Feeling sick

Not feeling very well today, so this will just be a quick post.

I'm not fired, and I'm a bit upset over the fiasco with the boss. Basically, I got 'written up' for a bullshit, crap reason. My coworkers are also upset, but there isnt a whole lot we can do. This is office politics at its finest, folks. The day shift things the night shift is incompetent, and I happen to be the one catching the Boss's wrath.

I've caught a bit of a cold - sinus pressure, headache, earache, sore throat. I'll be alright; I just don't feel all that great at the moment.

In any event, I'll be spending some quality time with my sewing machine. It helps to make the stress go away.

PS: Will post in detail about the whole situation with the boss, once I'm feeling better.

The Boss

Maybe I'll post a story or something later. Right now, I'm a bit worried. The Boss called this morning (waking me up, I might add), and asked me to come in to talk to her.

She said I'm not in trouble, but I'm not sure I believe her. We'll see, I'll post more later.

The Professor

I'm in a bit of a chatty mood, so y'all get two posts today. Woo! This ones gonna be shorter than the last, though.

The Professor is one of my new patients. He's not exactly new at the facility, but he is new on my bath list. He has been in the hospital for a while, but now he's back, and I get to give him his baths. The Professor is actually a very sad story.

This man has more degrees than most doctors. He has one wall of his apartment filled with nicely framed, neat, even, awards and diplomas. He has three bachelors degrees (Engineering, Geology, and Math), one Masters degree and one PhD (both in Engineering), numerous awards such as "prestigious University President recognizes Mr. Professor for his work...blah blah blah", "Alpha Beta Sigma, Order of the Wombat". You know what I'm talking about.

Now days, The Professor can barely talk, looks at you with that vacant, lights-are-on-but-no-ones-home stare, rarely knows what's going on, and has multiple physical problems due to diabetes. I asked him one time what kind of work he used to do, before he was retired. He replied in a hoarse shout-whisper "I had a desk." that's all he could remember, and he got frustrated when I asked him for more details.

He is a brilliant academic mind, lost to old age. Unaware of where he is, what he's doing. He also pees his pants.

The Duchess

As promised, the post about The Duchess.

The Duchess is one of our new residents. She is mentally in good shape, clear as a bell, and simply has some physical problems she needs assistance with. That's why she's in our facility. Her main problems are severe edema of the legs, foot/ankle numbness, and bladder incontinence. Luckily, her bowel function is still normal, for now. Because of the foot and ankle numbness and mobility problems, she is a fall risk, and she takes about three hours to shuffle from her armchair to the bathroom - a distance of about 15 feet.

This lady is a class A bitch. She MUST have everything her way, at her time, when she says so, or else she will pitch a little temper tantrum. You can just tell that in her younger years, she was an artsy socialite, drinking martinis, with a Gucci handbag, a pussy-whipped husband, a pampered chihuahua, and 2.5 kids who were deathly afraid of her wrath. Got a problem? Throw a little temper tantrum. Yell. Complain. If that fails, throw money at it. You know the type.

She treats Us Girls like we are nothing more than servants in her mansion, hence the name Duchess. Now, in our facility, bath time comes with a few choices. If you are a resident, you get the choice of having your bath once or twice a week, morning or evening. You do not get to pick your days, or your specific time. I do try to give everyone the time they want, but that's just not possible. As far as days go....we have some 60 residents who need assistance, and when a new person comes in, they get put where it is convenient for Us Girls.

Now, the Duchess has a problem with that. She MUST have everything her way, at her time, when she says so. And when I am unable to comply, she throws a temper tantrum and gets me in trouble with The Boss. (Really cool lady; might do a post about her someday) The Boss recognizes the problem for what it is - a bitch, cranky old lady having a temper tantrum. But, eventually, the Duchess does complain enough that she gets her way. She now gets her bath on the days she wants, in the afternoon at PROMPTLY 3 PM, and one our CNA's has to bathe her, since the usual time for baths is either morning or evening (after 6 PM).

I feel sorry for whoever has to scrub her down. This lady really is a bitch.

Updates

I know, I haven't posted in a while. I'm still alive, in case anyone cares. I have been going through a bit of an apathetic phase, since there was no one reading my blog. But, I've decided, to go ahead and continue to post. Maybe, someone will read this.

Quite a bit has happened in the nursing home since I last posted.

Mr. Colostomy is still kicking. He also has diabetes and edema of the legs, and he has developed some open sores on his calves and shins. We're treating it with antibiotic ointment and bandages. But, he's a really great guy, he very rarely complains about his pain.

Ruby is also still kicking. She has been doing well. I've finally gotten on her good side, learned how to make her laugh, and how to get her in her shower. Her cat likes me too.

Fred, unfortunately, has passed away. Fred fell out of his bed in the evening, and injured his eye. I wasn't there, but apparently, it was quite bloody. All of our residents have a call button either on a wrist or necklace, which they press to summon help in an emergency. Fred did not push his button as he lay on the floor in pain, bleeding, and he wasn't found until his neighbor heard his cries and summoned help. He was carted off to the hospital immediately, where he underwent surgery, and unfortunately lost his eye. He later passed away from surgical complications, which isn't all that surprising, since the guy had a slew of medical problems. Although Fred was a difficult resident, I liked him, and I am saddened by his passing.

To make matters worse, his daughter has the idea in her head that the care he received from our facility was sub-standard, and there has been talk of a lawsuit. This is entirely false: our facility is regarded as one of the best in the region. Our parent company, the employees, residents, community members and local media are all in agreement here. Our care for Fred was not substandard, it was excellent. His daughter is just looking to stir up trouble and get a fat paycheck. But that's another story.

Mr. and Mrs. Sponge Bath have also had a bit of rough times. Mr. Sponge bath pinched a nerve in his back, and is currently in the hospital for rehab. Without her husband with her, Mrs. Sponge Bath is weirder than ever. More about her quirky habits later.

We've had a couple of new residents come in. The Duchess lives upstairs and is very high-and-mighty, treats all of the girls (the staff) as servants. Sara occupies Holly's old room (see I Hate Mondays, second post. Sorry, I don't know how to create a link to it), and is a very sweet, tiny, cute old lady. She's disoriented, and rarely knows where she is, what she's doing, or what's happening next. She's been with us for a few weeks, and still tells us "Today is my first day in this hospital. Tomorrow is my birthday." Kinda sad really. I've also met a few other residents, which I'll tell you about later.

The coworkers. There have been some issues with the coworkers, but they seem to have settled down, aside from Miss Naughty, who irritates people with her constant sarcasm and discussion of her sex life. Honestly, lady, we really don't care who fucked you this weekend, how big his dick was, and how many times you came. We really don't care. And no, lady, I'm not getting any. None of your damn business.

In my personal life, though I haven't written much about it, things are changing as well. I'll write a post about that.

Things to look forward to in upcoming posts: (this is really more to remind myself, than anything else)
-Fred's daughter's lawsuit rant
-Mrs. Sponge Bath's weirdness
-Miss Naughty's irritating annoyingness
-details about The Duchess
-details The Professor (another 'new' resident)
-details about my personal/professional life changes
-links to other blogs and favorite websites

I hope you enjoyed the update. I apologize for the length, but I refuse to apologize for the girth.