgotten all about it (it…
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Intermission III
We had to “kiss” the coast goodbye this past week (along with the tropical climate). We had a week to spend at home preparing ourselves and the camper for the next location (miscellaneous repairs are necessary after every move). But this time we performed a little re-model. My husband has fulfilled his commitments at home…
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The Gulf Coast (Week 15)
I don’t always have the opportunity to stay at an assignment long enough to see the official results or impact of my presence. I usually get verbal affirmation for the positive impact, but since that is subjective I don’t place too much value in it. I prefer to have both subjective and objective data for…