Twas the night before Christmas

And the weather in Anchorage had warmed up yesterday to 14 degrees. However, this morning it was back down to -4. I don't know what the high will be today, but predicted temps for tonight are well below zero. We are safe and snug in the house and don't need to go anywhere. Our little Charlie Brown tree is up and everyone is healthy. Aren't those the best presents?

There are some things that occured to me this week that really made me think - wow, I must be in Alaska. And they had nothing to do with the moose in the front yard last week.

For instance - When reviewing a patients allergies, which is something I do all the time, I came across "polar bear meat" as a documented allergy. I've never seen that before.

One of my co-workers did not get her paper delivered on time one morning because there was a moose in her driveway.

I wondered why I haven't seen snowplows out on the streets. Well, they might have them somewhere, but I have realized they are using road graders to scrape the roads down to the ice. There are bare streaks where the tire tracks are, but otherwise there is still lots of ice on the streets.

I continue to be amazed by the diversity of the population. One patient was of native alaskan heritage who listed her religion as russian orthodox. I guess that can indicate the diversity of the cultures that have been across this land. This past week on the news they told us that there are less then 800,000 people in the state of Alaska. And speaking of the news, I believe there is only one broadcast for the whole state. Well, maybe more then one station broadcasting, but I am not sure there are several markets like there are in other places. You know, news from Chicago and Milwaukee, and then smaller stations as you go north. I think I saw the same news cast in Juneau as I do here in Anchorage. Maybe Fairbanks has another station. I'm not sure, but when the guy does the weather, he does the whole state. I mean he forcasts for the whole state. Just a little different.

This past year a movie was filmed in Anchorage called Everybody loves Whales. I think that is the title. It stars Drew Barrymore and was supposed to be based on a true story out of Barrow, but was filmed in Anchorage. Part of it takes place in a mexican restaurant and the restaurant is called Mexico in Alaska. I had lunch there the other day, it was very good. Hopefully the movie will be as good as the food was! Keep your eyes out for it.

Today we made a dash to the store to pick up goodies to munch on tomorrow. Driving into town down a six lane street there was a moose walking along in the apartment complex parking lot. Moose are like deer with attitude. Many of you grew up like me, there were lots of deer around, but they preferred to remain hidden. Most self-respecting deer would not hang out in your front yard and impede the delivery of your newspaper. Moose, I have decided, don't care. They are bigger then you. Lots and lots bigger then you. Almost as big as your car. And in a moose vs car collsion, there really aren't any survivors. The moose can walk downtown and everyone gets out of their way. Apparently, they have even tried to get into the local hospitals. So not only do they have attitude - they are curious. I hope the bears are not as curious as the moose and don't come into town as nonchalantly as the moose do.

Here is a picture of where I work. It is about 4:45 pm

On Wednesday, all the patients, their familes and the staff and their families were treated to a prime rib lunch.  The dining area was decorated beautifully for the holiday

After the lunch I actually did have to work.  There were patients to be seen.  The weather was cold and clear, single digits with the sun out.  It had snowed and frozen a couple of days ago.  Then there were reports of fog.  The trees looked beautiful.  I tried to capture a corner while we were driving through town.  This corner also has some sculpture on it that is reflected in a few different ways.  I have noticed several sculptures through town, many of them reflect the native heritage.

This is the view from the parking lot where I work.  It is about 4:30 pm.  Sometimes I am glad there are no windows in my office.

I wish all of my friends, the ones that I have known forever and the ones that I have just met; as well as my family, the ones that are here and the ones that are far away, much love, peace and happiness.  Have a blessed Christmas and a joyful and prosperous new year.

Until next week....

Week #3 Some unexpected visitors and a birthday

So this week has been relatively uneventful.  Which is not something that I am complaining about.  The temperatures remain in the single digits with the occassional dip below zero. Fortunately, the wind has been very calm and not blowing or else I'm sure the temps would have been even colder. One of the lines I have developed stating is "at least we're not in Fairbanks".  I say that because in Fairbanks the temp is firmly below zero.  Way below zero.  And that is also without the windchill.  They also have more snow.  I don't know how much, but more then us.  We have the same 8 inches on the ground, and I am also not complaining that we haven't received any more snow.

