Anything but Eight

I now know that this is true: that the things you dread are the things that definitely come to pass and that the chances of it happening is directly proportional to your stress levels. My prayers of "Anything but eight, anything but eight," went unanswered, and like some great cosmic joke, I drew the paper with the words "Ward 8, 7-3", just like that. I just got assigned to Ward 8, the Pediatrics Ward, the One Ward in the hospital that I absolutely had my sights against.

Before applying to the hospital as a volunteer nurse, I sought the expert opinions of those who had the privilege of working at the same hospital. I found out that, on a general level, everyone thinks their ward is the BEST ward and all other departments simply fail. A few examples of the consultations that I had with those enlightened members of the no-pay volunteers:

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 1: Ward 2 is the best. The staff are nice, you get to watch TV, less work, and oh, we have parties every month or so.

(Hmmm, TV. Ward 2=Most Ideal. Besides, my dad worked in Ward 2, so I may get by with my family name alone. On the other hand, it's a chronic ward. Everyone's either in plaster or twitching.)

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 2: OR. We came, we open, we saw your guts!

(Operating Room staff are, like, the elite. Or at least, that's what they like to think. It's really nice, though, to be in the OR, except on elective days, where the OR complex is filled to overflowing. Also, paperwork. Lots of them.)

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 3: Any ward, is fine. Don't go for OR. When you apply for an entry-level position, you'll be a staff nurse. So it's better to learn all you need to know about basic floor duties.

(I'll admit, this is the most sound advice I got. Objective and practical. Two people gave me this advice, and I worship you both.)

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 4: The action is in the ER. You learn LOADS there, CPR, emergency care....In wards all you do is chart and sleep. Where's the learning?

(Where indeed? However, I never liked the ER. I'm too, er, fragile. Besides, ER people are the most likely people to die in case of a terrorist attack. Kidding.)

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 5: Eye Center. Nice easy hours , free internet.

(Internet, hmmmmm?)

ME: I'll be volunteering this month. Which ward is best?
Expert 6: Anywhere, as long as it's not ER.

(Uh-huh.)

So, that got me nowhere fast. Ergo, I'll take whatever comes my way. Except Ward 8.

But, as fate would have it, I did get in to Ward 8. I see a number of disadvantages:

1. I've never had a rotation there. Ever.
2. Kids are scared of nurse. One look at the white uniform and they'll cry/wail/throw a tantrum/pull your hair(!)...
3. Too. Many. Kids. In. The. World.
4. The Pedia Ward is really HOT.
5. Contagious. Lots of contagious things to catch.

As my role in life is to find silver linings in every dark cloud, I rationalized these advantages:

1. I have nephews and nieces and cousins who are potential Pedia patients. Maybe the good Lord directed me to Ward 8 so that I can enjoy treating my family.
2. In looking for a ward, I want variety. The Pedia ward is like the Medical ward in miniature: lots of conditions and procedures to do. I may just enjoy Ward 8 (I mean, I enjoyed pricking babies with vaccine when I was a student. Hihihihi).
3. It's relatively near the hospital canteen.
4. My classmates always said I was good with children. It's the maternal instinct buried in me. And for that matter, I think it'll be buried forever. A stint in Ward 8 is the closest I'll get to having children. I can always adopt.
5. I honestly can't think of anything more.

By this time, I've resigned myself to my lot. Pray, I hope to enjoy my 3-month stint in Ward 8. In the spirit of making lists, I shall end with these resolutions that I need to do before duty begins:

1. Return my body clock to its normal rhythm by sleeping and waking up early.
2. Abstain from all pleasurable things from now on, i.e., TV, computers, movies, rainy days, etc.
3. Solicit for brand new uniforms.
4. Read up on Pediatrics procedures and stuff.
5. Buy the following: 4 colored pen, thermometers, surgical masks, notebook and a new bag.
6. Get a retailer SIM to sell load during duty hours (for the extra money).
7. Learn Tausug as soon as possible.
8. Order a new nameplate that will appendage RN to my last name.
9. Say goodbye to August.

My feeble show of support...

...against the BJE MOA.
Hey, at least it's there :D

On having a chauvinist for a brother

It started with the show "American Gladiators", which, if you really think about it, hardly inspires chauvinistic and anti-feministic sentiments especially if you consider the buffed bodies of the gladiators, male or female. There I was, enjoying the local rerun of season 1's final episode when my brother screeched:

"The loser's being interviewed by a GIRL!!"

I am not a radical feminist, but I do have pride as a woman. The biggest pet peeve I have with my brother is the fact that he thinks he's so superior to women, when in fact Leila Ali can beat him black and blue with both hands behind her back. Comments like "Ah, poreso gale. Mujer el driver.", also pisses me off, but correcting him is like asking a fish to walk on land. He just feels so bloody superior. I have no idea who gave him that idea.

So when my brother said that, in his infuriatingly condescending and superior way, I told him he wasn't exactly being PC.

"Ooh, you're talking crap."

I told him I wasn't.

"What's PC?"

Politically correct, I said. You should use the word person, instead of saying man or woman. Like George Clooney, on Batman and Robin.

"So that's how you talk now? PC?"

Shut up, PC idiot.

"You talk shit."

You act like shit.

"You initiated shit."

You invented shit.

"You look like shit."

You are shit.

He snickered and guffawed.

I went inside my room, fuming.

1-0, in favor for dear chauvinistic bro.

Painting Zamboanga RED

A habit of perennial lateness made me miss the mass gathering of support in City Hall against the inclusion of Zamboanga City in the BJE (Bangsamoro Judicial Entity).

Inside information revealed, however, that a great number of people in red attended, and that it moved a certain classmate of mine to tears. In attendance that morning were representatives from Basilan and the Governor Hoffer of Zamboanga Sibugay.

I arrived in town, wearing red, of course. In the heart of the city, half of the population were in red. Whether or not the said populace willingly or unwillingly knew the significance of red today remains to be seen. Those who could not wear red wrapped red ribbons around their elbows.

By 11 AM, stores and establishments around the city temporarily halted business operations to show their support. No one forced them to close their establishments; that would have undermined the principles of democracy that we so value, the same principles the government claims to uphold yet so blatantly disregards with the advent of the MOA for the BJE.

The people of Zamboanga can disagree on a lot of things. Heck, they can be really apathetic people sometimes. Many still were ignorant of the issue, others chose to ignore. Still, others chose to watch Wowowee instead of the local news showing the protest of the city. I wonder why Mayor chose the color RED for today's protest (party color?).

I hope and pray for peace in Zamboanga. May PGMA realize that selling Zamboanga and the other territories to these militant and separatist groups will not achieve peace. Madam President was given the power over the country and its 1,707 islands for her to uplift and improve lives and NOT to use them as bargaining chips for to buff up her political image. There will be hell to pay. Why don't you try including the cities of Luzon in the BJE and see what happens.

Viva Zamboanga!