My life has funneled down into a vortex of studying, going to class, and sleeping. It will be over soon (the over-abundant studying) but one thing I'll say for it: we've met some really strange/interesting people while doing so. The past few days we've been camped out at Barnes and Nobles; here's a snapshot of some of the strange people who have walked up to us or just started talking to us.
The Un-Encouraging Nurse from Sloane-Kettering
We were sitting at our two tables, quizzing each other aloud with NCLEX questions, and a late-thirties pregnant lady comes and sits at the table next to us. I didn't really take notice of her, except saw that she was super skinny and was reading a book on how to be naturally thin. The thought flashed through my mind, "Maybe she's anorexic" but then noticed the baby bump. Anyway, so we kept quizzing and I saw her keep shooting glances our way, and finally she interrupted and asked us what we were studying for. We told her, and she proceeded to tell us that she was a nurse at Sloane and she had been interviewing a lot of new nurses for positions, but they just weren't hiring. We told her that we were in the NP program at Columbia, and she told us she had graduated from NYU and then talked at us for literally a good twenty minutes straight about how we "must, absolutely must" get bedside nursing jobs before becoming NPs because they wouldn't even look at NPs who didn't have that requisite experience, etc. etc. She told us that no one was hiring and it was very hard right now (duh, we know) and then continued to elaborate upon her doom and gloom theme. G was getting seriously pissed, and we listened politely to her but tried to wrap it up as soon as was politely possible. It was seriously discouraging, and she assumed a lot of things about us and our experience level thus far, telling us that clinical time wasn't enough, we needed hospital time. I am choosing to believe that she extended her unsolicited advice out of the goodness of her heart, but if I was being completely objective, her tone and mannerisms seemed to have an undertone of an attitude I have noticed a lot out here. When we tell nurses that we are going to be NPs and have done the accelerated nursing program, there is usually an "oh" followed by a "well, you need experience otherwise you are going to suck and don't know anything" in not so many words, but implied. It seems that nurses who have been nurses for awhile rather resent us for what we are doing. Understandable, I guess. Unfortunate, but understandable. I have gotten to the point where if I am talking to a nurse, I don't even tell her I am going to be an NP. I don't want to deal with the attitude.
The Retired Plastic Surgeon Who Told Us What We Knew
We were reviewing the endocrine portion of the questions and had gotten to something called Hemoglobin A1C which you take in diabetics to tell how well, long term, they have been controlling their blood sugar. This is a point that had been driven home to us all year, and we were just discussing it, when this short, cute, old man came up to us and said, with no preamble, "A1C is by far the best indicator of blood sugar control..." and then went off about it for a few minutes. They say your true character comes out when you are stressed or tired, and as I was both, I'm not sure I like what my internal reaction to him tells about me. I was irritated. I was like,inside, "Look. WE KNOW. We have been studying forever and are going crazy and we don't need to waste time humoring someone who wants to tell us all about something that we know better than our own names. Please, for the love, just leave us alone!" But I got over it, and realized I was being a huge meany, and prayed for a better attitude. We chatted with a bit and he told us what he did, and then told us that we were entering a noble profession and that we were very needed. He turned out to be very sweet and encouraging, and was a nice change from the Sloane dispenser of Doom the day before.
The Old Lady Who Quizzed Us
Later on that same day, we were still quizzing, and I noticed, behind Allie, a strange-looking old lady who was practically hanging over her shoulder, listening to her asking us questions. It wasn't subtle and it wasn't an isolated event; she practically had her ear next to Allie's mouth, and was looking at me, and then was rocking back and forth and looking at Gig. It was very bizarre. She was listening to us for a long time, but I studiously avoided making eye-contact. It was getting really out of control, and suddenly, she pipes up from behind Allie, just butting into conversation, "You are a nurse at a nursing home. One of your elderly clients comes up to you and says, "My testicles, my testicles, I lost my testicles! I had them this morning, put them down next to the sink, and lost them! Where are my testicles?" What was he really talking about having lost?" We were all much taken aback, needless to say, but answered, "Um, his spectacles?" "Yes!" she says, and we ask her if she is a nurse (like we couldn't tell) and she said she used to be. She had the look of being a long-term psych nurse. I'm sorry to stereotype so shamelessly, but you really can tell the nurses who have worked in a psych unit for their career. On a side note, I don't think my friend Liz will be like that, though. She's a peach! Anyway, she continued to listen to us, almost on Allie's back, until we ran out of steam. Gig murmurs under her breath a sentiment I'm pretty sure we all shared, "I'm SO OVER people right now!" Amen, sister.
The Artist Who Tooted His Own Horn
I was at Starbs yesterday, trying futilely to connect to the internet, and asked the man next to me, who had tried already to strike up a convo with me, if he was connected. He was, and then proceeded to ask me what I did...he guessed writer. I said, no, nursing, and he told me about his recent foot surgery and gall bladder removal and how he wasn't listening to the doctor and resting. We talked shop for a bit, then he told me all about a van he's painting for MTV with his art. He turns around and shows me the back of his sweatshirt "See? This is my stuff!" It looked like graffiti art. Cool, but not really my thing. He then tells me all about how famous he is and how his art is in all the major museums in the world, etc. etc. He seemed quite proud of his accomplishments. I listened, but I thought that there was a fifty/fifty chance he was completely full of crap. We talked, or rather, he told me of his accomplishments, for at least a half-hour and then I started pack up, while still listening to him. I had to get work done, and it sure as heck wasn't going to happen here,apparently. At one point, he told me how there were demons in this world (which I agree with) and how he got in a fight with a possessed guy and beat the crap out of him (this he tells me with a puffed out chest). Cute. Anyway, I too have had my fill of people for awhile. I pray that God would make me internally kinder to those people out there who I just don't understand, but for now, I think I'm content to stay in my cozy apartment and lose myself in an Agatha Christie.
There certainly are many many interesting characters in this world, and I usually greatly enjoy meeting them, but I am too burned out right now to even make the effort.
And as I write this, a lady with unfortunate bright blue eyeshadow, which matches her J Crew shirt, walks in and sits by me. Oh no. Please, Lord, no.
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