The other day at work I mentioned that I had yet to see a moose since I moved here.  And lo and behold, on Wednesday one of my co-workers grabbed me to show me that in the wooded area next to our parking lot there were 3 mooses.  There were two bulls and a cow, just lying in the snow bank and completely unpeturbed by the traffic or the people.  It was of course the one day that I did not have my camera with me.  I tried to get a picture with my phone, but it you can't see anything.

I continue to drive to work in the dark every AM, but at least I now where I am going and I don't get those butterflies in my stomach on my way in.  I am still the old lady driver - I drive slowly and get passed by these drivers who don't seem to care at all what the posted speed limit is or the fact that the intersections remain covered with ice. I have discovered that if I leave work at 4:45 or a little earlier, there is still just a tiny bit of daylight left to drive home with. The sunset plays off the mountains and the angle of the light is different, but I really can't seem to express how.  Lately, the moon has been out and in the twilight it hangs over the mountains that are just visible.  They are purple but not as dark as the sky.  The sun is on the opposite horizon and the sky glows pink and orange.  Really just a beautiful site with the moon glowing above them.

This weekend was still full of the mundane chores.  I finally did get out to walk the dogs.  It was 10 AM and the sun was finally out although the temperature was not above 6 degrees.  As I was getting ready to go out Steve yells out to look at the window - so I did and this is what I saw

This is right out in the front yard.  There were actually two of them and this is the larger of the two.  The smaller one is all ready in the neighbors yard.  So I went outside and from a safe difference away I took the following photos.  The moose(s ?) were about 50 feet away from me.

As the moose walked away I finally took Riley and Rosey out for their walk.  We went down about two driveways and Rosey had had enough.  I think the snow was icing up in her paws so I took her back to the house and Riley and I continued on.  This is what I saw at the first cross street.

I knew the mountains were visible from where we live because if I cock my head just right I can sort of see them from my backdoor.  It looks like this

If you peek through the trees you can just make out the outline of the mountains.

I also got a better picture of the lake that I knew was down the street.  I got just one shot before my batteries dies.

I did pass a little park that had a sign on it talking about leaving the loons alone.  So I guess that means there are loons around here.  I have never seen a loon before, so I guess that is one more thing to look for.

We went out yesterday and got our Charlie Brown tree.  It's just a tabletop version and I decorated it with colored jingle bells and a paper angel on top.  Just a little Christmas cheer and it helps to bring the season into the home with us.

Today is my beloved husband's 52nd birthday.  Happy Birthday honey.  There is a pot roast in the crockpot and a pie yet to be made.  The house is staying at 68 degrees (with the thermostat set on 72) and we are warm and snug. There is an inch of ice on the windowsill in my bedroom that I am slowly thawing out.  Maybe then I can finish dusting it.

Until next week...

Repost of week #1 - The Arrival

This wasn't a post on the blog but rather a generic email I sent after we arrived.  I'm posting it here for others to read.  I would move it to put it into chronological order if I could - but I don't know if I can.

Hello all, greetings from the Last Frontier! Or at least that is what it says on the license plates.

 

Let me fill you in on what has happened since we first got here.  The trip was relatively uneventful.  I think the worst part was probably figuring out O'Hare, which we weren't very successful at. Right Tara?  But thanks to you guys for getting us and all the gear there in one piece.  Checking the dogs and the guns in was actually fairly easy.  We gave Rosy one sedative just to make the beginning of the trip easier for her.  I thought I might hear her whine on the planes, but both the planes were so crowded and full of kids that if she was making noise, no one would have been able to hear it anyway.  We were late leaving Chicago, the plane needed to be de-iced, causing us to arrive in Seattle just in the nick of time to board the next flight.  When we got onboard, we alerted the flight attendants that we were travelling with pets.  They in turn wait until the dogs are loaded and bring us back a sticker with the dogs names that was placed on the crates back in O'Hare.  That's how they prove the dogs have been loaded.

