Pictures and Video

I have a second post for the day, and I want to play a little catch-up with some pictures.... there will certainly be more to come from this weekend, but I thought I would provide you all with some visual entertainment :)

Above is a photo of my room in the city, I love the morning sunlight--it welcomes (or unwelcomes...) me with each new day :)

The sunset in Lanesboro, MN--I'm a huge fan of sunsets and sunrises.

 Fly fishing  at 6 in the morning--so peaceful.

Below is a video that I had to put up from a canoe trip Braydon and I took together the week before I left for NYC.  I have a really special (kind of spiritual) relationship with deer...they seem to appear at some of life's most special and/or trying times. I find an incredible amount of peace and tranquility in the timid and precious animals.  I hope you all find some serenity in the video clip.

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"See how nature-trees, flowers, grass-grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence...we need silence to be able to touch souls."

-Mother Teresa

At the week's end

Hello from a very hot and muggy place! haha, I was just walking outside during my lunch break and I was sweating by the time I crossed the street...gross. The weather here is definitely a hot topic of conversation. The summer so far in NYC has been incredibly rainy, also it is only the second year on record that has no 90 degree days in either june or july. Two days a go there was a severe thunderstorm in the afternoon--I thought nothing of it, except that the lightening looked pretty cool. Apparently New York City doesn't usually get severe storms (like the Midwest) so it was amusing to see everyone's frantic reactions.
Anyways, the week is winding up well! The past few days were very classroom intensive. We've had a lot of skills training and reviewing hospital policies. I was even restrained to a chair when we were practiced how to use patient restraints (don't worry they're only used as a last resort!). Things are still going great at the hospital but I've definitely been busy! So much so, I slept from 5:30-8pm yesterday evening and then fell asleep again at 10pm! Also, I wish I had more energy to run, I am just too wiped by the time I get home from work, hopefully as I get more acquainted with the schedule I can save up my energy for the evening!
I am looking forward to having the next four days off from work; I work three 12 hour shifts in a row next week, so I have a few days of rest before then.
I'm also starting to look for my own place to reside here in NYC; while I really enjoy living with my family, I feel like it's about time to move on to my own place. I may move in with another new graduate nurse or another roommate in the Murray Hill area. It will probably happen sometime in the next month or two, so that's exciting!
Well that's all for now, I'll post again soon!
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"Courage, sacrafice, determination, commitment, toughness, talent, guts, heart. That's what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice."
-Bethany Hamilton (Greatest female surfer of our time)

ps. I'll post more photos soon--my computer is struggling uploading them for now!

A little more about my job...

Hey hey!

Whew, well I'll tell you one thing, waking up at the crack of dawn every morning definitely takes a toll on a young body :)  That being said, I just woke up from a two and  a half hour nap that began at 5pm this evening...haha, I think my body might still be adjusting to everything.  It will be quite interesting once I begin the night shifts!

So I want to provide you all with a more detailed description about my current job as a New Graduate Nurse Resident at NYU; I've described it to a few of you but I think it would be nice to fill in others who still may not be entirely clear.  I'll use bullet points to help provide a concise picture.

