lots of whale spouts. on our last full day we paddled back looking for whale activity. oddly, point adolphus and pinta point weren't our best whale watching places for our week. we were on zippo sightings on that days paddle. we stopped in at eagle beach for naps, lounging and eventually lunch. we saw spouts finally and boarded our kayaks to venture out towards the group of whales. that afternoon we settled into the kelp beds in our kayaks and got a great whale show. i think there were 7-9 whales out there. it was pretty cool. will post more of those in the next posting.
another splash down and missed breaching shot. i was always too slow to catch them in the air.
was great to just relax and enjoy the beach, views and fresh air. eagle beach is aptly named as we also got to watch many bald eagles dancing about. a few groups of paddles passed by us as well. this one was quite large. probably just out for a day tour.
cool red-white and blue float plane.
here is that large group of paddlers coming around the point there.
this rock with a part reminded me of larry, mo and curly for some reason. i'm a simple girl and i like simple things.
never tire of the bald eagles. even though they are really scavengers and opportunistic birds, they are beautiful...nothing can take that away from them. quite enjoyed watching them soar about on the wind.
got my evaluation at work. i'm competent. that is all i ever am. i don't do committees. i simply come to work as scheduled and do my job the best i know how. the system in place doesn't differentiate between a better or worse bedside nurse, so you make no extra points for taking care of the patient well, caring for the family and patient beyond what is expected is not listed as a category. i could get annoyed at the system or hurt that i'm seen as average when i see other nurses that will get the same evaluation or better (since they do the committees and other things that seem to appease the people in the offices) despite not being in my opinion stellar nurses at the bedside. what happens at the bedside matters very little in an evaluation.
perhaps it's maturity or wisdom or that don't give a crap attitude that comes to all who wait, i don't get hurt or offended by this evaluation. that piece of paper with it's little boxes and checks doesn't really evaluate anything, it's just a piece of paper like all the other little pieces of paper that those who like paper and work in offices seem to be attached to. it's the way of nursing anyway. i know i'm a good nurse, i know i'm more than competent, i'm also caring. my evaluation comes from the many patients who thank me, from thier families who look happy and relieved when i return the next night to care for thier family member. patients and families rarely write notes of gratitude, but i suspect there are many out there who remember this nurse or that nurse and how they made a seemingly intolerable situation a little less horrible.
working in the icu i am forgotten. some of my best work is at peoples worst moments. my name, my face they will no doubt forget, but i'm pretty sure they remember the kindness. often those little things you do and say make a huge impact. will i try for a better evaluation next year, doubtful, i will just try and be a better nurse this year than i was last year. i didn't become a nurse because i wanted to help people. i really didn't. i liked medicine, having been a veterinary technician for years. nursing just had a better schedule and more money. when i started into nursing school i was scared i'd hate it. i loved animals, what was i doing taking care of people. did i want to wipe humans butts, give humans enema's...
one day in clinicals i had to wipe someones butt, several times i believe. it occured to me that no matter how unpleasant the task may be for me, i was sure it had to be worse to be so sick that you can't wipe your own butt and instead have to lay there and allow someone else to do it for you. not sure why that changed my attitude about nursing but it did.
could just be that i had a good 4 day stretch. families and patients were easy to deal with. kept busy at times, but i was able to do my job the best way i know how. not many people have the opportunity to get paid to make a difference in others lives. a good nurse will not only make your hospital stay more pleasant and less horrible, a good nurse could make a difference in your outcome.
liked the eagle and the whale in here.
seagulls.
it's not often that you see a topless kayaker go by in alaska.
have been coughing a bit this weekend. i'm sure the patients didn't appreciate that. especially the time i coughed and then vomited into my nose. that brought on quite the coughing spasm. nice....i may not have gotten high ratings from patients on that one.
overall feeling back to my normal happy self. feeling inspired to try and expand my circle of friends. got a nice swim in today. was during the rush hour for the pool but i still got in 54 lengths. my summer swim schedule has been a bit slackee, but if i can get outside and enjoy being outdoors then i try to get fixated. my plan is to recommit come fall. people are already getting excited about the monday walks starting back up. tanya and i did our own little monday walk today. we did spencer loop. again, lots of bear tracks out there. gets pretty overgrown out there by this time of year and it could be easy to surprise a bear. guess a few hikers got "run over" by a grizzly this past weekend at prospect heigthts trail. i frequent that one. that is where tanya's dogs got the porcupine quills.
everyone enjoyed downtime that day on the beach. bob and tanya rest after lunch.
even our guides, adam and monica, enjoyed some downtime.
it's laundry day here. i'm waiting for my sheets and stuff to dry. then i will crash. got off work almost 1/2 hour early today. always a sweet treat. woke early to meet tanya so am sleepy. those 4 nights can be tiring. we hit the dog park yesterday. i've tried to walk out bicentennial park a few times this past week. have run into those bear tracks all over though. combat hiking. you just never know. i've had some travel nurses say how lucky i was to see bears out walking. i really prefer not to see bears while i'm out there hiking. i've seen the damage they can do and i'd rather not be on the victim list. at some point you like that they take long winter naps and long for the snow. i won't say i'm ready for snow yet, could use a few more sunny days out there.
adam does the lunch dishes, allowing us to be completely lazy and spoiled paddlers!
sandra and scott enjoy the rays as well.
can't say as i slept out there on those rocks, but i did kick back as much as the rest.
in our daily lives it's not often that we can slow down and just take in the scenery. we did have a beautiful double rainbow last night at work. i actually started out on the regular peds floor with 3 patients. within a few minutes of my getting report i was told another nurse was coming in to take my assignment so i could take one in the peds icu. got the busiest kid rounded on, enjoyed the rainbow from the peds unit for a moment and then gave report and went to the back.
tanya and i also began the monday kaladi's tradition alone today. we chatted for a few hours. great to just visit. i have so many wonderful friends, i am really grateful for each one of them. they each bring something unique to my life, i learn from all of them and through my friends i have become a better person.
there are people out there who do not have the benefit of all those friends. knew a coworker who had grown up in the place i'd only been a few years, but had nobody to call to help her out. that just seemed so sad and odd to me. those first few months in any new place can have some lonely moments, but by the time you live a place about 6 months a network has begun to form. to live someplace your entire life and have no network just seems unfathomable.
happy kayakers
quite the incredible day out there. love days like this when you paddle.
again our guides seemed to be loving it as well.
i thought sandra was taking a photo, but really she is just showing me her cliff bar. i donated mine to scott i think. it was a sad day when we ran out of snickers out there. the gorp lasted a bit longer, but that was a failure on the part of the guides...you can never have too much chocolate and you should never have too little!
had to wait for blossom to move off the bed before i could make it. love clean sheets, never have enjoyed bed making though. also love those little fleecey blankets.
bed is made so i'm going to put myself in it for the night...
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