Snipets

I'm on call this weekend for the first time in 3yrs. I've had some adjusting to do to get through this. I have always hated call and after 3yrs I'm still hating it! We had a rule in our department that said after age 55 you didn't have to take call. I was so excited to reach that mile stone. It took the sting out of getting older! I think they originally thought no one would be working past that age. Well, that didn't happen. There are 5 of us in surgery who are over 55. The younger staff started getting mad and making many complaints that they were being over worked and it wasn't fair to them. Well, the rule got reversed and here we are. None of us were happy about it and it was very tense the last few months. It's been a stresser but I've had to move forward and do the best I can. One day all the younger staff will reach this age. In fact, many of them are in worse shape than us "oldies" and probably won't even be able to work to our age. So I have been tied to my phone and running back and forth from the hospital to home. Not much to blog about except the crazy weather! Here are just a few "snipets" of my past week and some from this weekend.

I made a pie this week for a coworkers birthday "carry in"...They say it tasted really good. I didn't have any because I'm trying to stay away from that stuff, but I was pleased with how it turned out. Pies and bread are not my strong points in cooking...but this was fun!

Early in the week Eddy and I went on a hike to the Creepy Woods and all he cared about was he favorite drinking hole..it makes him lick his lips with joy!

Last weekend we were covered in snow and then "poof", it was gone. Then this Saturday I woke up to see all this frosting on the trees and grass. Again we had a mini blizzard!

It came down in big flakes with big winds to match. But by the afternoon..the sun was out, the snow was almost all gone and here's how it looked:

Yesterday across the road you could see a lovely sunset beginning.

Fast forward to today about 45 minutes ago when I took this shot from the livingroom window...heaven help us..

Wait! I just took this pic from the computer room window...The sun is back, the snow has stopped...

Oh brother...if you ever meet one of us "Ohioans" and we have a funny tic or are always looking at the sky with crazy eyes..we're just a bit confused about what Mother Nature is brewing to send our way...and brewing to change in a wink of an eye. Hope your snipets of this coming week are more exciting than mine!

Where Have All The Snow Piles Gone?

Remember all the snow from the previous post? Well, it's gone..done..danada..melted into a memory. Except for this tiny patch that refuses to leave. A memory that will come back to haunt us in the future I'm sure. But for now we've returned to rainy, foggy, damp and dark days.

Dark and damp like this picture. If you look closely you will notice the muddy driveway, the rain in the trees, and another sad sight.

The bird bath in the planting area across the driveway looks like it just gave up and keeled over...almost sadder looking than the chairs covered in snow!

A Very Sad Sight

This is a very sad sight. It's where Jack and I will sit and star gaze or watch for any wildlife that wants to wander down from the Creepy Woods...during the warmer months I mean. Why are these still perched on the deck? Beats me..all I know is: This is a very sad sight.

But with Jordan taking care of the sidewalks....

And Jack tackling the driveway...we were good to go! I just can't look out the back door at the deck and see those poor chairs!

Are You OK? Are You OK?

It's that time of year..or I should say that time of 2 years. Every 2 years we have to renew our BLS skills. That's basic life support or CPR. It's something everyone should learn. You never know when it might be your turn to find someone in trouble. It could be your friend, Husband, Dad, Mom, or kiddo that would suffer a heart attach, or respiratory distress, or choke on food. This morning our group gathered for the second half of our renewal. Last week we did adult rescue and practiced using an AED device. Hopefully every store, school or public place has one. Hopefully I'll never have to find out if they don't! After watching the movie and practicing with these:

Adult & Child

After practicing and getting checked off on our skill level we took a written test. Now, you might think as technicians and nurses we'd be wizzes at these quizzes...wrong! The test is written with some questions that are just not worded correctly and it always makes me a bit nervous and I know it does my co-workers too. But we always pass it and it's just a relief to be done with it for a couple more years!

Here's our little Donna (Starkey Hollow) showing her skill in holding a baby...no wonder her Grandkiddos love her so much! You go girl!

Yes, I'm so happy to be here!

Everyone is all smiles to be done! The importance of our training came into play last fall when one of our maintenance men had a heart attach outside one of the buildings on our campus. Luckily for him 2 of our surgery girls were outside having a break (OK, they were smoking...this is the only good thing that ever happened because of a bad habit!). One of the guys called for their help. There were other maintenance men standing around but none of them knew CPR..so the girls jumped in and starting compressions..they saved his life. He's back at work and we were all so happy to see him and I'm sure his family is happy that he's around. So if you get the opportunity to learn this simple skill, take it.