 

The flights were uneventful after that.  Flying into Anchorage Jake said "It's three times bigger then New York!". I'm not sure about that, and there were no high-rises, but what we could see out of the window was certainly very expansive.  We actually got to the airport about 35 minutes early, and landed before Steve got there so we had collected most of the luggage before he met us.  It was certainly wonderful to see him again. I'm not sure the dogs recognized him at first, but it took no time for them to figure out who is the weakest link.

 

It was 1 AM or so Alaska time when we landed, but closer to 4 AM for Jake and I.  He had eaten in Chicago, but I had not.  We were planning on eating in Seattle, but since the plane was late we didn't have the opportunity.  So after we loaded up the truck in -2 weather, we went looking for a place to eat.  After seeing how limited shops were in Juneau, I was very suprised to see just about everything you could imagine in Anchorage.  huge shopping centers with every store you could think of including, thankfully, a late night Burger King!  Then it was just a short trip to the new house. We are very close to the airport.  Which I had thought we were. I can hear the planes taking off or landing during the day. It is sort of like a white noise, and not really bothersome.  However, I have woken up at 4:39 AM every morning and today I listened to about 5 planes take off in a row, so I'm thinking that the first plane must take off at about that time and my body is using it as a personal alarm clock.  I'm sure it is something I will get used to, just like listening to the busses outside of Mom's window.  Very annoying at first, but after a while you don't hear them anymore.

 

The house is very small, but with just the three of us it should work out ok.  It is also filthy.  I realize the landlord did not have time to come in and clean between the time the other tennants left and Steve moved in, but, WOW.  The furniture is adequate and there are at least beds to sleep in until we can get them replaced.  Wednesday, our first full day, was dedicated to errands. First on the agenda was a third set of fingerprints for me.  These guys knew what they were doing and no one was trying to sell me jewelry like the chick at the Racine Co. Sherrifs dept was.  They told me that nurses are some of the hardest people to fingerprint and that since I was going to work at St. Elias, they would see me again.  And they were right!  But first it was a trip downtown to the AK Board of Nursing to hand in the prints.  The gentleman who provided me with my license was an orthodox jew.  Not something I really was expecting to see - but just an inkling of the diversity of the people here.  The building we went to was actually a high-rise, by small city standards.  I don't think it was quite 20 stories high, and it wasn't the only tall building, however there aren't many of them.  Out one window we could see snow covered mountains in the distance and a body of water in the forefront.  I think it is called Turnagain strait or channel or something.  By this time it was about 10:30 AM and it was getting light.  That's kinda different.  It was still very cold, in the teens, and everyone I met said it was unusual to be this cold this early.  I guess that's good news.  There is some snow on the ground, about 6-8 inches I guess and the streets suck. There are huge ice patches in the intersectons and folks fly down the street.  I can see that driving here can be a challenge.  And it makes me all the more happy that we decided not to live an hour away from town.

 

Next stop was the high school.  Jake will be attending Dimond HS, and no, I did not spell it wrong.  It took us forever to find it because there are lots of places here where a street ends, only to start up again a few miles down the road.  There are also lots of one-way streets, but we got there and he is registered and good to go.  The school is about 1500 kids, so bigger then Burlington. Very diverse culturally, and hopefully as good as it appears on paper.  He will ride the bus which will pick him up just a couple of streets over.  In warmer weather he could probably walk to school, once we figure out where it is.  Well, it's about 4 miles away, so maybe a bike ride, not a walk.  They have a pool as part of their buildings - I thought that was great. They also have a rifle team, so maybe that will be a good fit for him. They were able to build a schedule that pretty much matches what he was doing in BHS.  He was very light on core classes this semester, so next semester he is loaded with them.  So far he has been pretty amiable about the whole move.  I can see that he is really happy to be with Dad again - I wonder how long that will last? :)  We also had to take him to the Health Dept to get a Hepatitis A immunization.  Apparently, this is pretty specific to Alaska.  I was told it is because there is so much hunting/fishing/camping and not always a lot of good hand washing in between.  He will have to go back and get a second shot in 6 months.  I have a feeling that I am going to be required to get them also, so we may be taking the trip together.

