water, water, water...:-)

 lots of errands today in the rain.  ended up not actually doing a dog walk. instead took the pups over to a friends to run around.  tomorrow i'll drop off Blossom to stay there for this weekend.  the pups got some nice zoomies in though which tired them out

 i had a mandatory class tonight so the pups were all wound up again when i got home.  Ivy is starting to clue in to the joy of the tennis ball.   not all the time, but more consistently.  this helps in my ability to wear her out.  Tusker likes it but only as it relates to being an item to steal from Ivy.

 the class.  well, i loved the members of this class.  we all seemed in the same zone...nobody responded to questions asked by the instructors. seems like you always have some person who asks a zillion questions or has to tell all of their many experiences.

 i wrote my rude comments down on the little information packet they had given us.  what is the point saying any of it out loud. basically, some officer persons brilliant concept to tell me how to do my job the way i already do it...but in some scripted format because we as a society apparently are incapable of coming to these ideas without some sort of bought and sold instructions.

 they kept saying they want 100% this and that...it's medicine.  we will never be 100% free of hospital errors  i always laugh to myself because the same upper management that insists you attend classes like these are also the same ones that don't give us adequate staff, run folks down working overtime for more and more money just to fill shifts. they also tell you not to come to work sick but then give little sick pay coverage and will reprimand those who have too many sick days...when you work with sick folks...especially kids.  guess what you will catch a few bugs.

 i just always find it ironic and fascinating that they will spend so much money on things like this hoping it will decrease the med errors and infections but none of them seems to want to spring for more staff or suggest that perhaps in a 12 hour shift a comfortable sleep room with short power nap acceptance may be of benefit.

 none of us want to make errors but we seem to be in a job where we are expected to be 100% perfect 100% of the time and guess what...we won't be.  we will always err.  i always just pray that the errors i make will be minor.  a late med here or there, nothing critical.  we live in fear half the time, no matter how much those ceo's believe we can reach a point of zero errors...we all know that is not achievable.  help us to get as close as we can by supporting us with sufficient staff, breaks where we actually have people continuing care for the time we are away...not just leaving and hoping nothing bad happens or if it does the nurses around you aren't so busy with  their own patients that they don't notice your patient going down hill.

 i try to always be respectful and kind to my patients, but i am human in this as well.  it's a frustrating job some days.  the patient that is constantly pooping or confused and trying to pull stuff apart.  the drug seekers, the alcoholics, the lines that get pulled out that put you so far behind replacing.

 mostly the expectations of the public that we can take your body or that of your loved one and somehow undo all the bad that has been done to it.  that we can fix you when you have drank  excessively or smoked until your lungs have little ability to exchange air or eaten so much that we can no longer do anything but guess what is wrong with you. Or that we can fix you when you have let your diabetes or heart issues go untreated because you don't want to take your meds.

 the greatest expectation of the public seeming to be that we can cure all....that death is not an option.  the public almost seems shocked that people die and that they die in hospitals.  they come to us sick, they come to us compromised and then we stick all sorts of tubes and lines in them and add lots of different medications in short order....then we are blamed when they die.

 it's called life expectancy.  it's coded in our genes.  we have some impact via our choices about this life expectancy. we can eat well, exercise and follow advice when we do become ill or we can choose to ignore advice, smoke, drink, overeat, skip meds, do reckless activities...

 still have some stuff to do to get ready.  hopefully i will have packed all i need and will be able to carry all my own crap in one trip.

 i tucked the pups back into their crates and i actually didn't hear a thing from them after that.  they must have been a bit sleepy.

 stopped by the new vets just to get weights and a refill for blossom.  anyway, they now weigh exactly the same... 43.6 pounds.

 i also stopped in to get the oil changed.  took all three dogs...not an easy feat in the waiting room. a few jumpers but overall they didn't do too badly. don't think the double sided tape has done much to keep them off the counters.  may have to get a scat mat and put it up there.

 took some stickers and stuff over to Fish and Game.  we hadn't connected to get stuff to take out to island for visitors.  so i'll stop by with some pamphlets when i get back i guess so the ranger Ryan can take it back with him when he returns.  figured there were leftovers from last year, but who knows where they ended up. probably got scattered around to some fish and game folks...that is fine.  advertising is always good.

 i spoke to him briefly about perhaps trying to make some sort of compilation of stories from the rangers that have stayed out there over the 50 years that Round Island has been a Sanctuary.  there have got to be some crazy stories from those folks.  would they be willing to share their stories...WARIS could work together to compile it i think.  then the sales of that could go to help the island.

 too late to vacuum.  will have to do more of that stuff in the morning.  never get it all done just hope we travel safe and that the pets are all okay when i return.

 back in camp after our first paddle.we collected glacier ice on our kayaks to be used in drinks that night.  i had picked up some "not your fathers rootbeer" and put my glacier ice in that.  i think this was some margarita mix.

 we had a campfire that night as well. i think our only camp fire. hit by rain the next two nights.  we kept watching but it never calmed enough to get the fire started. bummer.  i think they did make some s'mores over the camp stoves.

 improvise.

 salmon and corn on the cob

 big downed tree that we always seem to tie the kayaks up to.

 the strange letters formed in the glacier across from us.  D G....?  what did it mean? what was the glacier trying to tell us.  the next few days D G was unseen due to low cloud coverage and rain.  when the clouds lifted, D G was no longer prominent.

 the rain melted much of the ice...

 as i sat at the campfire i watched this guy stroll down the beach towards us.  at first i thought it was a dog but quickly realized how implausible that was.  he stopped to scratch his back and then moved back into the woods.

 as the fire embers were dying..the rest of us were headed up to bed.

 then the clouds came and the rain came with it

 but the waterfalls were going like crazy

 finally Monday morning we had blue skies again

 so we packed and then paddled.

 can't complain about weather like this, right?

 the class was much shorter than the scheduled 4 hours..i'd guess it was because we had pretty nice instructors, we had a class that didn't extend the class by tell their stories or asking questions and they have been teaching these classes for a bit so i suspect they just get faster at putting the information out there.i'm good with shorter.

 ran my little errands at work as well. i'll be off the grid for our next round of scheduling.  still want to get the days i want.

 did put in for my pto for this week.  have my hotel in Homer booked.

 always like the black and white.

 my friend is in town..i'll just have to catch up after i return.

 my to do list got longer for this trip and then it will tone down again...until the next thing.  end of the month i have my sweet niece and her family coming and then after that is a class on mushrooms in Denali National park.  the flowers was fun so decided to sign up for mushrooms. a few friends are coming to that as well. may be able to tent it out at Spencer...i'd had to let the cabin rental go this spring.

 Kennicott is still out there calling me too. can i squeeze it in?  perhaps

 well, i better go crash for a bit. busy day tomorrow and a long drive to Homer.  it's always fun down there though so...until i return.  hope all goes well with everyone.  hoping to return safe and with some fun bear photos to share.

grateful for:  A.  rainy days.  the dogs track in loads of mud but i love the sounds of the rain, the rest that comes on those days and the errands that get accomplished.  B.  the many lovely places to go and the joy that comes from being able to get to even just a few of them.  C.  a room full of like minded folks