Ice Art

Saturday brought a few changes in plans for us. After it stopped snowing Jack went up to the woods to bring down some wood he had cut last week and I went and helped...well, I think you could call it help. When we finished Jack knew I had mentioned that I would like to go down to Loudonville to see the ice sculpture contest. Since we weren't totally frozen yet, he said "let's go!" They have this every January and I'm sure the town was a bit worried when the temps were in the 40's...until Thursday when all snow broke loose and the temps fell dramatically. It made for perfect ice art! This is a pic of downtown Loudonville. It looks very similar to many of the small downtown areas around here. They survive on tourism during the summer months since they are right in the heart of "Mohican Country"...Mohican National State Forest where camping, fishing, and the biggie..canoeing are the bread and butter of their economy. They have a few other events that are held during the Winter months that bring people out. There are a few really cute restaurants and shops but I noticed empty buildings too. I saw a sign in one that said "Wal-Mart..destroying a small town near you"...sad but true. I do like this little town and enjoy coming here even if it's cold out!

This was one way of seeing the sculptures and the town.

These pics are just a few of my favorites. The sculptures were sponsored by various businesses and sat outside on the sidewalks and also in the town square.

Don't you just love the one with color in it?

We made it to the square and were going to watch a demo on how they sculpt these lovelies...but after a day spent mostly outdoors and snuggling up to blocks of ice, we decided to head home to a warm fire and dinner.

Squeak had the right idea...snuggle up to a warm bed...not a block of ice! She just has no appreciation of the fine arts.

Unlucky 13...For The Weather Anyway!

We got a bit of this white stuff today. It started last night. I was called out for an emergency c-section and the temps were in the 40's and no snow. I came out at about 10pm and it was blowing and freezing and snowing..and icy. I was very happy to get home and be able to stay home all night. The drive to work this morning was not very fun however. Jack and I went in together and he dropped me off at the door which meant I didn't have to walk from the parking lot down the street from the hospital. I usually don't mind the walking, but it was below zero this morning..not a lucky number! Since it was Friday the 13th, Winter must have decided to come finally in full force. I knew it would have to come one day, but it still hurt! The schools were closed, the teachers must think this was a very lucky day..for them. Us regular slobs had to fight the elements and of course, all our patients made it in on time! I've mentioned it a few times before, but I have a curse when it comes to planning events and fighting the weather. I was suppose to have a breakfast at my house for our woman's organization tomorrow morning. I was serving these lovelies..along with other goodies. Mother Nature decided to let the wind blow, the roads to be drifted and the snow to fall.

These are blinis...yummy, filled with a cream cheese filling, dipped in butter, rolled in sugar and cinnamon...seriously, what can go wrong there? Well, now they have to be frozen until we reschedule the meeting. ( I did promise Jack I would bake him some in the morning however..take that Mother Nature!)

On a happier note, my blog book arrived!

It joins my other blog books. It's fun to go back and read the posts and see the pics and see how the Grandkiddos have grown and all the stuff we've done the last 4 years. I had my first 2yrs of blogging in one book, then started posting much more and now every year has it's own book.

On a final note, who's sleeping in my bed? Ok, usually I'm really good about making the bed in the morning. Jack came down tonight and said I should take a pic of the bed..because it looks like someone is under that quilt..really freaky looking, but it's only pillows. Hey, I was in a hurry this morning. It was Friday the 13th after all and the weather was nasty and work awaited..OK, I'll make it tomorrow, I promise!

A Green Adventure

We had some beautiful weather this weekend. Very unusual weather for Ohio in January. The temps were in the 40's and 50's and the sun shone brightly. I took this little monster with me up to the Creepy Woods to play around with my new camera. I'm trying to learn about it's settings and if I can improve my pics. I decided to see how much green I could still find up there.

At first glance it just looks very dull and brown.

Upon closer inspection, I found a clump of ferns that were still very green. We've had some bitter cold days and nights along with snow..how has it survived?

I spied mossy mounds everywhere.

Many of the "dead fall" trees sported green mossy coats. I'm sure animals come and snack on this stuff!