 

Then it was on to shopping for all the basic necessities. We went to Wal-Mart and I felt like I was dropped into the people of Wal-Mart website.  wow. It was 2 PM or so when we got there, and the sun was all ready low in the horizon.  The parking lot was jammed.  Packed.  Sardines.  What all these folks were doing there at 2 PM I have no idea.  There was the woman with bright, and I mean neon, pink hair, and the ones wearing clothes that looked like pajamas... a little bit of everything.  Prices for groceries are a bit of a sticker shock.  Onions for over $2.00 for a bag?!  Milk, not the Wal-Mart brand for over $5??!! Wow.  Gas is $3.77/gal right now. Truthfully, on this first excursion I tried not to look to hard at the prices because you need eggs, milk, onions, butter... but from here on out I will probably become the coupon queen again.  By the time we were headed home it was about 4:30 and almost dark. It was still very very cold out, into the single digits with an anticipated blizzard for Friday.  Another difference I noted from living in the midwest for so long was the absence of blondes.  Lotsa and lotsa brunettes out here.  It is hard for me to tell who might be native or Korean or whatever. And a surprising number of Mexicans here too.  No wonder the Anchorage School Districts states it serves over 90 different dialects.  So much different from lily-white Burlington.

 

Friday, Jake woke up not feeling well.  I think the stress of everything caught up with his stomach, or maybe it was the 4 vaccinations, so he stayed home while Steve and I both went to work for an hour.  Our buildings are about 3 blocks from each other and only 4 miles from the house, so it is very convenient. The people at St. Elias seemed nice enough.  The place is huge and only running about 37% capacity.  Makes me think that the job may be a little challenging to fill those beds.  I met the other liaisons.  It appears there will be 4 of us - they were very nice and welcoming and the office is decorated with pink feather boas.  I have a desk waiting for me, and that's about all I know.  The woman taking me on the tour was not really a medical person so she didn't have a lot to say about cares. But I did walk into a room to peek - Terry, it was lovely.  Huge, lots of room for equipment, new beds, private bathrooms with showers.  You could fit two hoyers in a room.  No banging shins or tripping over equipment because there isn't enough space to put things.  They probably will be cross-training me for their ICU.  Which is ok.  I don't mind keeping up my skills and a little OT now and then doesn't hurt.  They are also going to start a kids unit.  Not sure how I feel about that, but I make take PALS (Lifesaving for kids for you non-nursey types) just to take it.

 

After that Steve and I ran around town again - partially because as predicted, I had to go back and get my prints taken again so that St. E can run their own background check. A good portion of Anchorage has mountains in the background.  The shopping area has these beautiful mountains rising in the background.  I wish I could find the software for my camera so I could show you the photos.  Tara - could you please look to make sure I did not leave it at home?  Should be a connection cable and a software disk.  The town appears to be basically flat.  Lots of evergreens and the ground is covered with snow.  Where we live is off a main street, but our street is like a side street in Anywhere, USA, not quite two-cars wide and lots of trees.  No sidewalks.  The houses appear to be smaller and no one has curtains on their windows.  Including us except in the bedrooms.  That won't last forever. I wonder if it is to allow as much sunlight in as possible since we only get about 6 hours of sunlight right now?  There is a small lake/pond at the end of our street.  There are houses on it and I don't know if there is any public access to it.  There appear to be lots of parks around and surprisingly, a lot of people out on bicycles.  The bikes have snow tires on them and so many lights they look like Christmas trees coming down the street. I understand that many people here are into the outdoors, but that's just a little extreme for me.  However, I did know a guy in Kent, Ohio that used to bike from Hudson to Kent everyday for school.  In fact, last year he biked from one side of the Canadian coast to the other.  Like I said, a little to extreme for me.

