Thoughts From a Frazzled Mind

The first part of this week was quite stressful.  The school where I work is working to gain accreditation through CCNE (The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education) for our bachelor's of nursing program.  The requirements and process for accreditation are quite cumbersome and many people have worked many hours trying to pull it together.  This week was our site visit from the CCNE representatives.  They spend three days touring our campus, visiting our clinical sites, interviewing various personnel such as financial aid and administration, and reviewing all of the paperwork we submitted.  They had a long meeting with all of the faculty to asking how our coursework and student mentoring lead our students to an outcome of being a working RN who has passed the state board tests.  It was grueling.  To be honest the part I played in getting ready was very small in comparison to the program administrator and some of the more experienced faculty, but none...

Most of the week has been mundane, working, driving, and sleeping.  I did get a couple of visits in to Robin and to Dad.  Dad tripped an electrical breaker in his house and was trying to get around in the dark.  Luckily I stopped by and and was able to help him get the power back on.  Unfortunately he can't remember what he was doing to trip the breaker.  Dealing with his memory problems is very frustrating - for him as well as the rest of the family.  Sometimes his memory is awful and I worry so much about his safety but then other times he seems just fine.  I worry about it constantly, I continually pray that I will know when it is time to remove him from his house.  I hope that time never comes because I think it would be extremely hard on him to live somewhere else where he can't have all of his tools, bikes, and lawn mowers. I have mentioned my "un-papered adopted" sister, Julie, several times, but I feel that it is time to tell about her a...

Julie drove up and met Rox and I for lunch this week!  It was so fun!  I haven't hung out with Rox for a long time.  We decided to do it once a month - AND we even put it on the calendar!  Julie is so entertaining.  She spent most of the time telling us of a study she is reviewing for accreditation that focuses on specific parts of the male anatomy.  The way she tells it sounds like she is a teenage kid who is embarrassed by the facts of life instead of a highly educated doctor of pharmacology!  We were just about rolling in the isles!  We also discussed the fact that Rox has achieved a great job as the controller of a large corporation - and she doesn't even have a degree.  She is GOOD!  It was nice to share lunch with these two great ladies!   I came home that night exhausted from a long day of pulling together resources, writing syllabi, and arranging assignments for the next semester.  I felt just like being a bum, so I...

Tuesday when I walked outside I heard a rustling in the trees next to our house.  When I looked up I was surprised to see not one, but four  turkeys roosting in the trees! It was amazing!  These turkeys have been hanging around our neighborhood for quite some time, but I didn't realize that they roosted in the trees!  I didn't even know that they fly.  They are huge. I went to a dermatologist to have him look at a few spots on my face that I worried about.  The one I was most worried about turned out to not be anything to worry about, but the doc said that I had two pre-cancerous spots.  I decided to have them frozen, one on my eyebrow and one smack-dab in the middle of my cheek.  As he was spraying the one on my eyebrow I felt as though I was being stuck by a bee, about 10-15 times!  However I was brave and tolerated it well.  The one on my cheek was a different story!  I'm not sure why, but IT HURT!!!!  I almo...

    Whew!  What a whirlwind, but yet an absolutely fantastic week!  Kim and I took some time off work for some much anticipated and awesome family time.  Tuesday Ashley and Tristan joined us along with Shandra, Kalel, and Jason and his daughter, RaeLynn for a fun, fast trip to Bear Lake.  We stayed in a COVERED WAGON! How fun is that?   Conestoga Ranch  is a new place that features "Glamping"  which is short for glamorous camping.  Visitors can choose whether they want to stay in heated tents or in covered wagons.  Our wagon had four sets of bunk beds.  The Ranch supplies the very comfy beds and linens and well as heaters.  At night an employee will start your campfire and also extinguish it at 11:00 p.m.  There is a fancy restaurant, showers, bathroom and laundry facilities.  It was really fun!  Of course, no trip to Bear Lake is complete without watching Juanito Bandito at the Pickleville Playh...