September 28, 2016

Got both my flu shot and PPD done today.  My left arm is about ready to fall off.

September 21, 2016

In which Meriwhen contemplates resigning

Yes, resigning.  Not from my main job--I love it too much to want to do that--but from Job #3, which is per-diem days.

I've been thinking about this on-and-off for a while.  But as I was getting ready to drive 1.5 hours in the rain to drive to the site I'm working at today, I really realized that I'm racking up a lot of 6-day (and even a couple of 7-day) work weeks and that I'm not getting much free time anymore.

It's not that I'm unhappy at Job #3.  I find it interesting, though dull at times as it's more office and telephone work than direct patient care.  It's a great organization that I'm proud to be affiliated with.  I also get the chance to work with amazing people are some of their sites.  But it's not 100% what I want right now.  I was ready to step back somewhat from the bedside and look for something of a slower pace, I would work at Job #3 full-time.  I see a job like Job #3 as the last job I take before I retire.  Right now, I want to remain in the trenches.

Leaving Job #3 would bring me down to having only 1 job (if you recall, I cut Job #2 (the agency job) free about a year ago).  I'm not used to the idea of having only 1 job.  But then again, I'm also not used to working a permanent position, as the last permanent position I had ended in 2011.  Since that time, it's been the per-diem life until this year when I agreed to be tied down to a permanent position again.

So it's not as though I'm working two part-time/per-diem jobs and need the income from Job #3 just to survive.  I don't even need it as an extra source of income:  my main job compensates me more than handsomely.  More so than I originally planned for in my budgeting.  And if I really needed extra money, I could pick up at least 1 extra shift per pay-period, if not more.

As for the free time...there are some things I do want to be working on that I have been neglecting since I've been working a lot.  The better half doesn't mind my working, though with flip-flopping between days and nights, he is concerned I'm not getting enough rest.  Little one #1, however, is starting to mind.  He gets upset when he finds out that I'm working on a day he thought I was to be off.

Little one #2 has no comment.

So here I am, seriously consider dropping my letter of resignation.  I reviewed my calendar and saw that I have a few more days scheduled through the middle of next month.  Since I have to put in my resignation while on-site, I think I will wait until I have honored that commitment, and then drop the letter.

September 17, 2016

Right, crush my spirit

It's rather disheartening to learn that the IV saline lock that I placed--which I thought was pretty darn good--was deemed inadequate.  I hit it on the first stick, it flushed well, no problems noted...but to those that know more about IV therapy than I, it wasn't a good job.  Bah.

Yeah, I know: practice, practice, practice.  But given how I float around a lot, I don't always get the patients who need IVs started.  And it's kind of hard to practice on myself.

I think it's time to take an official IV therapy and phlebotomy course.