 

We are spending the weekend in the house.  The blizzard did not materialize proving that weathermen all over the country don't know their ass from the elbow and still get paid to lie to us.  I have cleaned up the most important parts of the house.  I can now walk into the bathrooms and kitchen without closing my eyes to all the dirt and grime.  In return, i think I have even fewer fingerprints available then I did before.  Good thing I got both sets of prints done prior to the heavy scrubbing.  The temp was in the 20's yesterday and we got about an inch of snow.  Riley loves it.  He loves the doggie door and goes in and out all day long.  Rosy hates the snow and holds her bladder as long as she can and she doesn't much care for the doggie door either.  So far, she has not used it on her own.  It is now 9 degrees and almost 7 AM, it is pitch dark outside.  That will be probably the hardest part for me. I am such a morning person and mentally adjusting to the fact that my day has started even when there is no light outside will be a bit different. However, December 21st is around the corner, and then things will slowly start to change.
 

Somewhere in here I meant to mention I now have a new phone number 907-317-3216. At this point we are not getting a home phone.  Steve has a cell phone we will leave at the house, at least for now, so you can also call 907-317-4678. Steve's work cell is 907-242-6345.

 

Tomorrow is Jake's first day of school and my first day at work.  I know there will be two days of orientation. Somewhere in those two days Steve and I will decide how to get the Suburban up here.  Looks like it will be on a barge of some type - just need to work out the details. 

 

Miss you guys - I do promise to send photos as soon as I figure out where the cords are.

 

Barb

Things I forgot to mention

I really meant to add some clinical information in my post yesterday - but I forgot.

So here goes:  Alaska is the #1 state for tuberculosis.   That amazes me.  I would have thought perhaps somewhere in the southwest with a large immigrant/alien population.  But I was wrong - it apparently lives out here in the cold.  And the other disease we are #1 for - MRSA infections.  There is also a large amt of STD's here - and the CDC is conducting a study regarding the efficacy of the HPV immunization.  In fact, the RN that had my position previously left to go work for the CDC and assist with the research.

Also - domestic violence is another huge issue.  I forget the way it was worded when told to me, but it is a very common reason for hospitalization.  Or so I understand.  I guess this is one reason why many of the villages are dry villages, to try and stop that so lethal combination of alcohol and boredom.  I was told that in someplaces in the interior a bottle of Jack can cost $400.  Imagine that!

Today at work the owners provided a dessert buffet - complete with chocolate fountain and fruit and other goodies for dipping.  We also got a gift card to a local grocery store, happily, not Safeway with the oh so expensive prices.  There were drawings for prizes.  2- flat screen TV's, a couple of DVD players, some gift cards to Nordstroms and some other things.  Let me tell you, I have not heard one employee say a bad thing about this hospital or it's owners.

So a typical day - after I make the 4 mile drive in the dark on these slick streets - we check to see if any referrals have come in.  At 9 AM the majority of the hospital administration gathers in the ambulance bay.  This includes the charge RN's (there are 2, one for each floor.  they do not have a pt load), RT director, finance folks, medical director, CEO, dietary... I don't know who all... about 20 people.  They discuss current census, discharges, pts going out for procedures, potential admissions (my job!), staffing, availability of vents, bipaps, sick calls... It lasts about 15 minutes and then everyone goes about their day.  Then a follow-up email is sent verifying everything we just spoke about.  An interesting process.  After that - we go out and either see pts that have been referred, work on paperwork for admits, or just go out and make the rounds and visit with case mgrs.  I'm starting to get the flow of paperwork.  And all those things like DRG's that I vaguely knew about before, well, I will become slightly more acquainted with them and things like insurance verification, LOS, blah blah blah.

So that's it in a nutshell.  Currently there is a pt here who reminds me of pts we had in MHOB ICU.  Pt is ready to go, but the family isn't quite ready to make the decision.  The spouse is, but not the kids.  They are trying to gather all the family here and even though the family is all in-state, that really doesn't mean anything.  The last family member is to arrive tomorrow, but with blizzard like conditions predicted around the state, and this pt only able to get here by plane (no roads you know), there is no guarantee that they will arrive tomorrow.  Just  whole different set of logistics here. 

I'll keep you posted.

week #2. settling in

 




The luggage sans the dogs and carry-on

   



Jake at O'Hare. It was so crowded there were no seats available to sit on.  The plane needed to be de-iced causing us to leave Chicago late and barely making the connection in Seattle.



