lifeaslizzie | Entries tagged with yikes

I hope that my wrist tattoos [And I will fear no evil / For my God is with me / And if my God is with me / Whom then shall I fear?] come in handy when I face my unit manager next at work...

I missed 4 calls from her today, because I left my phone at home while Kevin & I were out and about all day. Two girls from work called to inform me that she "rewrote" Karen's statement from yesterday's events, to protect Lori.

I'll be damned if I change mine for anyone. I might lose my job over this. I'd rather lose my job than cover up something like that, for someone who has caused me so much frustration without a second glance. My residents deserve better than that, and I deserve better than that. If it comes to it, I'm leaving.

Current Mood: distressed

Okay-- It seems as though I always hate my job. Well, this is still [mostly] true, but this is not my standard I Hate My Job Post.

Today, while everything was going horribly, THIS happened:

Clara is a woman who drives us nuts. She is at risk for falling, so she sits atop a chair alarm, to alert us as to when she is getting up when she shouldn't be. Fine. Dandy. Well, she was restless today, so Melanie handed her off to me as the girls left for lunch, asking me to walk her to tire her out. (Thus, she would sleep in her chair until lunch.) Again, fine. Dandy.

I walk her down the hall, and we keep going around the bend until we hit the activities room. By this point, she is so worn down, she has to sit. I grab the closest chair, worried she'll fall from exhaustion and ask Kelly to just keep an eye on her for a minute since she can't be left alone without the chair alarm.

I go get the chair alarm (back where we came from) and look for a wheelchair to bring her back in. There's none to be found. I go back to the activities room and try to figure something out. While I'm there, Lori [the nurse who drives us all batty] comes in yelling "LINDSAY, YOU NEED TO GET BACK TO THE UNIT! BELLS ARE GOING OFF AND NO ONE IS ON THE FLOOR! I will take Clara if you can't..."

So, I don't like the way she barked at me, but fine. I'll let it go. I always do. I walk back and find Carmella ringing to go to the bathroom, so I bring her in, get her on the toilet, and leave. She'll ring when she's all done.

Karen is the only other aide on the floor with me right now, and she is keeping an eye on Jane, our girl who needs constant one-on-one supervision. Here comes Lori down the hall, Clara with her, barely walking. She yells for me to come over and grab one side of her belt.

So, I do. I shouldn't have, but I did.

We DRAGGED this woman probably over 200 feet. She fell to her knees twice, and we picked her up. Lori yelled at her the entire way. "Get up! You can walk! Quit that and WALK, Clara!" At the end, after we hoisted her into a chair, she actually CHECKED to see if she was ALIVE. That is how BAD this woman was.

Now, as a man is coming down the hall, looking for help, he witnessed this. He was coming in to see his mother before she died. How do you think HE felt? His mother was here, and can you imagine the kind of "care" he imagined she got?!

I am SO fed up with work, and with Lori in particular. We had to give statements to our supervisor, and she has to meet with the nursing director tomorrow... I hope something serious happens, because if not, I am leaving. I have had it.

Current Mood: aggravated

Every time I update lately, I stare at the subject line after I have written: Worst Day Ever. EVERY day cannot be the worst ever... so why does it feel that way?!

I wanted to tear hair out today at work. Not just my own, for being behind with things...

--Lori's, for harassing me about this and that, not helping with any of it.
--Julius's, for shitting his pants 3 times in half an hour, ruining 3 outfits I put him in.
--Tony's, for having no patience.
--Bernice's, for being her sister's "advocate" and coming to get me when I failed to show up to take her to the bathroom after her bell was on for two minutes. [I was in getting someone else out of bed!]
--Volunteers who snap "HER FAMILY SITS THERE!" when I offer to help being people to some program that isn't even part of my job, and sit someone apparently in the wrong seat. MY BAD.
--Orientee Who Shall Not Be Named who didn't do her job this morning and forgot people left and right, whose messes I cleaned up all day... ugh! The only thing she cared about was getting break and lunch. Fail.

I didn't get breakfast, then missed my break due to Julius shitting his pants for the 3rd time. Then when lunch finally rolled around, it sucked, so I had a couple pieces of toast instead. It was just brutal.

You know, I've had jobs I didn't like before, but this is getting unreasonable.

And, to make matters even better, my period arrived last night. Three and a half weeks late, presumably stress to blame for that one. Cramps like no one's business. Heavier than it ought to be. Nausea... irritable and achy... I am miserable, and forgot to bring ibuprofen or my Midol, so I was extra happy to be at work this morning!

I am hoping that tomorrow won't be The Worst Day Ever, also, but I don't have a good feeling about it. At least there is a Monday off, alone, to look forward to.

Current Mood: aggravated

I had the absolute WORST day EVER today. I mean, it could have been worse, yes, but to this point, I have never been so miserable. I nearly burst into tears during lunch in the residents' dining room. I had a huge bloody nose this morning, presumably from the stress. My period is still M.I.A., going on two weeks now and both tests have given me a big NO! but then, where the heck is it?