• The NYU Nurse Residency Program is a one year program where new graduates from a Bachelor Degree of Nursing Program are hired as a RN onto a specific unit.  You begin the career with 8-10 weeks of orientation that includes classroom hours, laboratory skills, psychomotor and written tests in addition to a review of the hospital's policies and procedures.  NYU was one of the very first hospitals in the nation to institute a New Graduate Residency Program in 1996, since then there has been an incredible influx of new grad programs across the nation.
• The first three weeks are very classroom heavy and then the graduates are slowly integrated out of the classroom and onto the unit.  For example, this week I am on my unit one day (yesterday), today we had an all day class on reading EKGs (heart monitor strips), and reviewing the RN's responsibility during a code blue (this can differ at each medical institution).  Tomorrow I have a skills test and we are going over how to use their IV pumps and other medical equipment, later this week I also have computer training and some HR meetings.
• For the first 8-10 weeks you work side by side with an experienced nurse (mentor) on your assigned unit.  You share a patient load and gradually increase the patient load, starting with one and increasing to four or five.  
• There are about 30 new graduate nurses in the program, we are all in the same classroom but are assigned to many different units.  There are two other new graduates who work on my unit.
• We are also orientated to use the medical center library, in addition to a vast number of resources used at the medical school.
• For the 30 new nurses starting, there are four NYU graduate degreed nurse educators that work closely with us and are always available as resources and support systems.
• Throughout the year there are also mandatory workshops for all the new graduate nurses.  We are also able to choose a few specialties to shadow at the medical center.  For example, I am looking forward to following a palliative care nurse practitioner, a pediatric oncology nurse in addition to observing in the operating room.
• After 6 months I am able to start graduate school at NYU for free and am also able to become chemotherapy certified (so I can administer chemo).  I am hoping to pursue a graduate degree as a palliative care/geriatric nurse practitioner or as a nursing educator.
• An interesting tidbit: the two 'top dogs' that are the heads of nursing at NYU are both from Minnesota.
• However, I am the only person in the new graduate program this year from Minnesota, and actually the first ever from St Olaf.  There are a lot of new graduate nurses from NYU and the New York area but it really is a diverse group.  The nurses are from all over the country and from many different backgrounds.
• We are required to construct an evidence-based research project during the second six months of our first year, we are challenged to research an area that particularly interests us and an area where we can foresee improvement at the medical center.  Since NYU is a teaching hospital, they really emphasize research and continued education--this is an enormous perk of working at the hospital.

Well, I'll fully admit that I just spent this entire blog entry bragging about my new job but I must say that NYU does an amazing job with their nursing department and they deserve a little boasting :)

Please feel free to ask any more questions about the job but I hope this provides a nice overview of my experience here in NYC!

Take care and Love to all!

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"Unless we think of others and do something for them, we miss one of the greatest sources of happiness."

-Ray Lyman Wilbur

Reflections

Hello again,

So this will be my second post of the day but since I was away from you all this weekend I thought I would play a little catch-up. As many of you know, I tend to be a sentimental person.... I love to reflect on situations and most of all, remember them. I always try to keep a record of meaningful events in my life, whether its through scrapbooking, photographs, journaling or writing notes. It is so valuable to look back on meaningful moments and learn from them for the future. So I want to include some reflections in this blog, just to give you all a little window into my mind and my heart. So here's a reflection that will provide the foundation for many more reflections to come....

Throughout the past year I encountered countless emotional situations in the hospital setting. Working with cancer and hospice patients definitely breeds challenging circumstances where people are faced with uncertainty, fear and an overall lack of control. Working with this patient population tugs at my heart in countless ways. I'm often challenged by patients grappling for the last bit of control (often manifested by trying to control you) or challenged by simply not having all the (right or wrong) answers. However, as you may presume, for as many challenges I am faced with, there always seems to be 10 times as many rewards. I often compare this work to my love for long distance running. While cross country is a grueling sport that requires intense training, discipline and determination, in the end there is intense satisfaction, fulfillment and reward that always makes it well worth the ride. Many people speak of a 'runner's high' (not only from the physical endorphins but also from the psychological satisfaction of completing a difficult task) and in the same fashion I often leave a day's work with a 'nurse's high' or a feeling of euphoria from the day's accomplishments.

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"In every difficult situation there is potential value. Believe this, then begin looking for it."
-Norman Vincent Peale

Week 2

Hello my dear friends and family!

Well, it has been a few days since my last post and my oh my do I feel like I have a lot to report. I had a great first weekend here in the city and I'm continuing to fall in love with the area. I'm currently on a lunch break from work so I have limited time to spare but I'll give a bulleted list of the highlights from the past few days....

