Nursing on a Sunday
Nursing is a very difficult career.
I don’t think I would have the patience for it.
You have to keep checking if the patient is wiggling her toes! 
Play hide and seek to keep the patient active.
Plot about the style of headstone to use. :sad: These are in the Pet Cemetery at Antrim Castle/Clotworthy House.
Run away and see if the patient will follow, curiosity killed the cat and all that….
The tower is all that remains of Antrim castle, the building in the background in Antrim Forum.
The Motte was transformed into a magnificent “viewing mount” in the early 18th Century with a corkscrew path lined on the outside with a yew hedge. Elly remembers climbing to the summit when she was younger, but now it is fenced in and only accessible upon request.
So I had my photowalk! I kept to the paths and let the ‘children’ roam free. When I had enough I took the keys and headed back to the car, leaving the staff the opportunity to walk at Nurse Hitler speed along the river Six Mile Water to the shores of Lough Neagh.
I only told Elly yesterday what happened when I reached the car. I was walking on two crutches remember…. I dropped the keys!
Looking about there were plenty of cars but not a soul in sight. I remembered the lesson my brother taught me:-
“You may not be allowed to bend more than 90° to touch the ground, but you can always stretch your leg out behind you”.
I set one crutch between the wing mirror and the body of the car. Then using the other one for support, I bent forward with the operated leg out behind me and picked up the keys. I had this manouver well practiced at home before I went for surgery.
When the rosy cheeked young lovers returned I was well settled in the car and ready for home.
Maynard said,
October 13, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Nursing? You are right- the knitting would get “boring!”
Nick said,
October 13, 2009 at 1:34 pm
Ooer, I hope Nurse Hitler wasn’t too scathing about your unauthorised manoeuvres….
Maureen said,
October 13, 2009 at 3:30 pm
If nursing was all about that first picture, I could certainly handle it!
Very inventive with the key pick-up maneuver. A good example of the benefits of being prepared prior to the operation
Grannymar said,
October 13, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Maynard - She keeps changing the colours and the patterns. Do you think that is my Christmas present?
Nick - She was pleased to know that I managed to solve a potential problem. Mind you we all had mobile phones in case of emergency. I had actually shown her when I dropped something in the kitchen days earlier. I stopped her from picking the item up, as she will not be with me at every hands turn.
Maureen - I think we all could.
Maynard said,
October 13, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I think she is afraid that you are going to “belt” her with another pillow! The knitting actually is protection from the next bombardment with the pillows! She is keeping her eye on you!
gaelikaa said,
October 13, 2009 at 5:08 pm
She’s a great girl all right, your Elly.
Rummuser said,
October 13, 2009 at 5:11 pm
Clever, very clever and that is just the way to do it. In the beginning, it is a good idea to carry a magnet tied to a string in your pocket for just such emergencies.
wisewebwoman said,
October 13, 2009 at 5:13 pm
I must remember that maneuver!
XO
WWW
PS Glad she’s not Nurse Ratchit.
bikehikebabe said,
October 13, 2009 at 6:30 pm
Knitting isn’t always boring. Where are the argyle socks knit all those years ago?
My job is picking up off the floor & putting away. I still stretch my leg behind me, since my hip replacement. It’s time to quit, but it’s a habit.
Darlene said,
October 13, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Like bikehikebabe I still put my operated leg behind me to pick things up and if I forget I pay the price of pain in the evening. I am not sure I will ever be able to stop bending in that fashion.
I don’t know whether it goes with the territory or not, but I drop so many things now that it seems as if clumsiness was included in my surgery. Where, oh where, is Nurse Hitler when you need her?
Baino said,
October 13, 2009 at 8:18 pm
My goodness Elly looks like you! I’ve been known to use that manouvre to pick things up myself!
Grannymar said,
October 13, 2009 at 10:01 pm
Maynard - She is always keeping an eye on me!
Gaelikaa - That she is.
Ramana - Thanks for the tip about the magnet. My grabber has a small magnet at the end of it, it is only suitable for very light items such as a single key.
WWW - It is a very handy trick. I have practised it for a couple of months now.
Bhb - Don’t mention knitting socks… I had to make them in school and it took me a whole year! Agony. Pure agony.
Darlene - I think Nurse Hitler has gone for a lie down in a darkened room!
Baino - Elly is turning into her motheer in other ways…. don’t tell her I said that!
Jean Browman--Cheerful Monk said,
October 13, 2009 at 10:10 pm
Thanks for telling me about that trick!
Grannymar said,
October 13, 2009 at 10:17 pm
Jean, it is a handy trick to know!
kenju said,
October 14, 2009 at 5:02 am
Ah, a good solution!!
George@CulinaryTravels said,
October 14, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Sure if nursing was all about the above I’d like my job a whole lot more than I do now
Grannymar said,
October 14, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Judy - a solution I was glad to learn!
George - All jobs have their moments.