I came home and cried all over Kevin, who was actually home for a change. We went out and bought a few things and had dinner. Being together again actually really cheered me up.

Now we're watching some Seinfeld but... I feel horrible. I texted Shandra and told her it may be better for her to come another weekend 'cause I'm a wreck. We'll see. I'll write later...

Current Mood: distressed

What do you do with Those People in your life? Do you know the ones I mean? Do you even have any of Those People, or is it just me? I seem to be plagued by these people who are under the mistaken impression that we are much closer than we actually are. It drives me bonkers.

I've encountered this problem before in my life, but never to the extent I am running into these days with a girl we will simply call "J." She is the sister of someone I consider a good friend. She is closer to my age than her sister, with whom I am friends, but she acts like a sixteen-year-old.

I've had her over once for dinner, to let her vent because she texted and texted and texted and I finally just got sick of it and said, "Sure, I'll listen." She wasn't even supposed to have my number. I was talking to her sister, my friend, who was driving and couldn't respond, so her sister took over... on her phone. And saved my number. And abused it. Endlessly.

Then I somehow got roped into dinner with her, out at Olive Garden. All she talked about was her "secret boyfriend." She tells me he lives in Syracuse. I ask where, and she says, "Well I don't know, I pick him up at a friend's house and we stay there cause he doesn't want me over." (Sound like bad news? How about the fact that she claims to have upwards of $3500 in credit card debt for his 'stuff'? Yet, when I tell her this sounds sketchy to say the least, she whines and says things like "Well what do you want me to do?! Sacrifice true happiness?!")

They live with parents who are probably just as strict as mine-- maybe even more, in some aspects. (Like the girls cannot date unless it's the man they're going to marry. How much sense does that make?)

I'm straying from my point. The point isn't to fix her problems here, because she wouldn't listen to any bit of reason I threw her way. (This is why I totally prefer her level-headed, openly Christian, book-adoring sister. She's like a much more sheltered version of me. And she calls me Big Sis!)

ANYWAY, the point is... how do I deal with "J"? I don't want to risk losing my interactions with the sister I love, but I cannot stand her harassing me, much less getting together and making it face-to-face. The subtle hints haven't worked thus far.

Current Mood: annoyed
Current Music: Joanna from Sweeney Todd

So, despite the time that I had a good visit with my parents, one brother, Ethan, Chris, Ish, and my grandparents, this weekend was mostly terrible. Here's a brief "why:"

1. I forgot my cell phone charger. My phone was half-charged when I left here, and it only got worse. I didn't get to visit people I wanted to see because their numbers were in my phone, and I ended up turning it off with 1 bar left, for the ride back to NY in case I needed it. Boo.

2. My parents just acquired a brand new kitten, who is absolutely adorable. I love cats but... I am SO allergic. My eyes watered and itched all weekend.

3. I couldn't sleep without Kevin, though I was exhausted beyond belief. It was horrible and lonely. And I didn't have my cell phone battery to call him to rid myself of the loneliness.

4. Winnie pooped on the floor within 20 minutes of our arrival. Thankfully that was the only accident.

5. The pot roast I had for lunch today before hitting the road must not have been totally cooked-- I've run to the toilet every 10 minutes or so since getting back.

6. I lost my ticket for the MA Turnpike, which resulted in my free ride to the Thruway costing me FULL price, like I had driven in from Boston or something, not home. Great. Even better, I found the ticket later. I suck.

7. Due to sleep deprivation, I could barely stay awake to drive back. I terrified Winnie when I swerved over the "WAKE UP!" grooves in the pavement at one point. Oops. Thankfully, I got a second wind about 2 hours into the drive.

8. I missed my other brother by 10 minutes. I knew I should have stuck around longer. At least I got to see Ethan today. (Ethan is a good friend of my brothers' who has become an honorary Bennett Clan member)

9. At Kohl's, I found the ultimate deal on sneakers. I've wanted a pair for running, to replace my Asics which have been demoted to work shoes. I found some snazzy Asics for $55 (already cheap), which rang up at $40. I get home and go to wear them, only to realize I have a size 10 and an 11. I was too excited to try them both-- I only tried the 11 since my others are 11s. FAIL. I had to drive back and look for a match. None to be found. I got my money back but I was very sad.

10. Kevin was supposed to be out of work at 6pm, so he should have been home maybe half an hour after I got back to the apartment. He signed himself up to work overnight! (I appreciate this because we are broke and need every cent we can get, but I was so thrilled to see him, and he won't be back til 6am!)

I called out of work tomorrow morning. I think everyone expected me to, anyway, though they expected it because they assume I will still be in MA. I just want a free day, darn it! And I have the time to use, so... I'm gonna! Kev has the day free, with the exception of class at 6pm. Right now, though, I just need some serious sleep and a shower.