camping...attempted again

 

Last January, Spencer and I went camping. At 5am, we were both icicles, so we bailed. We packed up and hurried home to our hot tub. Ever since then, we've wanted redemption! So, yesterday, we packed up the car and headed up Mt. Lemmon only to find out we couldn't have a fire. Bummer, but we figured, being May in Tucson, we didn't need a fire anyway.

Wrong! The sun hadn't even gone down yet and we were shivering. We thought we'd troubleshoot and sleep in the car so we could at least have the morning on the mountain. But then it was dinner time and what had we brought? hot dogs! Have you ever had a cold hot dog? After 4 wretching episodes and having to turn the car on to warm up the car to stop our shivering, we bailed again! 

So maybe we aren't as tough as we'd thought we were. But, we definitely still had fun. We had gone for a beautiful hike, seen a great sunset, and we got to end the night--rather than freezing and hungry, tossing and turning in the car--eating McDonald's soft serve icecream and watching "Man From Snowy River" in our cozy apartment. 

But just you wait--Spencer and I WILL have a successful camping trip one of these days!

It happened!

All through nursing school you hear about doctors yelling at you over the phone. I didn't believe it could actually happen. That's just a bad stereotype, right?
Then there was yesterday. My patient had a tracheotomy last week. When I came on shift, site was red, swollen, and angry and the patient's white count was up (an indicator of infection). After consulting with some other nurses and the pulmonologist, we figured we'd better let the surgeon know. So he was paged....His response was, "I've been called about this four times, now! How many times do I have to say I don't care what the site looks like! I'm coming over to talk to your manager and to post a big sign on the patient's chart warning all future nurses NOT to call me again" and so on.
I put down the phone and laughed. Call me terrible, maybe I should have felt bad about it, but it was just too ridiculous! He was blowing a gasket over my doing exactly what my job is and his NOT doing what his job is!
He did in fact come talk to my charge nurse, our medical director, and post a note on the chart to NOT call him again. I like to think maybe he had been up all night doing emergency surgery, saving a life, and did not have his wits about him....and his dog had just died....and his car was stolen....and he had stubbed his toe...that's why he yelled at me.

Marital Advice

Day before yesterday I had a patient who told me he had been married for 66 years. "We met when she was 13 and I was 17--she was 'the girl next door.'" The wife, holding his hand, piped in, "We just knew as soon as we met that it was gonna be. But we had to wait until I graduated from high school. So we got married when i was 16." I asked them what the secret was. They looked at me with blank stares for a few seconds. Then he said, "Well, you just love each other, I guess." Then the wife piped in with some more advice about reading the bible, letting your husband be head of the household, about knowing when to speak and when to stay silent, etc. But I loved that piece of advice: you just love each other, I guess. I intend to follow that bit of wisdom.

"Hey Anna, the nineties called. They want their phone back!"

So says one of my co-workers. But it still works for me and I love it!

(And now I think it's a matter of pride--how long can I make it last?)

HAWAII

Last month, my parents took Spencer and me on a post-graduation trip to Hawaii. It was one of the best weeks of my life! Hawaii is such a gorgeous place--so far removed from stress and worry, but so comfortable. We spent the first four days on Maui. Each day was so memorable.

1.  Day 1 (Thursday) we snorkeled at Black Rock (my first time snorkeling). It's harder than it looks, but it's amazing to see the whole other world under there. We also walked along the beach a while and went to a great dinner in Lahaina.
2. Day 2 (Friday) we went snorkeled Molokini. It's a tiny island off Maui's coast with an amazing coral reef. When the boat stopped, I thought the water was about 8 feet deep because I could see the water so well. It was 50! That's how clear the water is! We saw fish in every color...it was like stepping inside "Finding Nemo!" We also went to "Turtle Town" to see the turtles. That night we got to do a Luau. Amazing. That is more food--and quality food!--than I have ever seen. And every bit of it was fantastic! I took Belle's approach in "Be My Guest" taking a bite of everything that went by. I couldn't find anything I didn't like! Plus, it was right on the beach with the water, sunset and sailboats for a backdrop. Sigh....
3. Day 3 (Saturday) we drove the road to Hana. I wish I could describe how beautiful it was with all the thick green, the flowers, the waterfalls, and the ocean in the background. Breath-taking--literally (and we made it without getting carsick!). It was really fun to have that time to just chat with mom and dad, too. They are two of the funnest people to hang out with. We also got to visit some friends, the Hanks, who have a place in Hana (and got to pick/eat papaya right off the tree. And when it's fresh off the tree, it doesn't taste like dirty gym socks like the ones from the grocery store. It's delicious!) We continued along the road to hike the Seven Sacred Pools and the waterfall above it. That might have been my favorite thing we saw. I won't even try to describe it...just go! We drove back to the hotel along the dryer side of the island (being from Arizona, I wouldn't call that dry, but whatever), stopping for Italian on the way home.
4. Day 4 (Sunday) we went to the local ward and spent a restful afternoon reading with the waves and birds as background (did I mention you can see the ocean from our room?). We had teriyaki sandwiches and went for a beautiful sunset walk (and saw whales off the coast). 
5. Day 5 (Monday) We flew from Maui to Oahu. Oahu has a very different feel--a little drier (again, jungle compared to where we're from) and a little more podunk maybe? Roosters were running all over and restaurants consisted of tiny little surfer delis. But I loved going back there since I'd spent a summer living there. We hit up one of those delis for lunch, checked in, then visited Sunset and Waimea beaches (with a Matsumoto's snow cone in between). Beaches...is there anything more relaxing? 
6. Day 6 (Tuesday) We spent the morning doing a session in the Laie temple (which was packed!) and got to do sealings. It's really neat to walk out of that temple and see the line of palms going straight out to the beach. We also went out on the point (one of my favorite places from when I lived there) and saw my old house, campus, etc. Then we hit up Ted's Bakery (I stuffed myself with the fabulous pies) and ended up at Waimea again for another beautiful sunset (and frisbee game). We finished off the day with pina coladas and "Despicable Me."
7. Day 7 (Wednesday) We drove the long away around the island, seeing more pretty jungle, then went to Pearl Harbor. It's an interesting place to visit on a vacation like that. It's such a sobering experience amidst such pure fun and relaxation, but there's a really neat, hopeful spirit there. Then we went to the airport and headed back into real life again...

The Hanks' backyard.

Luau!

By the Seven Sacred Pools, you hike through a bamboo forest to reach these incredible waterfalls. These picture don't begin to do it all justice. Again--just go!

Climbing trees :)

Seven Sacred Pools-ish. Again, no comparison to the real thing

Sunset walk and whale-watching with Lowli.

Sunset Beach

Waimea Bay 

I can't thank you enough, Mom and Dad! And thank you Spencer for making sure every minute of it was bliss for me! We WILL be back someday!