Clowns, Peanuts, and Dragons!

 I'm still settling into my new job. Lately I feel like I've got the meat of "doing nursing" down pat -  I'm well acquainted with the routine - but I'm not terribly interested in the work. I haven't decided which part makes me less interested, but I'm at least glad that I've been able to keep my sense of humor! I find I'm often singing and dancing and making faces - as a nutty one like me would do. Even better is that with these kids, my nuttiness is rather welcome! I don't have to do quite as much censoring because I'm not worried that I'm going to 'amp' them up and cause a meltdown, and I don't have to act as a parent-figure and teach proper social behaviour like I used to. My job is to give meds, change dressings, start tube feeds, make beds, and change diapers - so a little humor here and there is allowed and refreshing! Many of my patients are bed/wheelchair ridden and wouldn't mind a smile or a wise-crack.

Given all of that, I'm thrilled to have met "Doc Willikers,"  the Therapeutic Clown who's employed by the hospital. I think if I wasn't a nurse right now, I'd do what he's doing. He's an actor who makes his "rounds" to visit children - performing small acts of magic, playing the ukulele and cracking jokes. He's well versed in hospital procedures (for example, how to safely enter the room of a child who's under isolation precautions), and his act ranges from very silly to quite gentle and quiet (in the case of visiting a mother with a sleeping baby - me might play a lullaby on his uke). Therapeutic clowing has been around for quite some time and there are programs in Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Manitoba, BC, and Montreal. Most excitedly, there is a degree program available in Israel! Can't you just imagine!!?

I can write an entire blog post about the development of Therapeutic clowning (which I may do, soon), but how about a couple of photos of my recent adventures?

Me and Doc Willikers - he had no idea I was gonna give him a smooch!

...but he may have taken it a little serious - the relationship moved along so fast!

My own "clowning!" I used a paper bag leftover from the Pharmacy delivery - the kids loved my robot impression, and the other nurses thought I was nuts!

My good friend visited me on  the 7th! We went out for delicious tea at the Secret Garden Tea Company...

...and then antiquing on Main street - I found the Mr. Peanut costume!

Mike participated in the Dragon Boat Festival in False Creek with a team from work; "SNC Paddalin!" They weren't close to being the fastest dragon, but they sure had heart!

It was absolutely, horrendously rainy. This was the massive pile of cold, drenched PFD's. Ick!

Ham & Cheeses. Still having fun, even though they were miserably wet! (I think the Fireball & coffee may have helped to warm the spirit!)

Despite the weather, the event was quite spectacular! Hundreds of paddlers, a few dozen boats, and a great view of the city!

Miss Lizzy's Diamond Jubilee

After weeks of scanning the interwebs for local festivities to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee and finding nothing (shocking, truly!), I decided that I needed to make my own fun. I took a friend (and she brought another friend - a mutual acquaintace, who happened also to be British), and we went for tea at a new shop on South Granville Street.

I made sure to dress for the occasion (why not!?), and the outfit included a pretty cream dress with lace overlay, blue tights and my blue suede bootlets, my hair did in a bun so high Big Ben has to look up to see it, plus, of course my pearls. Also, I did this:

Union Jack nail laquer! It took me - easily - an hour to complete, but I love it! Aside from having to also be dexterous enough to do it with my left hand, the toughest part was doing the little red lines. I resorted to the use of the pointy end of a wooden bbq skewer, but I loved the result! Also, someone else very close to HRH was sporting the very same manicure, which makes me all the more happy!


Meanwhile, at the tea shop....

 I really quite liked the teapots with the Georgian-era golden cameo's, though the service itself was an odd mix of modern and traditional teatime styling. My teacup, for example, was delicate double-walled clear glass. If you look closely, you can see that Sheryl brought along a caricature of Liz, since the real one was otherwise occupied in some sort of fancy floatilla along the Thames river. I suppose it was more important...

But anyway, the most wonderful bit was that this particular figurine featured a solar panel on her handbag ("the handbag is the source of all her power!"), which powered her daintily waving white-gloved right hand. Turrah!

 It was a very well spent afternoon! Many thanks to the two women who shared in a few hours of English fantasy!

The Video Version!

Michael is correct. Here is some additional information about Norse Funerals, Hel, and Valhalla

But the event was still fantastic! Here's video proof!

Send Him To Valhalla!

Over the long weekend Mike and I went back to Kamloops to visit the requisite family and friends. One of the highlights was finally finally giving my dear old hampster, Jude, the viking burial he's been waiting for for over a year. It was about time - my parents had kindly loaned me a small corner of their deep freezer in which to store him. (Yes, I had thought about cryogenics, but it seemed as if the science wouldn't arise quickly enough....)

Being that my father works for the Ministry of Environment, and that it's already fire season in the Interior, my dad joined us for this occasion (and made his own special contributions!), and helped us choose a prime spot for the burial (read: downstream from town, and secluded from bypassers so they can't see us to report us!). A couple of my friends joined me, too! It was a little ridiculous, but It was fun (aside from the part about deceased hampser). Here's the photographic account:

Building the raft. Mike's dad taught me the Boy Scout method for lashing bits of wood together!

