sad... so sad

So here I sit at work in the ER... and there is a very confused, combative elderly man sitting in the waiting room. Apparently he was discharged from here today to go to a nursing home... and when he got there, he was so difficult the facility would not accept him. He has no children and is accompanied by two nieces and a nephew who are clearly beside themselves due to his behavior. He wants to go home. He doesn't understand he doesn't have one. No facility wants to accept him due to his current state. They say that growing old is like becoming a child again bc of the way people devolve back to dependence. So does that mean this man is an orphan? I'm not saying he is easy or not at fault... listening to him for over an hour is like listening to a shrill baby cry. You can't be mad at the child, but you can't really do anything to make it stop either. AYE AYE AYE. What to do... is there an answer here?

More about... blessings...

This is how our blessings come full circle... I'm a little stressed with Gramps stuff and have been stressed over school for a while... one of my biggest supporters... Mrs Kelman. She is a (geriatric) RN... and she always has the best advice and the perfect words of encouragement for school that only a nurse could offer. Well now that we this have health stuff going on with Gramps, she has continually offered to be a resource to me in anyway possible... and a week or so ago sent me the cutest facebook message... entitled "just so you know I'm serious" and she sent her her email, home number, AND cell number!!! Well I just called her, kinda upset, and she knew exactly what information I needed to know and helped me develop a game plan. The gameplan will need continually tweaking, but I have a plan for tomorrow and right now, I need to focus ONLY on tomorrow, not the day after, not a week from now. Why is this woman so kind to me? Well 5 years ago, her daughter, Sarah, was a Resident Assistant working under me at FSU. Well it was Sarah's first year as an RA and it was rough on her bc she was used to going home A LOT, which she could not do with this job. She also had some other transitional stuff she was dealing with... In supporting Sarah and helping her be successful... I was doing what I love-- being a resource (and it was my job too)... but Mrs. K. is still so appreciative of how I worked with her daughter and how I handled the whole situation that she has told me she considers me family and will be there to help in any way I need... One kindness repays another... and the circle continues.


(in the midst of my stress and anxiety,) Thank you God for this good life and forgive me if I do not love it enough.




Sarah got married last year and this is her little guy Caleb;)

old friends....

So my Paternal Grandfather... you know him as Gramps, married my grandmother, Dorthey upon returning from the war... she had a group of girlfriends who kept in touch over the years and while my grandmother passed away in the early 1960s this group of women and their husbands kept Gramps in their circle--his magnetic personality no doubt! One friend in particular was named Phyllis... Gramps was the God Father to one of her daughters and when this woman's father passed away, Gramps would help her mother out. By help her out I mean take her beer and throw a few back;) HAHA, I'm sure he did other things as well... Mrs. Stone lives in Erie PA, but keeps in touch with Gramps... So she and daughter Sande (the God Daughter) came to see Gramps last week. Here are the pics... How fun to meet a dear old friend of my grandparents... It's funny, Mrs. Stone is a very conservative old fashioned lady... she does not take well to Gramps' dirty jokes or swearing of any kind really... Typically she would just hang up on him. The funny part... she always came around and they have remained friends!

Is it true... have I really been this blessed today and it's only 12:54?

These are the blessings I have seen in my life today:
1. A casual friend from nursing school contacted me to buy tickets for a fund raiser that is near and dear to my heart.
2. A friend I only met in late fall (at the gym) texted me to check on Gramps... she has never met him and we have never even hung out together outside the gym... but her genuine concern (and enthusiasm for his progress) brought tears to my eyes.
3. A coworker gave up a vacation day so that the person covering her, could cover me, so I can be off the day Gramps gets out of rehab.
4. A friend, who happens to be my hair dresser, showed concern for my physical health, spiritual health, hair health today. To really top it off... she is now managing my basic car maintenance and road side safety--did I mention she was late for work to do it?
5. I paid off a credit card in January and of course there was the hidden $1.57 that they didn't tell me about that went into an obscene amount of late fees. I called the company today ... not only are they reversing all the fees... they took it off my credit report as well... what!?!?!?! I never get this lucky...

I'm looking forward to seeing gramps still today... anytime spent with him is a blessing... I love him so much and he loves me!