Holidays are good

We flew to Cairns it was much more interesting than I thought. The first day we went out to Green Is which was the freebie with the trip. It was nice through the snorkeling is a waste of time the reef looked dead mostly and the water cold and murky. I saw a green turtle which was nice but unfortunately I hadnt got used to snorkeling when I saw it. It takes a little while before you manage the mouth breathing and not flooding yourself. Also I'd swam into the no snorkeling area which was funny because it was the only place with a bit of coral. Gave up on that and walked around the Island reading the history, it was a place they harvested sea cucumbers which are about the most revolting eatables ever. Then we looked at the crocodile enclosure. I'm sure there are much better maintained places to see them but this place was obviously the product of a life long obsessive collector which is always fascinating. He had a bunch of Pacific Is and New Guinea objects dusty badly lit unexplained, worth millions or worthless who knows, but so interesting. He has the biggest croc in captivity (or did till the Cairns paper reported a bigger one captured in the Philippines with comments from our croc world that Dad (obsessed collector) would want to go see it but it wouldn't survive as it looked like they had it tried up over its nostrils).
We watched the feeding which the big show as they leap out of the water. They also had some barramundi which are a beautiful fish, we used to catch them in Darwin, well I stood next to people who caught them. I love fishing but I'm very unsuccessful at it. We had a very nice lunch and pottered about till the boat came back.

Tired tired

Weekend work and tennis today. Work not too bad not so many ladies, 1/2 midwifery and 1/2 general patients. I get really mad with it but its not the patients fault but I hate nursing general patients, I dont know what I'm doing they send them up from A&E or wherever no meds, cant get bloody doctors to see them regularly, telling us, or not telling little facts like they are infectious or how sick they are. They are dumping the mothers out even faster to fit other  patients in and exposing the newborns to quite an assortment of pneumonia's and other infections. Once were midwives us lot. Oh well who cares I'm in the twilight of my career thank goodness. I dont know who would bother paying all that extra time and effort at uni just to become a midwife who 1/2 the time is nursing general patients.
Enough stop thinking about the horrible place. I am cooking osso buco again so easy and after the next 2 days work we are on holidays and going to Cairns and playing 2 days of golf in one week with lovely ex-teacher 80 year old and one day next week with another girl who is good fun. Its so nice to play with good partners you have so much fun.
Tomorrow I'll go for a swim at the uni, havent been swimming for ages because its been so cold and the ocean has been so rough. The uni is heated pool.

Rainy friday

Yesterday we managed to play golf against all the odds. It didn't rain but was very wet under foot and very windy at times. Normally they wouldn't let the carts drive on it but it was a charity day that had already been cancelled once. I was playing in a team with 2 ladies who are in a cart (both over 80) so was expecting a phone call saying we couldn't play. I didn't play very well find it really difficult hitting on wet ground, the ball doesnt run much and I am not a big hitter so I need a bit of run plus its hard work pushing the buggy through the mud and around all the puddles. Our course is next to the sea which is lovely all the waves were very big and the top surfers were out and a photographer taking pictures. One guy was walking across the course with his board broken in 2. Big waves.
Lots of the ladies looked pretty shattered after the game so I didn't feel so bad. I really like one of my partners she has a really sharp brain, was a primary school teacher all her life. The other lady is smart but she is like that annoying 6 year old always bossing you around or reporting you to the teacher. I nearly said to the teacher one did you teach kids like her but I thought I better be quiet. I look around the room at us middle aged and old ladies and think really its the same bunch as kindergarten, the bossy girl, the sporty girl, pretty ones, the social butterflies etc. Don Juan says women are 4 types, the four winds. Like a mahjong game and the men are three types and a messenger. I think I should take more notice of the wind.

blogging when should be

Hanging out washing pulling up weeds going to the beach for coffee. My sister is home with the booty. She is like the Cargo Cult. In the south pacific, I think Vanuatu they worship John Fromm who arrived by plane once with lots of goodies. She likes to shop and we are the recipients of it all, and she is getting better some really nice stuff. The girls will be pleased. I cant write to her obviously so  will have to blog more.
I bought lots of little plants on special baby snapdragons and pansies so I will put them in as I weed. The freesias are coming out so the scent at night is lovely. They are the old fashioned ones not the brightly coloured new ones that have no scent.
She has bought me some really good clothes to wear in Cairns we are going in 2 1/2 weeks. I was going to shop for some but wont have to now.
Its still a bit chilly but getting warmer. I think I will make us roast lamb for dinner easy and nice.

In flight

My sister is coming home for a holiday so I'll write here usually I email her and thats satisfied my urge to write. Today I have finished my working week, only 2 days lucky me. Sort of, lots of people have given up work by my age or have less physically demanding jobs. I must say I have very nice mothers to look after the last two days and a girl with very badly inverted nipples who was determined to breast feed. She said it made her mad that she had such a difficult time where her friends had no problems breast feeding but couldn't be bothered. Oh well I said you will probably be much more committed and value it than them. She did well in the end with a nipple shield.
I had a vigorous argument in report with everyone about the way breast feeding is being handled on the ward. Everyone seems very anxious about the mothers getting their milk in which is rubbish, only a few mothers fail to lactate. They have the girls on the breast pump from day 0  sometimes instead of getting the baby on the breast, madness. It sparked off with one of the girls report that she couldn't get the baby on the breast and she was worried about that. I said how old is this baby 2 hours she said. They dont understand that their anxiety is transferring to the mothers and making them anxious, as if they havent enough of that already. I think patience is the most import virtue of mothering sometimes but we live in a madhouse that wants us to run before we walk, its so sad. It sets people up to be failures before they begin.
The next shift a girl rang me almost in tears as someone had told her not to let the baby sleep longer than 5 hours so she woke him up to feed him and he wouldnt feed, so we tried for a little while but he was sleepy. He was a boofy boy and she had a C/S without a labour so he wouldnt have been particularly hungry when he was born he had had quiet a few good feeds so we decided to let him sleep and wait to he woke for a feed which he did in an hour and had a good suck, ah patience again.
I have my own issues too with 19 yr old who has dropped lovely boyfriend and is goodness knows where at the moment ?new boyfriend.  We are upset for her ex and missing him and she has gone to ground but by the 3rd I should be use to these things.
It is a peaceful sunday and I should be hanging out more washing.

night duty

uck uck uck I think I mean yuck. we had a baby called Darius which is one of my favourite names I think he was the son of Xerxes but I looked it up he was the father and ruled the Persian empire, so I said to D the baby have you conquered Persia yet no he said only Day 2 just the boobs but he was doing well at that.  i am vegging which is all you can do after ND I am watching Nigella make a slow cooked shoulder of lamb salad which looks so yum. Oh now its 24hr cooked pork. Maybe I am craving meat or a bath or sleep or panadol.
Sticky date self saucing pudding, there should be a name for this TV eating? TV salivating. Oh another show I've got to get off this channel. bath I think.

monday monday

is our days off, and tennis and coffee at the beach. Last evening was work trying to do an education test with case studies like a guy who has had a Turp (transurethral resection of the prostrate) while doing a CTG on a pregnant lady, sometimes the disconnect between the reality of nursing and the people in charge gets ridiculous. The system has ceased valuing experience puts anybody anywhere (patients and staff) has reduced training levels in lots of areas, replacing RNs (3 years uni) with AINs (1 year Tafe) and staffs with agency or casuals. Then thinks it will fix things with some 30 page on line course and study day. We were all in the office yesterday, no one under 50 thinking whats going to happen when we go.
I wish they would stop all the money going into campaigns like wash your hands and start employing some staff, then you might get time to the work.