• I love running in central park!! I have a favorite loop that I could run a thousand times and still be entertained by the people, landscapes and atmosphere. Yesterday I was running and got a little turned around....where else in the world do you get lost, find yourself in Rockefeller center and run past the Metropolitan and Guggenheim art museums in order to get home?
• I just drew blood from my patient a few minutes a go and must say I'm pretty proud of my abilities to locate a vein on an 80 year old woman....I think my quilting skills are paying off :)
• This weekend I explored the city with a few nursing friends; we had such a great time hanging out, seeing each other's living quarters and discovering new places.
• I am in the process of booking a flight to Sarasota, FL in September...Braydon's family friends have a wedding there and I was invited to join them--I can't wait! Uncle Mel and Aunt Nancy--perhaps we can find sometime to meet up?!
• I am going to have very toned legs from all the stairs I've been climbing. Haha, I live on the 7th floor of my aunt and uncle's townhouse and I perpetually forget things on the first or top floor--it's pretty much a built in stair-master.
• This weekend I relaxed and read my book on the rooftop of the town house, a little different enviornment than the hammock in my backyard, but still provided me with a little getaway oasis.

Well I have to run back to my unit, I'll continue my list of updates later!

Love to all.

finishing week 1

Greetings!

Wow, week one almost finished! What a wonderful whirlwind of a week it has been. Reflecting back on my posts I realize that I have done my fare share of raving about my NYC experience so far. Haha, I guess it just shows how much I really am enjoying my time here. I must say I've been so busy I haven't had time to get homesick; however, it's not to say I don't miss some very special and irreplaceable people in my life.

I'm looking forward to spending my first weekend in the city, I have met some wonderful girls here at NYU and I look forward to relaxing and hanging out with all of them. I also am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow and actually getting in a run too!!

It's quite interesting, before I left for New York so many people told me to watch out for all the rude and crabby people out in the big city....I was prepared for the worst. To my great surprise, everyone (so far) is incredibly nice, genuine and supportive.... honestly, they put 'minnesota nice' to shame. Perhaps I am surrounded by a bias group of people, but so far I'm impressed.

Other side note, I absolutely love the transportation of the city. It's amazing to walk out my door and literally have the city at my fingertips. You walk down two blocks and there's your favorite coffee shop, you hop on a subway and in 10 minutes and you are at work, or you catch a cab for a ride down to your favorite restaurant.... it is so convenient and so much fun to explore.

I'm also really looking forward to having a special visitor next weekend. My boyfriend, Braydon, whom I conveniently (or inconveniently? .... depending on how you look at it) met a few months before I left is coming to visit for a few days. It should be a great time to show him the city and see each other a few weeks apart. Part of the reason I'm adjusting so well to the city life is that I have the opportunity to meet many new people but I also have the ability to stay grounded and receive support from people like Braydon and my family....they help provide me with a foundation that centers me and facilitates my personal growth. I'm a firm believer that everyone should have a few people in their lives (whether its a spouse or just a good friend) that can hold them accountable and nurture them, whether they are a minute or miles away from the other person. I feel so blessed to have this support in my life.

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"Each one of them is Jesus in disguise."

-Mother Teresa

ps....this quote is my life mantra.

A rainy day in NY

Hey all!

I hear the weather is hot and sunny in Minnesota, quite the contrast from our very overcast, rainy weather here.  I calculated that I walked over 4 miles today in the rain.... let's just say, my vera bradley umbrella and I have become quite good friends.  Oh and the above picture is the view outside the hospital unit I work on... I just love it.

Today was another great day at work.  As I have explained to many of you, the nurse residency program at NYU is essentially an experience that integrates new graduate nurses into the field.  This means that not only do we have a lot of guidance in the clinical setting, we also have a lot of classroom work too.  Today we had a four hour class on reading EKGs (heart monitor strips) and then we had some class on radiology (xrays) and pressure sores.  We also have to take a lot of tests too... not the highlight but I suppose it's necessary.

Like I've stated before I am really adjusting well to the city life.  I love it here and am so thankful for this amazing opportunity.  I hope everyone has a great weekend and I send you all my best!

