happy spring!

It's officially spring [nevermind that it's 19 degrees F with the windchill]! Spring is one of my favorite times of the year because it symbolizes rebirth and renewal. I love seeing the buds on the trees, the daffodils and tulips poking through the earth, and the various shades of green that change our drab Wisconsin winterscape into a vibrant playground for summer. The birds come back, people are outside, and [hopefully] the parkas can be packed away until October.

I've been really busy lately. Work has been kicking my bum. We lost another nurse [she moved to Green Bay], and one of our travelers' contract doesn't start until the 29th. We're down to 7 nurses some days. Additionally, since I started in August 2007, 4 nurses who took call have left and none of them have been replaced, which means that the rest of us are taking a lot more call. In fact, I have 4 weekends of call coming up. We're supposed to be on one weekend, off the next, but it's not working out at all. It's really frustrating, and we're getting burned out. And the nurse who does the call schedule doesn't see that she's putting the same people on weekend after weekend! Oh, and it irks me that she doesn't have to take call because she does the schedule! Everyone should have to, and if you don't want the call you should have to try to get rid of it. Otherwise, suck it up!

In other news, Wolf and Sam are going at it one day at a time. His breathing is getting very labored and he is hallucinating sometimes. He doesn't eat a lot and is very, very skinny. He sleeps most of the time. Sam is being harrassed by the hospital for payments, and the social worker isn't doing her job very well. My mom had to call the hospital and tell them to stop calling Sam for money. I mean, she is watching her husband die in their living room. Back off and have some compassion for your fellow human beings. The insurance industry makes me sick, and hospitals aren't much better, especially ones that claim to be non-profit [cough*Aurora*cough]. It's all about the Almighty Dollar now, and the person is a secondary thought.

peace and love,
m