Tuesday, January 27, 2009

First day of school

Sorry for the temporary break in programming! Ah, summer holidays, we hardly knew you. School started today already. TOO. SOON. It was a weird day. The morning was spent in (dis)orientation: fire safety, vaccination check, infection control. Then we were unceremoniously kicked off the branch and told to fly. No timetable, wrong contact details for supervisor, and instructions vaguely to "attach yourself to the team". Er. Even though I've done Armidale and Vietnam and have been at this hospital before during years 1-3, it still feels like I'm going to kindy for the first time and need mummy to hold my hand. Vietnam ED was different, there was only one place to go and what to do was pretty obvious. Armidale was tiny and everyone knew who we were. Here: big pond, small fish. Not even, more like a small anemone. How is one meant to fill the days?! It seems a bit "rock up to whatever you want to".

Anyhow. A bit too sleepy for full sentences, so here comes random listiness galore. What I Did On the Holidays:
  • Bought myself an iPod. And hence....
  • ...listened to all 7 Harry Potter audiobooks. American version + British reader = things like "jello" and "sweater" read in a British accent. Just...no. Still, it was awesome and I'm having the same pangs I had when I was 4 and really really into Alice in Wonderland: dammit why can't it be real! I wanna fly on a broom.
  • Listened to a crapload of podcasts. This American Life, Enough Rope, TED.
  • Went to the Gold Coast. Tanned a lot. Beached some more in Sydney.
  • Saw Cate Blanchett et al in an 8-hour Shakespeare play, War of the Roses. I heart her.
  • Went to Jazz in the Domain (Gypsy Kings and Queens) and Festival First Night (Grace Jones) and camped out at Milson's Point for the fireworks. Sorry Melbourne, Sydney wins in summer.
  • Stressed out from last-minute house-hunting. Currently in a literal granny flat (a granny's upstairs) near hospital. On the plus side, I have it all to myself. On the minus, I have it all to myself.
  • Spent Chinese New Year / Australia Day alone, shopping at Aldi to stock up the new place. SAD.
  • Quickly cycled through several phases: musical (guitar, ukulele), DVDs (The Office, Blackadder, some Sopranos, West Wing again)
  • Shopped far too much. Not buying that much, just being dragged by mothership and stepdorkship. Talk about a consumerist rut.
  • Did buy a haul of books. That new orange-covered Penguin modern classics series is so tempting. Only 10 dollar, lah! I'm partway through half a dozen books. Attention span of a....hmm?
  • Avoided doing lots of things I should've. Like studying.
  • Had a wisdom tooth out
See, not that exciting.

Met a few interesting characters lately. My landlady is one of those people one can only call "decent" - you know, good in an uncomplicated way. She brought me juice and bus timetables with bits highlighted and a tin of cookies. Come to think of it, I should bake something for her, right? That's neighbourly. She's a 60something widow, formerly a nurse. Her sons, who came over to move the fridge in for me, are of that hardy, handy, decent stock of Real Aussie Bloke, tempered with a bit of 21st century snagginess - one of them is a yoga teacher. There's also a blond, angelic 2yo grandson who talked to me about the circus. How do these people exist in the world? A family where the sons come over to cut trees for their mum on the weekend?

Then one of the patients I met today was an incredibly sweet woman. Seriously, you only need look at her and she smiles this great big infectious grin at you that exudes genuine warmth. She's also an alcoholic with decompensating liver failure. Huh?

Too tired to make a point. Fingers crossed the net works.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your holidays sound much more productive than mine!

Hope you settle in quickly to hospital shiz.

:)

Anonymous said...

Ah. The first few wks of being new to the hospital system u will be lost. Find older med kids and they usually take pity on u. If ur not scared shitless, they won't care. LOL.

The idea is u come and go as much as u want. Find out if u have assessments and find out who does them and then turn up when they're around. Seriously. It's how the system works!!

Chvi

Dragonfly said...

I love my iPod, podcasts, Cate Blanchett, those orange books, etc. And granny flats even....
Gluck with finding your way around.