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"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then you are a leader."

first day on the unit

Wow, I'm pretty sure I'm grinning from ear to ear.  I'm going to be a pretty darn happy girl here at NYU Medical Center.  Today was the first day on my actual hospital unit and I absolutely loved it.  As many of you know, I am working with cancer patients on an oncology/hematology unit.  The patient population captures my heart and give me so much more than I could ever give them.  I won't be able to tell much about my actual work or stories about my patients as I want to respect privacy (and HIPPA regulations...) but I can already tell that this job entails the challenge, environment and people that I have always desired in a workplace.  

I left my aunt's house in Mt Kisco for a few days and have arrived to my other aunt's townhouse in the city.  All I can say once again is that I am so blessed.

I'm really starting to feel like a real New Yorker...yesterday I did my daily 20 minute walk to work in the pouring rain (just to give you a visual....I was traveling through central station and park avenue with my bright green scrubs, bright teal rain jacket and bright pink umbrella...I was quite the spectacle).  Today I took the subway home from work, this morning I crammed myself with about 25 other people in the hospital elevator, I spoke spanish with a street vendor to get a banana, and I actually asked for a soda (not pop!) for my patient today at work.

Well I'm off to dinner with my relatives, I can't wait to spend some more time with them and catch up; it's been a while since I've seen them all.  Well, I must say that I miss some aspects of Minnesota life but I really am fitting in quite comfortably here in the big apple.

"To succeed you need to take that gut feeling in what you believe and act on it in your heart."

-Christy Borgled

Still Smiling

Today was another absolutely breath-taking day...I can't even begin to explain how fortunate I am to be at NYU Medical Center. It's so progressive and advanced yet incredibly genuine and sincere. I will write more tomorrow as I'm quite exhausted, but I'm thrilled to go back and do it again :)

I included a few more pictures from earlier this week. Grace my 7 year old cousin decided that we should have smores for dinner so she set up the fire pit, brought her friends (which included my cousin tess, myself, Niki the dog and a stuffed squirrel); she even made a sign saying 'Maddens' to get us in the Northern Minnesota spirit.

Oh yes, and as many of you know, I absolutely love little inspirational quotes...I have a tendency to pick a new one out everyday, I thought I'd start leaving you all with one too.

Being unhappy is easy and it’s the easy way out, it takes no courage, effort or greatness to be unhappy. Happiness sometimes takes hard work, but it’s worth it.

Day 1

"Wow, I'm a real-live New Yorker".... was the first thought streaming through my head this morning as I walked off the train and caught the wave of commuters striding through Grand Central Station. Today was unbelievable, most days I will refrain from giving a play-by-play report, but today is well worth a lengthy post....

I woke up early this morning to the above sunrise outside my bedroom window. I think it was God's way of saying, "Don't worry, I'm with you today" (and all days for that matter...). I had my breakfast and ice coffee and was dropped off at the Mt Kisco train station by my little cousin Grace and Aunt Sue. I really love the commute into the city; it provides me with an hour to relax and begin (or end) my day. The hour ride ends at Grand Central Station and I have a 15 minute walk to the medical center. All I can say is it's great people watching, I walked in with a slew of doctors and med students and found my place in the Alumni Hall. The day was full of New Employee Orientation which was a little bland at times but I felt incredibly welcomed and sincerely appreciated as new employee at the medical center. I learned a few interesting things about NYU Langone Medical Center, a few things you may find interesting....

• Jonas Salk discovered the Polio vaccine at NYU Medical Center
• In the 1980's the AIDS virus was isolated there too
• Bellevue (the next-door, affiliate hospital) was founded in 1741 and was the first hospital in America (before it was even a country!)
• NYU Medical Center is now NYU Langone Medical Center because the Langone family (also known as the Home Depot people) just donated a large sum of money--which is currently being used to renovate much of the hospital
• US Weekly just named NYU the 17th 'best hospital' in the nation

So nevertheless, I feel extremely fortunate to work at such a well-respected and progressive institution.

At the new employee orientation I also meet many new nurses; I happened to sit by four girls, two from kansas, one from missouri and one from georgia. They were incredibly nice and we went out to a great Jewish deli for lunch. The cute, old owner of the restaurant actually came to our table to see how we were enjoying our food, as we left the restaurant he followed us outside and remarked, "You girls are beautiful and will do great things in the city." Coming from a little 6o year old man we smiled and walked back together to the medical center.