You have to look close to see green sprigs here and there that run along the creek.

Shrooms seem very content to just hang around...and on this tree trunk.

This pic doesn't do justice to how huge this fallen tree is. I was surprised that we didn't hear a huge "Bam" when this fell!

Although this ginormous tree is dead and very hollow, I would venture to bet it shelters a ton of little wildlife when the temps and the snow fall.

Getting tired of just looking down, I happened to look up and see this big "gnarly" boy. It's a very unusual looking tree. As soon as Jack saw this photo he immediately said: "I know just where you were when you took this shot." Again, the picture doesn't do justice to how truly different this tree is.

Before Eddy and I headed back inside we stopped at the creek by the house. I saw this and at first thought it was an animal skull...nope, just another tree stump!

One last "playing around" shot...the moon looked really cool last night and although I haven't mastered the art of night photography, I thought this looked like something that would fit into Halloween...or maybe it just says: "Good night all!"

A Good Read

I received a new book for Christmas from my Son and his wife Amy. It's called Virtuosity...as you can see from the photo. It's by a new, young author, Jessica Martinez. It's a young adult fiction and I knew it was coming out and was very excited to get it. Why? Well, I would love to say it's because I know Jessica, but I really know her husband Mark. He and my Son Craig were roommates in college and best friends. He's a great guy and Jessica is a very talented lady, not just with writing but in many aspects of her life. The book is about a 17yr. old violinist...the best in the world...or she's is trying to be. It's about the relationship between her and her Mother and the other "best in the world" violinist, a 17yr. old boy from England. It's a bit of a mystery, romance and a good read. There are no vampires or werewolves in any part of it. If you get a chance to read it, I hope you enjoy it!

A Year To The Day

This is how my yard looks today. The snows fell and the temps have dropped...14de..not counting the wind chill. When I went back and read my Jan. 3rd, 2011 entry we had a very different day. It was sunny and the temp was 58de...I was stunned. I guess all I was remembering was the cold and snow that seemed to last forever last winter. Sometimes I do that with my life....I forget that there are many beautiful days along with the crazy, or not so much fun days. I need to change my focus I think!

So until the nicer days come, many trips will be made up to the Creepy Woods to bring down these:

Wood that heats the house and keeps us toasty during the 14de. days like today. Maybe I just need to find the fuel that will help me focus and find the warmth of everyday!

Welcome 2012

My blackboard sign in the kitchen is saying it so it must be true...Happy New Year and welcome 2012...you hold so many possibilities. 2011 wasn't bad, but I'm hoping for some real change this year. I'm going to give it the old college try to get my health in good shape. The surgery dept. had made a nice rule a few years ago that said anyone over the age of 55 didn't have to take call. It worked out great until I turned 55...that made 5 people not taking call in the dept. and all of a sudden the "younger" set through a fit. They complained to everyone and together with a Director of Nursing who has a very noticeable dislike for our surgery group, the rule was cancelled and now we have to be on call again. So I'm going to need all the stamina I can muster and it will take a change in diet and exercise and a mental "I can do this" attitude. Wish me luck on this one! I hope everyone has had a fun weekend and here's just a quick recap of mine.

Last night Jack and I headed over to a "wild"..hahah...birthday party for this sweet lady. Jan's a retired nurse that worked in our recovery room for many years. She has been working since she retired for Wal-Mart..which she loves! Funny girl! She turned 80 last night and we enjoyed spending some time with her and other friends and co-workers who were there. See, when you're my age going to a party for an 80yr old is how you spend New Years Eve..Party on! Happy Birthday Jan!

After Church we came home and got the grill ready for some ribs that we traditionally do on New Years day. I also made sauerkraut and black eyed peas for good luck because Lord knows we need it! Phil and his little sweeties came over to celebrate with us. These two girlie kiddos can put down the ribs!

We also made some homemade strawberry icecream for dessert. Now, that was yummy!

Before we had the icecream we did the ceremonial bread cutting to see who would find the coin....Jack went first...then we all took turns until finally a winner!

Congrats Lexi Loo!

The girls finished up their icecream and headed for home. All was quiet at the Pines.

Awwww....does someone need a hug? Hope your New Year celebrations were fun and the new year brings many adventures and smiles. Tomorrow will mean "take the decorations all down" day....whew, last year really did fly by fast!