Broken

I'm starting to wonder if there's a poltergeist running around my apartment and breaking things. My kitchen sink has had some issues draining for a while now, but would clear right up when I turned on the disposal. Well you guessed it, the disposal stopped working. There's nothing stuck in it and I tried to reset it but it is completely dead. It doesn't even make noise. So I was up at 6am and put in an online work order for it to be fixed. It's 311pm right now, no maintenance guy to be seen. I just know they are going to show up at 4, not be able to fix it and I'll be without a sink for another night. I hope they plan on paying for my dinner and breakfast out. I was going to make Suman a nice breakfast tomorrow when he got here (Side note for those who don't already know- Suman was in a car accident yesterday and missed his train out here. He's ok, but we're not sure if the car is salvageable or not). The LEAST I could do is make him breakfast, but that's not likely.

Also, my cable box has stopped working. I called COX to get tech support and got the stupid automated service. The first thing it says on the recording is that Saddleback College's TV channel will not be broadcasting all month. There's really that many people who watch this channel for fun that it needs to be the first thing said?! These people need to learn how to watch TV. Seriously, watch some Friends reruns or the Daily Show for God's sake. Anyway automated Betty was unable to solve my problem so I was asked to either stay on hold or they would call me back. I choose the latter. They said they would call back in 59 minutes, which was obviously a lie because I called them over an hour ago. I just called again and they said they would receive a call within one hour and 45 minutes! You have GOT to be kidding me!! They will keep your place in line and call you back in your turn is obviously a bunch of BS. ARG! Also, why do I have to enter my phone number when they were able to identify my account by the number I called from?

So, I can't go anywhere because I have to be near my cable box for when these slackers finally decide to call me back. I obviously can't watch TV, I can't cook anything because my sink isn't working. Maybe I should clean? I don't want to vacuum in case I can't hear my phone ringing, and evidently can't clean the kitchen. My last apartment complex may have been a little ghetto, but the maintenance people were much more organized. I think I'll take a nap. That's pretty much the best way to guarantee the maintanence guys will show up. I'm sure the second I doze off they'll ring my doorbell.

Tabby Tab

When I moved to Southern California I moved in with my cousin and her two cats Sammy and Tabby. They were litter mates and have never been separated. Due to circumstances beyond her control, Danielle was not able to take the cats with her when she moved out and therefore they became my cats. Sammy has long since outgrown his name and has been renamed Phatness, and he responds to this new name. Tabby has always been svelte and active.

In February, I noticed that Tabby had weird bald patches and I took her into the vet's office and had blood work done, all came back normal. It was assumed she was licking it off. They suggested starting her on some arthritis medication, which I sprinkled on her food. This made her projectile vomit, so it needed to be discontinued. Her hair grew back and life went on.

A couple of weeks ago she started behaving weird again. Not jumping on the counters, laying around by my shoes and/or the trash can a lot. She seemed to be getting thinner. Unfortunately I've been working a TON and didn't have more than a day off at a time for the last three weeks. I thought, well I'll take her in if she doesn't perk up soon. I had made a change in the cats food (in an attempt to feed them a higher quality food that would help Phatness slim down). I switched back to the old food and Tabby seemed to perk up a bit. Plus blood work is really expensive, and I didn't want to have to pay all that again just because she was acting weird, yet again.

Yesterday morning, when I got home Tabby didn't meet me at the door and she was laying in a strange position on the floor. When I sat on the couch she ran over, but barely made the jump on to the couch, then started head bobbing, like she couldn't hold it up. I immediately rushed her to the nearest open vet. An Xray was taken and labs drawn. The film showed a large amount of fluid in her abdomen. Not good, but I was hopeful that something could be done. She was so weak, but my friends Cheri and Marisa came over and they were able to feed her a food/water combo. I set up my air mattress and slept all night with her right next to me. I was really scared she wouldn't make it through the night. I must have woke up 5 times to check and see if she was breathing.

The blood work came back this morning and it was devastating. It was obvious to me based on her blood count that she was bleeding internally. Obviously that was the fluid in her abdomen. I took her in to my usual vet and she told me the prognosis was poor to grave. Given the information and history We could do a lot of traumatic, painful and expensive procedures on her, but she thought it would only buy us a little bit of time. Her suggestion was to let her go. I didn't really consider going through with all the procedures, but I thought maybe I should take her home and spend one more night with her. So I asked Tabby if she was ready to go. And she looked up at me with her sweet little face and let out a silent meow. Bless her little heart, she was telling me it was ok to let her go.

