May 7, 2012

Sheep Dip and Stepdown 1

I tweaked the hair color.  If you remember from when I stripped the color (the saga starts here), in the process of stripping all the black out, I did some damage to already damaged hair.  I've been using a medium brown haircolor since then.  Over time, the hair has been absorbing color at different intensities:  the damaged porous parts took color really well.  Too well.  Meanwhile, the uneven areas near the crown remained lighter...and the roots are their whole own story.  So I used a different color stripper--not the bleach-based one, but the smelly one--removed the unevenness and re-dyed it.  It's more even though my roots still are lighter than the rest.

I have no one to blame for this but myself.  I think I need to step away from the dye box for a year or two.  Or at least use semi-permanent while the damaged parts grow out.

I got both of my papers and the quiz done...and done by 8pm.  Last week of these two classes, then a week off, then the two government classes begin for the next session.

At the agency facility the other day, I worked on Stepdown 1.  I looked and saw that the ER staff roster was stocked full of core ER nurses.  So, since I'm the low one on the totem pole, I got shipped out.  Everyone else likes to work the Stepdowns and doesn't like to float to the ER, so they would see this as a blessing.  I like to work the ER instead of the Stepdowns, and for a brief moment, I wondered if they were unhappy with me and tried to think about how my last shift went.  I know, my insecurity (but it is getting better).

It went fine.  I checked--no deficiencies.

Since the pace on Stepdown 1 is much slower than the ER, I felt like a fish out of water, but I adjusted.  The techs and LVNs were awesome, and the charge nurse helped me when he could.  One big bonus was that on Stepdown 1, I knew there's no way I'd be leaving late.

I was actually the only female nurse on the staff that shift, RNs and LVNs included.  Now THAT was weird because usually the staffing is overwhelmingly female. Also, the population of the unit is about 40% female.  At the same time, it's great to see so many guys in nursing.  Actually, out here on the West Coast I've seen more male nurses (RN and LVN) that I've ever seen before.

I don't think the male nurses minded a bit that a female was in their ranks...one even flirted with me.  While that wasn't going to go anywhere past flirting due to my happy marriage (not sure what his relationship status is), it was nice to be admired in a non-nursing way.   It reminded me that I'm still not half-bad on the eyes.

Though there was one small inconvenience for everyone:  being the sole female staff nurse meant that I had to sit in on every H&P and medical consult with a female patient whether or not they were assigned to me.  So I would get yanked from the floor at random and the rest of the nurses would have to work around it.