It's done!

Strapping Jude to the raft. I kept his shroud on to preserve the good memories.

With Jude and the flame sustainer on the raft, it was top heavy. We found a few more floating logs to help stabilize everything.

Jude in the rushes. Good  bye, little friend!

Nursing Adventures: Job #2: A New Hope

Springtime is whizzing by at an alarming rate. I can barely believe that it's nearly June! Mostly, I've been focusing on settling into my new post at an acute rehabiliation facility for kids (think: post surgery, brain injury, respite, not drug rehab for kids!). I mostly work with children recovering from brain injury, but there's a pretty nice scattering of different cases.

I'll tell ya, the work is completely different from what I've been doing the past two years. Gone are the workdays spent "hanging out" with the kids. I'm now a fully-engaged "walk-till-you-drop" nurse, stethocope in hand, clogs afoot, and a closetfull of scrubs to keep my civvies free from sputum, sweat, soiled diapers and who knows what else! I've been learning how to wrangle feeding tubes and body casts, ceiling lifts and mechanical baths. Some of it is coming back - the same stuff that I did while I was working as a care aide a few years ago. The tubes are quite new to me, though some of the children need feeds 5 or 6 times  a day, so I'm getting plenty of practice. What's most new to me is the omnipresence of parents and families. Some parents stay with their child around the clock and perform all of their child's care except for that which the nurse must complete (preparing medications, for example. Though even then, I might just prepare them and pass them to the parent to administer). In many cases, I absolutely love having parents around. Parents know their children best. Parents can more easily detect when something is wrong. Parents care only for their child, which means they will get 1:1 attention throughout the day (as opposed to when I have a minute to spare to change the tv channel for them or turn them onto their other side). Parents who assist with care mean they free up a few extra moments for me to spend with the kids who don't have anyone else around.

Buuuuuuut..... it's because they are the utmost experts that I often feel at my least confident. I've had many moments of total "uuuuuuuuh...." because I went into a room to treat a patient, only to have the parent ask or comment or notice that I'm doing something incorrectly, or unusual, or fumbly. I can take it from my colleagues - they absolutely know that I'm new to the game and are generally unbiased and willing to teach me. It's terrible to hear it from a watchful parent. They want to know that their child is receiving the best care possible - that's why they come to the hospital in the first place! Who am I to be inexperienced with their baby? Their brain injured, or dying child?

This is going to take some time. The good news is that I think I'm getting the basics down. Gotta do that quick, because the plan is to stay at this job until the end of September. October is when I transfer to my new job - the one I applied for in the first place - back at Children's Hospital, on the medical floors as part of the Nursing Resource Team. The Lion's den. Rawr!


That aside, here are some fun pictures from my recent endeavours!

Mike and I took in a gread day at Granville Island - I bought life spot prawns at the fisherman's wharf, and we shared fish 'n chips!

My latest knitting project! I call it the Knobby Neckie!

The April Up-And-Up

My Apologies! April was a busy month! Here are the highlights:




Ok, My birthday wasn't in April, but it was this week. I had a wonderful, low key birthday where I met a friend for lunch (and cupcakes), had supper and a show with my honey-bunch (Rock of Ages after dinner at Hawksworth), ate cake and received a number of wonderful gifts (cosmic/Karmic or otherwise!) I realize I'm not thrilled to be getting older, but at least I'm doing it in style!

The above two pictures didn't even happen in April, either. That was March. I discovered an unwrapped jolly rancher inside the package (weird!), and our wonderful "upstairs neighbours" moved away so we spent a day cleaning up their empty apartment. I just loved seeing four shirtless dudes working!

This is a Maple Bacon donut from Cartems Donuterie near downtown Vancouver. They're a bit pricey, and you have to visit the Downtown Eastside to get them, but they are absolutely worth it.

I went to a canning class at Save-On-Meats. I loved the class because I:
a) didn't have to do any of the prep work or clean up
b) came home with 4 jars, each filled with something different, rather than 12 jars of the same thing if I'd canned at home....
c) didn't have to do any of the prep work or clean up.

I now have a jar of preserved lemon (and no idea what to do with it), strawberry-rhubarb jam, pickled beets (pictured above) with carrots and onions, and a fruit sauce (with apricots, dried cherries and cran!)

Michael left me a cheery plated dinner one evening when I came home late and he was out playing sports. At first I loved that he made it - and then I realized it was "whopper Wednesday"...

I went to a baby shower for a friend a few weeks ago, too! It was a fun fete, and well organized and attended. A highlight was (besides who is almost certainly the cheeriest, happiest mother-to-be I've ever met) the pro photog and the option to take mustached photos with friends!

..of Intimate Proportions

Today's "Titanic Tea Party" was an excellent excuse to have friends come over for tea and to try some new recipes. Whilst the attending guest list was small, I was thrilled to have friends over to help me enjoy sweets, sandwiches and sunshine!

the table spread, complete with fresh flowers and my homemade tea trays!