So I did. I can't bare it even now, tears are rolling down my cheeks as I write this. Some animals touch you more than others, and Tabby was one of those for me. I feel so guilty for not taking her in sooner. I know everyone will say that I couldn't have known, that I shouldn't feel bad, but I did know. I was too wrapped up in stupid crap to really pay attention to her, and I feel like such an asshole. I don't know what else to say but that I'm devastated, and I will not ignore Phatness in the same way. I hope you can forgive me, sweet Tabby. I don't think I can forgive myself.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles, but Not Necessarily in That Order Part 2

The City as seen from the, ahem, Jersey Shore.

Gaurav is not so sure about his "godfather"

What a good big brother! I swear he only held him so that I would take a picture of him, but so sweet, regardless!

Kelly and Aaryan, who is done holding Gaurav.

Sweet baby! This is the closest I got to capturing his smile on camera.

Bonit and his baby, Gaurav.

Suman gets a hug from his oldest "godson"

Here is Aaryan brushing his teeth, getting ready to go out with Jacquieghosh

(He just recently realized we're not always a package deal)

So we leave from Albuquerque at 6:30am and arrive in Houston at 1030am, then from there fly to NYC and arrive at 316 pm. Suman is the white cloud of traveling, I swear it. Whenever we travel together our flights are always on time, no issues whatsoever. So his mother and brother pick us up from the airport, his brother has a bus schedule in hand. He tells us next time to take the bus. Nice try. So we go to his parents house, have dinner, talk for a while and go to bed. Pretty uneventful.

The next morning I wake up and feel a little off. Something nasty is a brewing and would you believe it? My bladder infection has returned! NO!!! We were suppose to go to temple that morning! I really wanted to see the Ganesh Temple in Flushing (Singing the Nanny theme all the way there, of course). Side note- Ganesh is the Hindu god with an elephant head, among other things he is the remover of obstacles. However, traveling anywhere when you have to pee every 10 minutes is not a great plan. We also were planning on going into Manhattan in the afternoon and that wasn't looking so great, either. I was able to get some antibiotics and symptom-masking meds and a couple hours later all was good. Well, it was at least ok.

Suman's parents had friends staying with them that night, they were in town for a wedding. At lunch they all were talking about the weddings they'd been to recently, describing in detail the food that was served and the decorations. Oh man, I guess this stuff matters? Sigh. Anyway, they were a lively bunch and I enjoyed getting to know them. Plus, Suman's mom really is a great cook! Lunch was great, as was dinner the previous night.

After lunch we were off to New Jersey to meet up with Suman's friends Bonit and Kelly. The plan was that Suman, Bonit, Aaryan (the two year old) and I were going to head into the city (New York City, that is) for the night and leave Kelly with the baby.

We had a great time in Greenwich Village checking out different shops and people watching. We wandered into this awesome chocolate shop Vosges and picked up chocolate there. I bought some art from a street vendor then we went to get in line at Lombardi's (one of the many Famous pizzarias in the Village). Aaryan was a perfect angel while we waited for at least 45 minutes for a table. He started "dropping" his toy cars next to this group of British ladies standing next to us. He was trying to get their attention, then when they would talk to him he would suddenly be shy. Eventually he started talking to them, then we finally got our table.

Me, Suman and Aaryan waiting for a table.

There was this lady at the table next to us who lost her mind and started screaming at our waitress because there was a group of 20 people who evidently had reservations. I guess she wanted to make reservations and they had told her that Lombardi's doesn't take them. Not really sure, but she was cussing up a storm in a British accent (she was not with Aaryan's harem) which I found quite amusing. Especially because she had said they were there to celebrate her sisters wedding, gesturing towards her, yet there was no man at the table. It just occured to me that it could have been a lesbian couple, but then wouldn't they need to be in MA? Whatever, I was just glad Aaryan didn't learn any new words.

To Be Continued...

Trains, planes and automobiles, but not necessarily in that order... Part 1

I recently went on a vacation to visit Suman in Fort Defiance, AZ. We then flew out to New York to visit his family and see his newest "godson" Gaurav. We are playing fast and loose with the term godson here because for one Suman is not Christian, and for two he will not be raising Gaurav and his older brother Aaryan in the event that both their parents die. He just wants to be able to call himself a godfather, but I digress.

As usual, I had traveling issues. First, the train that I took out to Gallup, NM (about 30 minutes away from the Fort) was 3 hours late. The engine broke down and they had to get another one, a freight engine, to take over. As it turns out, freight engines are much slower, so not only were we 3 hours behind, but we were LOSING time the whole way! I was suppose to be there at 9am, and my train finally got there at about 2:30pm.

Train rides are always interesting, though. I went to the dining car for breakfast and they sit you with other people like on a cruise. I was sitting with a early 20s Pennsylvania Dutch boy (there were about 20 of like ones on the train). They were on their way back from what he said was a business convention in San Diego. He was telling me that the soil they farm with has been drained of a lot of it's nutrients, and the convention was telling them about how sea vegetables are much higher in nutrients, yada, yada, yada. So I'm thinking they're using this to fertilize the crops. Nope, it's a liquid vitamin supplement that you take once a day. -Wait a second, the Amish boy is part of a pyramid scheme! Quick, change the subject... Lady next to me was on the way to her 60 year high school reunion. I thought that was awesome.

