The Love Triangle Story of Mr. Nice Guy, The Campus Crush and the Girl-Next-Door

My stay last week in the bloodbank, when I had my three days and two nights straight duty, would have been less cheerful if I didn’t get to know Juan Paolo Sanchez. Juan Paolo is the clerk’s son. He is seven years old and is already in Grade two. I met him months before but we were not introduced properly since that time I was paying more attention to the kid of the previous utility man.

The new utility guy, VeronicO, is an old classmate in college. He was forced to stop his schooling before our capping ceremony. I was in fact surprised when I discovered that he is now working in the organization. I cannot say that we were buddies in college but I can say that we were in a very reasonable term, even though he’s a bit of a heckler. So when we met, it didn’t take long before we resumed the taunting from our college days. Whenever VeronicO says a punchline Juan Paulo will surely be on his side laughing with him. Afterwards, Juan Paulo became quite comfortable with me that we were able to hang out and play- I got to teach him some traditional Pinoy games that he hasn’t even heard of (agawan base, syato, teks, etc.), he taught me how to play pog, we even played hide-and-seek.

One time while we were seating in the reception area I pressed him a question- “Sinong crush mo sa school?” (Who’s your crush in school?). Whenever I ask this to my little cousins they usually shy away and then I finally get to tease them, but Juan Paolo is different. He boldly told me that he is torn between two girls- Katrina and Erhanna- and he sounded really problematic.

Katrina is his classmate- THE CAMPUS CRUSH- while Erhanna is her neighbor- THE GIRL NEXT DOOR. I asked him, “so who’s prettier?” He couldn’t seem to decide so I asked him again, “Who do you like more?”

He was like, “I like Erhanna more. Katrina doesn’t even want to be touched.” Unfortunately Juan Paolo tried to hold Katrina’s hand but she shooed him away. I was really amused so I asked, “Why? Does Erhanna allow you to touch her?” He smiled meaningfully. He said Erhanna hugged him when he told her that he likes her.

So I pored in a little deeper, “So you like Erhanna more?”

“Katrina doesn’t like me. She said I am just her number two since she already have a number one. His number one is Dominic.”

“Then you should punch him so you’ll be her number one instead.” He said he can’t because Dominic is “BIGGER.”

The talk went on to my very own amusement. God I couldn’t believe that I was just talking to a seven-year old kid, he’s so smart. i didn’t know that everyone in the area, who were supposed to be doing something were intently listening pala. They were silent but all their pretensions of busy-ness were unraveled when they laughed after he said “Basta secret lang natin yun ha. Bukas magdadala ako ng picture nila.” (This is just our secret, okay. Tomorrow I’ll bring their pictures.)

On Friendship and Misa de Gallo

I spent another graveyard shift last night at the blood bank. I was with Kathleen RN, Mary, Mark RN and Kim. The group, together with some volunteers who did not attend their duty last night, became close friends because of these nightly shifts. Initially, they have been unintentionally scheduled together until finally they’ve been really extra-comfortable with each other that they finally chose to be scheduled as one whole group. I am really cool with them and they treated me really nice, however, I still felt out-of-place most of the time. In fact, they have already established their own norms and habits. I think it has always been more difficult to make friends, or I guess to intrude, to an already tight friendship than to build friendship with a group of people who are themselves strangers to each others.

…

I invited them to join me in attending the first 4 o’clock AM mass of the Misa de Gallo. But all of them have already attended the first8 oclock PM version of the Misa de gallo the previous night, so I have to attend the mass alone. I rarely attend the mass in our parish and this was only the second time that I’ll be attending a mass in this particular cathedral (the one nearest to the blood bank). Before the mass commenced, I saw Kinney, one of the member of the group, and I seated beside her. There is an aisle in front of our seat which separates us from the rest of the “front row” and people who were unfortunate to find a seat managed to stand in front of us. Normally this might have caused me to doze off since I couldn’t concentrate to a speaker if I couldn’t see him. Thank goodness the mass celebrant was Bishop Socrates Villegas. His loud voice boomed clearly through the speaker. His homily was brief and very understandable.