When I came home from my day, I was quite eager to move my legs and get a little blood flowing through my body. So like usual, I strapped on my running shoes and went out for a little jaunt. As I was exiting the gates, a family of deer greeted me to say hello and were also there to welcome me as I returned. The evening was so captivating that I left with my headphones in my ears without ever turning on my ipod. The street winds through the woods and around a lake, it was so tranquil and serene....quite the contrary to the city life I traveled through a few short hours before.

After my run I was accompanied by my cousins down to the pool to cool off and relax. We ate popsicles, played basketball, swam and sat in a eucalyptus oiled hot tub...tough life, huh?

So now I sit drinking some tea and relaxing, getting ready for another day.

While I was running I was reflecting on how fortunate I am to have such gracious relatives and abundant amenities here in New York. I really think that God has some challenging work ahead of me and perhaps this is all here to comfort and rejuvenate me when I return from doing the service I feel called to do. Being 'spoiled' here motivates me even more to dive into challenging situations and really love others to my full potential. I am a big believer in Maslow's hierarchy of needs (he says that we must have life's basic needs--food, water, shelter, in order to achieve higher needs such as feeling loved, giving love and attaining higher states of being). Since my foundational needs are being met, I really feel equipped to grow, develop and do great things.

The Last Days of Summer

Wow, I must humbly admit that I am living the 'high life' here in Mt Kisco; the past few days were quite memorable. Yesterday was definitely a fine summer day...I woke up and went for a run on the gravel roads by the lake and in the woods, then cooled off in the pool, read my book and played with my little cousins in the water. In the afternoon Jake, Tess and I drove to a sidewalk sale in Greenwich, CT; it was such a great time...I definitely took advantage of a few retail sales. I also finished putting together my room, below there is a little picture of my closet...just to show off my lovely organization :).

Last night we went to Lasdon Park and Arboretum to listen to the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra. They have this wonderful production that plays every Saturday night in July, it's a 30 person orchestra set up outside in the arboretum. People bring their dinner, a glass of wine and a picnic blanket to settle down and listen to the symphony. Last night the musicians played popular numbers from Broadway like All that Jazz, Cabaret, Memories, they even had a Broadway singer too (see picture). After the concert we visited Don and Sue's friends who just built a new house in Bedford....wow, it was a time and place to remember. The house sits on a high point in Bedford overlooking the woods and town for miles. Sue told me that the woman is quite friendly with Martha Stewart (actually she is a neighbor down the road...a long with Ralph Lauren...haha). Anyways, you could definitely tell that the house was 'Martha Stewart' inspired. We sat outside with glasses of wine and chatted for quite some time. It was definitly a time I will remember.

So today is my last official day of summer and life out of the work force; however, I must say I am not so sad about it, I feel incredibly ready and eager to start working--it seems like I've been waiting for this for the past four years! Oh and also a few other random updates...I found a great church in the city that looks a lot like the Upper Room (my church from home), in the summer they meet on Thursday nights in central park, I'm really excited to check it out. Also, I'm thinking about getting involved in the New York Road Runners (a running club here in NYC), so hopefully little by little I can start making a new community here. I hope everyone is doing well and thanks for reading!

At the pool...this is the only smile Grace knows :)

I am beginning my time in New York staying at my family's house in Mt. Kisco (Bedford), NY. It's such a beautiful area and I am incredibly blessed to be so welcomed and loved here. I absolutely love my blue room and the breath-taking view from my bedroom window. I have added a few pictures to give you a little picture of the beauty that surrounds me. It is so delightful spending time with my three cousins here; I can totally see little bits of myself in each of them...I think our mothers' have raised us all quite similarly.

First few days

So my dear friends,

Here begins my new adventure as a New Yorker, I definitly still have some reservations and butterflies in my stomach but I'm excited to see what God has in store for me here in the big apple. There are so many people I want to stay in close touch with (and keep updated on my life) so I thought this would be a nice venue to share my thoughts and experiences. I hope you enjoy.