So, we finally get to Gallup. And I swear to you, there was no rain the entire train ride until we pulled into Gallup, then it was POURING! It was raining so hard that the drops were hitting the ground and bouncing back up at least 5 inches. It was crazy. Suman was working so one of his coworkers husbands, Ben, picked me up. I'd never met this guy before, so I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to find him, but I did. He had a sign for me, a dozen beautiful roses with a balloon and a teddy bear! So awesome!

Made it safely to Fort Defiance, stopped by the hospital to get a tour and Suman's house keys. Went to his place, met his new cat Maytag. He's quite the character, let me tell you! He's a playful little cuddle bug who talks at least as much as Phatness, maybe more! He is also a total ham, and looks right at the camera when you're taking his picture. Suman was a little late getting home that night (such is the life of a doctor). We had a great night just spending time together and went to Mexican food which was soo good! It was so great being with Suman. It had been 5 weeks since we'd seen each other, that's the longest we'd ever been apart. The next day was pretty uneventful. I went to Gallup, loaded up on baking supplies, bought some moccasins and baked chocolate cupcakes with buttercream frosting. Trust me, they were awesome!

On Thursday we drove to Albuquerque to have dinner, stay the night and fly to NYC the next day. We went to old town for dinner. We went to this amazing French restaurant. Seriously some of the best French food I've ever had! Who would have thought, in the middle of New Mexico that you could find such great food! It was a welcome surprise! The New York/New Jersey portion will be continued...

Indian Food? I think I can!

OK, for those of you who don't know, my boyfriend is Indian. Well, he's American-Indian, but not like Native American. East Indian, the original. This is further confused by the fact that he is currently working for United Indian Health Services on a Navajo Reservation. I swear it really isn't confusing at all, just hard to explain. So, he's American born, first generation Indian. Does that clear it up?

At any rate, in Indian culture, cooking is a very important part of being excepted by the family, if you are a girl, of course. I suppose this is true in all cultures. Suman's mom is a great cook, he's always raving about how good her food is. I've told him that my mom made a mean salad and flavored rice, for some reason that's not appealing to him. At any rate, it is very important to Suman that he preserves the Indian side of his culture and that he passes it on, in the event that we have children. As a result of this, I am attempting to learn to cook Indian food. Not Navajo tacos either, although they are delicious. In an "I can literally feel my arteries clogging" kind of way. Nope, curries and such.

At first this task seemed so overwhelming, all these exotic spices and curries. Sauces with flavors I had never tasted until 2 years ago when we started dating. How am I suppose to learn to cook an authentic Indian meal when I barely know how to pronounce it, much less what it should taste like? What finally gave me the courage to try was Suman's boss's husband. Suman told me he made one of the best something-or-rather (a curry of sorts) that he had ever had. I figured if this white boy, who lives in the middle of nowhere can do this, I should be able to. Especially since I have all the resources I need within a mile of where I live. I ordered his cookbook off Amazon.com and loaded up on the necessary spices.

First, Aloo Gobi (cauliflower and potatoes). Now this I have actually made before and the first time it turned out great. I decided to use the same recipe and try it again. It's very flavorful and loaded with veggies, so it's on the diet plan. It turned out pretty good, except that I didn't cook the onions long enough and they were still crunchy, which I'm not a big fan of. So I ended up mostly picking them out. Now I know for next time.
















Next, a chicken curry with coconut milk, tomatoes and cilantro. This I was nervous about, but the recipe was really simple. It turned out great! I ate all of it within 3 days, which is pretty good because it was a lot of chicken. This is maybe not the best picture, but trust me, it was TASTY! So, in conclusion it IS possible for me to make good, healthy Indian food. I have 658 more curries to try. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

Things I ought not to have seen...

People I have observed in the last week include...

-a 40 something year old lady (without the greatest body) at the grocery store wearing sweat shorts and a bikini top and nothing else. Your youth? I think you can look for that in aisle 5, while you're there, try picking up a full length mirror.

-an 80 something year old lady (same store, same day) parked her car right behind another car, but not in a spot, in the driving lane. Got out, looked down as though she was looking for the lines indicating she was in a spot, got back in the car and moved it to the other side of the parking lot. I saw her in the store later. She's tiny, I mean I TOWER over this woman. Anyway, she was trying to get something from the top shelf of the freezer so she just climbed inside it. Granny's spry.