Volunteer on Duty

A certificate of completion is given to every volunteer who finishes at least 100 hours of duty in the blood bank. Since a.) I was always absent or b.) 2 hours late for my scheduled time of duty because I was just sneaking under my father’s nose (he didn’t allow me to volunteer), and c.)I opted to be absent on November and October to prepare for my board examination, and d.) if ever I attend the duty I’d be 2 hours late, I was not able to complete the required 100 hours duty in the blood bank. Heck, even the second batch of volunteers last October was able to beat me in the attendance. So last week I thought of spending three days and two nights in the blood bank just to make up for the wasted times.

I brought clothes, a towel, shampoo, soap and other personal stuff that would last me for three days. There is a shower and a kitchen in the area so living inside the “big brother house” would not be a problem. There are three medtechs and each is on duty for 24 hours and their shifts rotate every three days. Maam Sol, the Medtech on duty last Monday, was surprised when I told her that I’d be there for three days. She told me how she finds it difficult to work for 24 hours, what more for 72 hours. I kept my hopes high.

I met the new volunteers and I was stunned that even though most of them were my schoolmates in college, my batchmates in fact, I haven’t even met them even once at school. The new volunteers are less outgoing than my batch and I talk most often than they are. The patients are hard to come by so I almost died of boredom.

I spent the first graveyard shift with KathleenRN and Mary. Before we sleep (we sleep at the bleeding area) I warned them that I snore. Mary was not bothered sine according to her KathleenRN’s snore is the loudest snore that she has encountered so far. Mary and KathleenRN always gang up with 7 other volunteers for the graveyard shift so they are really accustomed with snores, nevertheless, warning them about my snore is an SOP (much like a weather report on typhoon months). The next morning, they scowled at me as greeted them hello. They did not sleep because I just toppled Kathleen’s world record in the loudest snore.

The next night was even better. I get to hang out with Sir Sam, Sir Yham, RuthRN, YhaniRN, and ErikaMaeRN. For the first time, I didn’t mind being with people who smoke. We spent the whole night conversing mostly about ghosts but virtually almost about everything. Ruth and I were the last ones to sleep but we were the first ones to wake up.

I am starting to like the graveyard shift. Just as what I have observed before, unlike with the day shifts, graveyard shifts allow the volunteers to bond with each other more since less time is spent with the clients. The intimacy becomes more personal as we become more at ease with each other.

Volunteer! YEAH!

I just got back from a three-day-straight duty in the blood bank. I am still groggy since I only had two hours of sleep last night and I’m not yet in a mood to write about what happened. Besides I still plan to return next Friday and stay there for the rest of the weekend until my funds run out again.

NOTE: I am still not posting any comment on any blog. I still read your blogs, REALLY!

Result of November 2008 Nursing Board Exam

After a major setback last summer, I was finally able to take the Licensure Examination for Nurses last November 29 and 30 (that’s last Sunday and Saturday). So what happened?

THE NIGHT BEFORE THE BOARD EXAM:

I tried to sleep at about 10 pm but I woke up at 12 midnight. My feet suddenly felt restless and I just couldn’t bring my self back to sleep again. My sisters felt my chest and I was palpitating. I stood up and did some exercises and jogged around the room. But it was no use. I ate the leftover from the previous dinner. I wanted to peruse my notes again but I was just too apprehensive to focus. I tried to sleep and was able to do so at 2 AM but all I dreamed about was I was sleeping and waking up to pee. I thought it was for real that I was really waking up every five minutes to visit the bathroom until my sister’s alarm rang and I realized that I was just dreaming.

