Patience is a Virtue...

...as defined by Benjamin Franklin.

He also routinely practiced what he preached. How else did the lightbulb come to be?

Welp, this virtue is on my list, too

My one-day-someday list.

Right now, as I recover from ACL surgery, patience is not my best attribute.

To read how I am trying.... go here.

Warrior Status

So I had that date with the doctor. Wanna know how it went?

Read here.

With love from the girl with new battle wounds...

Take Action

It is Emergency Medical Services (EMS) week.

Read my article, "CPR Certification for Every Capable Citizen" here.

Are you prepared?

xoxo,

Nurse Mer

The Low Down

I promised more details were to follow my last post, didn't I?

Well, because I never break a promise made on my blog, here are the dets....

My column is up and running on Examiner.com! Go here to take a look. And then take another look. Hey, while you're at it, might as well go for a third trip!

(And no, of course I would never ask you to make several stops at my column because it means I get paid more. Psssh who does that. Not me. Nope. Never.)

Happy Examining, folks!

Drafted into the Pros

Dear Blog,

May I reintroduce myself to you not as your keeper, but as your professional blogger extraordinaire.

Humbled and excited, I have landed a cool new (part-time) gig. A gig that doesn't involve needles and answering gastrointestinal questions, but that involves a computer keyboard, the internet, and stringing sentences together.

I recently applied for a professional writing position for Examiner.com, as their Health and Happiness Examiner (not a blogger, but an examiner) for the city of Salt Lake.

And welp, I got it!

Compensation is based purely off of generated revenue from site hits and advertisements. So the hope for you, dear blog, is to decrease hits to you and increase hits to my page for Examiner.com. I know this may hurt at first, but it is for the best. You'll see.

More details, like my personal URL, to follow...

Your Partner in Success,

Examiner Mangum

Did I seriously just personify my blog and write a post specifically dedicated to him/her?

Thanks, Mr. Whitby....

You know this was for you.

No Such Thing as a Stupid Question

Working in an office, I don't experience the hands on stories that many hospital floor nurses do. But I am just fine with that. Actually, I prefer it.



Teaching classes to patients pre-surgery and moderating our online forums, I get asked a lot of questions. And without fail, those questions turn gross, or socially inappropriate, but they make my job so much more interesting.



Even though I don't really want to hear about what's coming out of one of your orifices, I actually maybe really do. So.... what's your question? Oh that's gross, but here, I can't wait to give you my answer...



Sometimes the questions are straight sassy and sarcastic, and those are, by far, my favorite. I get to be sassy and sarcastic in return.



Oddly enough, I have to sensor my responses to females. if I am sassy and sarcastic to a woman, she hates me. And I have to follow it with, "I'm just giving you a hard time...." accompanied by the biggest smile I have ever produced in my life. But if a male receives my response? He laughs and dishes it right back. Oh, gender dynamics!



Well every Monday and Wednesday mornings, I teach a lengthy pre-surgery class. Yesterday was no exception. I gave my lecture on appropriate diet measures the day before surgery, including that the definition of a "light" lunch does not mean steak and potatoes. I then mentioned that nothing but clear liquids should be consumed after 6pm. After defining what fits into a clear liquid category, a patient (male, of course), then asks,

"Does Corona count?"

Fair game, sir.

Fair game.