-at the bank, a lady who had to have been in her late 60s, early 70s with a braid in her hair. I don't mean that it was a french braid, or even that all her hair was braided, there was a random ponytail in the right, center of her head and it was braided. WAY too much makeup, think clown like, and exposing more cleavage than I have, let alone would be displaying in public at any age.

-at the salon, a lady just a bit older than me with a short pixie cut and sandals wearing black leg warmers (my hairdresser thought they were gladiator sandals at first) she also had on a tie-dye shirt and had obviously had more than her share of Starbucks for the day. The 80s are dead, dude.

Good times in SoCal

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The Adventures of me and my HMO

I've always had an HMO and up until yesterday, didn't really understand why people have PPOs. OK, sometimes it's a pain to get a referral, but it's not really a big deal. I just thought that people liked PPOs because they already had a doctor that they liked. I was wrong.

So I had a urinary tract infection last week, was put on antibiotics and I thought that was that. Wrong again. I worked Tuesday night and was woken Wednesday afternoon with the return of the UTI, I had some medication that helps with the symptoms so I took that with the intention of working that night then going to urgent care in the morning. I head over to urgent care after work, and I'm the only one in the waiting room! Whoo-hoo! I hand the receptionist my insurance card and she tells me that they can't see me until after 4 because of the contract they have with the partnership. I ask what I'm suppose to do, and she tells me I can go to my MD or to the ER. Great.

I go to my MDs office, which is just down the street. I get there, thinking they open at 8, the office is closed. I call and find out they open at 9. I'm starting to panic because I have to work that night and it's not looking like I'm going to make it to bed before 11. I call my insurance co, and tell them it's ridiculous that I can't go to urgent care since my MDs office is closed. We found a solution (or so I thought). I changed to an MD who doesn't have restrictions on urgent care and was given the address of the new urgent care. Drive there, 20 minutes away, and sign in.

The receptionist there tells me that I need a WRITTEN REFERRAL to go to urgent care. You have GOT to be kidding me. What is the point of going to urgent care if I need a referral? I might as well just go to my MDs office. I call the office, asking if I can just get a referral, they tell me no, but I can take an 11 o'clock appointment. "I guess I don't have a choice." was my bitchy reply. So frustrating! I call my boss, crying at this point and ask her what I can do. I called in last week and there is a limit as to how many sick calls you can have. She tells me not to worry about it, and to get myself better. I will need to show her proof that I went to the doctor. This lowers my stress level a little.

I drive all the way down to Newport and get in to see my new MD, who is the wife of one of the neonatalogists I work with. I get right in, give them a sample and she's in the room with me within 20 minutes. She's great, I'm not exaggerating, the best MD I've had. She's friendly, listens, offers good advice and acknowledges that some of the suggestions may not be realistic with my lifestyle. Writes me a script, tells me to call her if I need anything else and sends my on my way. I fill the script and decide since I'm so close to Sprinkles, I'll go get myself a cupcake. And that, of course, made my day better.

You all will learn about my cupcake obsession....

Introduction

Hello readers,
Just a little intro to my life and what my intentions are with this blog. I'm a twenty something night shift Neonatal Intensive Care Unit nurse (NICU) at a children's hospital in Southern California. This is probably what most of my blogging will be about, the trials and tribulations of dealing with that. I will warn you here that sometimes it might be upsetting for the layman to read. Sometimes it will be funny and/or surprising, but brace yourself for the sad. While I'm at it, another disclaimer- this is my opinion and my point of view. I might say things about work sometimes that may seem mean or callous to someone who doesn't know where I'm coming from. If you are offended by something that I say, please just stop reading my blog.

I grew up in a small town in Northern Nevada (Winnemucca), and it definitely has shaped the person that I am. I live in Southern California and mostly love it! I often hate the traffic. However, there are so many good things that outweigh the bad. You can get anything, ANYTHING you want or could even imagine somewhere down here! I have expanded my palette greatly and have tried and love all kids of cuisine. And let's not overlook Disneyland!

I'm an annual pass holder and love to go on the rides and enjoy the happiest place on earth atmosphere! The people watching is awesome and there's bound to be some blogs about my observations. I've invented a game I like to play called "harness". It's like slug bug, when you see a kid in a harness, you slug (lightly) the person you are with and say "harness"! It's a lot of fun and hilarious to see how many there are. There is really only one rule and that's that the harness must have a leash, or it could just be a back pack.

I have an amazing boyfriend named Suman. He just graduated from his pediatric residency and is in Northern Arizona working for Indian Health Services in a town that makes Winnemucca look like a booming metropolis. He's working there until May, then he will be moving back to SoCal and starting a pediatric neurology fellowship. It's going to be a long ten months of separation, but I'm really proud of him! I miss him like crazy, though.

So there it is. I hope my blog is entertaining and strive for it to be enlightening. Thanks for taking the time to read it!