THE MORNING:

It was 3-something in the morning when I woke up. I insisted on carrying my notes and reviewers with me in the testing area. I didn’t really plan to read them in the venue. I just want to feel secured. My two big sisters accompanied me to the testing place and I was the first one in the room. People came flooding the place at 6:30 and we finally met the watchers by seven.

The watchers passed our answer sheets and made the reminders and instructions to follow. We have to write our names and everything about us on the first page. I noticed that I do not have my application number. The girl in front of me told me to look for it in my Notice of Admission, but I was shocked when I discovered that my application number was not written on my NOA. So I looked for anyone who has the same case but it seems that I was the only one who doesn’t know his application number. I pointed this out to the girl and she said, “Lagot ka, pano ka mageexam?” (You’re dead, how will you take the exam?). I felt the seriousness in her voice, it was in fact also her first time to take the board exam but she talks with utmost certainty and that freaked me out. My hands went clammy. I approached the watcher. She told me she’d fix my problem. She smiled. Really, nothing beats a warm, honest smile. The watcher is an angel.

THE FIRST EXAM- Basic Foundation of Nursing and Professional Nursing:

God, it was difficult. I was shocked with the 11th to the 20th items, the questions are all about research with some statistics.

The carbo that we eat are all turned into glucose, which functions as our fuel to do work, most of it goes to our brain. I ate my breakfast but before I hit the 21st question in the test, I was already hungry. Some of the examinees our churning on their menthol candies so I opened my chocolate chip cookies and ate while taking the exam.

There was a break after the first test. I told an examinee, who happens to be from Negros, that I didn’t know the research part of the exam. She was like, “Ha? Di mo alam yun? Eh di ba basic lang yun?” (What? You didn’t know that? That’s just basic, right?). I nodded and smiled weakly. I am not gonna pass the board.

THE SECOND EXAM- Community Health Nursing and Care of the Mother and Child:

I was expecting that they’d give IMCI for Community Health Nursing and I was not disappointed, the first ten questions was about infantile dehydration and I think I faired well on those items. I expected Immunization to come out also but it didn’t. That really frustrated me. And I went from anxious to insanely depressed when the topics of the questions ran from the subsidy of the President for the poor to PhilHealth. I almost died when half of the exam, I later on discovered, was all about COPAR. Something we studied way back when I was in 2nd year in college. And I have already forgotten all about it. It was not expected. I guessed all my answers, choosing whatever that has the word PARTCIPATE in it. Afterall, the letter P in COPAR is Participative.

And of course the 11th to 20th items are all about research again.

THE THIRD EXAM- Care of Clients with Physiologic and Psychosocial Alterations (Part A):

This was the time when I first fell asleep. I snoozed for a couple of minutes but I was able to get back on track afterwards. The questions are tricky and I didn’t know anything. Some of my friends said that they count their sure answers; I guess the only thing that I was sure about was with the computations of medications. There are three items for drug computation and I was happy to have at least a raw score of three this exam.

***I had a deeper and longer sleep that night. I was again the first one in the room the next day. My sisters accompanied me again. I decided to follow my sisters’ advice: a.) try not to sleep, b.) try to use up all the time, c.) check all my answers.

THE FOURTH EXAM- Care of Clients with Physiologic and Psychosocial Alterations (Part B):

The questions were all about diagnostic and other clinical procedures. After the exam, I talked to my friends and I found out that my answers are all wrong. I misread some of the names of the procedures and I was tricked by some of the choices that seemed like the answers. Alex, a retaker, told us that his lowest grade was from the fourth exam, and I will never doubt him ever.

*** Before the fifth exam, I had a Diarrhea, thank goodness , a friend, had a Loperamide.

THE FIFTH EXAM- Care of Clients with Physiologic and Psychosocial Alterations (Part C):

I fell asleep three times. [PERIOD]

NOTE: I am not going to post any comment on any blog until I have already passed the board exam (so that would be on July 2009 since I think I’ll fail this exam). I still read your blogs though.

PS While taking the exam, I had a last song syndrome. I love this song.