Tea cups, sandwiches, leaves, and scones!

In all, the menu included fresh, handmade:

French Macarons with Chocolate Ganache

Hazelnut Shortbread Balls

Raspberry Tarts

Chocolate and Butterschotch Chip Cookies

Scones

Clotted Cream

Tea Sandwiches (made today):

Smoked Salmon and Chive

Blue Cheese, Walnut and Pear

Watercress and Cream Cheese

Cucumber 

Crab and Watercress

Shrimp with Chili Mayo and Arugula

Cucumber Mint

And then there were the other little bits - Strawberries, grapes, fine china and fresh flowers! Delightful!

The Most Rewarding Indulgence...

In my opinion, one of the most rewarding indulgences in life are fresh cut flowers. Yes, you buy them and they start dying immediately, but for the time you have them - a week or so - you're left with something beautiful to look at and an aroma that trails around you as you walk past.

The flowers often change over the course of their stay as they bloom and wilt. Their perfume offers comfort when you find the "sweet spot" whilst sitting nearby - maybe drinking tea or doing something altogether unrelated. It's a lovely feeling. There's also the fun that comes from choosing and arranging them! Now that spring is here and flowers are blooming again I might do it more often.

Also, I've been doing some fun tea-time projects!

Roasted Easter Bunny Dinner!

This year, since I wasn't hosting 17 of my nearest and dearest for Easter supper I decided to try something new and interesting on a small scale (just Michael and I). I'd heard that Rabbit was a favourite at this time of year ( I remember fondly the "bacon-tur-duck-en-nunny" -bacon on top of a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken stuffed with a bunny - escapade), so Saturday I made my way to a nice little butcher in Kitsilano where I picked up a fresh, butchered Lapin. I had them quarter it for me and it waited in my fridge until this afternoon. I needed an easy-make recipe because after a night shift I wasn't too keen on standing over the stove for ages, and this is what I came up with:

Added to oven-safe pan:

coupla carrots

x1 dolla-sliced yam

three shallots, chopped

a few sliced fingerling potatoes

roughly chopped turnip. (I went with turnip in lieu of parsnip, which wasn't in-store today. pffft.)

salt and pepper to taste

dollup of olive oil

a few sprigs each of Sage, Rosemary and Thyme

about a cup - 1/5 cups of chicken stock

Mixed them about to even things out a bit.

Washed and patted dry my four pieces of Rabbit. I put a piece of Sage, Rosemany and Thyme on top of each one, and covered them all with slices of Wild Boar Bacon (found at the same butcher).

note: Ordinarily when I try a new food like this I like to let it speak for itself, but I read that game meats are quite lean and prone to drying out. The bacon was to help self-baste.

Covered it all with foil and baked in 350 degree oven for about an hour (ish). I uncovered it and cooked it a little longer to thicken things up and brown things out.

In the meantime, I had Michael make this delicious pear-Waldorf salad!

It's spinach, green pear, dried cranberries, walnuts, and a parmesan-type cheese we had in the back of the fridge to replace what is generally feta or chevre.

For the Balsamic Vinaigrette:

Jamie Oliver tells me that whenever you make a vinaigrette keep the oil/acid ratio to 3 parts oil to 1 part acid (vinegar or lemon juice). Helpful! So, I threw into a small (125ml) jam-jar:

the remainder of my EVOO (plus some canola to round out the ratio)

1 part balsamic vinegar

like, three cloves of garlic

salt and pepper

That whole salad combo tasted delish!

So, once the meat was cooked through and basted once I removed it from the pan and removed the veg separately, leaving the Bunny/Bacon/veg juice in the pan. I put it on top of the stove and got the mix to simmer a little, stirring constantly and encouraging it to thicken. I added a few teaspoons of flour to it in small scatterings to make it really believe it was gravy, and whisked it thoroughly until I fugured it was good and ready (only about 3 mins). I peppered it for luck.

Also, I steamed some beets. Then we poured the wine, and supper looked like this! :



Clockwise, from top: roasted veg, ma pretty flowers, waldorf salad, steamed beets, wine from a friend's 2010 wedding,
jam-jar of vinaigrette,  cuppa tea in the fancy china, pan gravy, Easter Bunny.

 

The rabbit tasted delish. Almost like chicken, but not. Definitely rabbit.





 I got flack from friends about eating rabbit, but from what I read it's not unusual in the U.K, and used to be a staple before we decided to mass-produce certain animals. It was a relatively inexpensive holiday meal, too - about $40 for everything and we've got leftovers for days!

Dear Tori: This post is dedicated to you. Be fearless in the kitchen! I did most of this without a recipe! (I just read a bunch and took the average!)

Happy Easter, everyone!

And thennnn....

and then I cared for my pretty potted plants and herbs!

Bottom to top: miniature rose, chives, English mint, Lavendar, and Arizonan cactus (grown from seed!)

And I made a trellis for the mint from shishkebab sticks!