A view from the parking structure downtown.  Right around the corner from JC Penny's and Nordstroms!

Another shot from downtown





Random pretty shot



I don't know where we are, just driving around town trying to find things.  These are the Chugiak Mountains



Dad missed his dogs




We were on a drive around town.  It was finally pointed out to me that the mountains are almost always to the east.  This is still the view just from driving around in town



With these photos I was trying to show the mountains turning pink due to the reflection of the sunset on the snow.  It was 4 PM.  Yep, it had just gotten light at 10 AM.

We got a couple of inches of snow the night before.  Here we had driven to the outskirts of town and were headed back in. Anchorage pretty much sits at the base of these mountains.  Maybe next week we will check out Turnagin Arm, the water side of town.



This second week has really just been about getting settled into some sort of routine.  Jake has figured out what time he has to leave the house, and knows just how long he can toast his poptarts before he has to leave to catch the bus.  Steve has about a 15 minute commute to work, and so do I.  Turns out we work 2 blocks from each other.  When one of my co-workers discovered I was carless she offered me one of hers. Honestly, I knew this woman for less then 10 hours and she pressed a set of car keys in my hand.  It is an old Toyota camry.  About 21 years old.  Goes by the name of Penelope. The car that is, not my co-worker.  So as we still struggle with how to ship the Suburban from Juneau, (really, I said to the guy on the phone, it has to go back down to Seattle before you can send it to Anchorage? Yes he said.  That's the way it works) I at least have a way to get to and from work.  The car is small, which wouldn't really be a problem except for the fact that almost every other vehicle here is a truck or an SUV.  Between the big cars and the snowbanks pulling out into traffic is something of a challenge. And there is quite a bit of traffic here.  An amazing amount of traffic for what appears to be a small area.  It dawned on me the other day that Anchorage appears to be one big suburb.  There is a small downtown area (with a Nordstroms and JC Penney!) and then lots of outlying areas with multiple multiple strip malls and small office complexes. I mentioned this to a couple of co-workers and they immediately agreed, so I guess my impression isn't to far off.

My job seems to be good.  There are two other RN Liaisons that I work with.  We share an office with another woman who is our office support, although she does so much more.  The two Liaisons have been great taking me around.  We go to the different hospitals and they introduce me to the case managers and social workers, the people who make the referrals to our hospital. They are also my informal tour guides as they tell me about town when we drive around.  Most of our drives are short because the hospitals are so close to each other.  Providence is like Aurora.  They are the strong presence in town with outlying satelite clinics in the surrounding areas.  Then there is Alaska Regional, smaller and maybe not as acute, and then there is Alaska Native.  Native is a beautiful hospital - it looks like a museum with all sorts of native displays.  Because they serve the native people from all over the state they have taxis lined up in front of the exit to take folks to and from.  There is another hospital about 45 minutes away called Mat-Su.  They have a HUGE fireplace in their lobby.  The facility is new, about the size of Burlington, and looks gorgeous.  However, I was told that after they built the hospital, which serves the community outside of Anchorage, Providence came along and bought up all the land that surrounds the hospital and built a satelite facility across the street.  Sound like any medical group that we know of???

I continue to be astounded at the prices of groceries.  Yesterday we went to a Safeway that is probably the closest grocery store to our house, just a few blocks away. I had been forewarned that the prices were high.  Hmmmm.... I don't think that is quite the adjective.  How is it that a 24 pack of pepsi can cost $9?  At Wally world - $4.  I don't think I will be shopping at Carr's anytime soon.  There is a Costco in town and I think one of our next purchases will be a membership there.

And I have to save money because I need to buy more winter clothes.  My co-workers are both European.  One is originally from Germany and the other from Belgium.  They are lovely ladies.  And they have lovely clothes.  In the week that I have worked with them I do not think I have seen them wear the same winter coat twice. I never would have thought of changing my winter coats like I change my shoes.  Oh... and I need more boots.  Lots of boots.  Boots for every day of the week to match my coats!  And I have seen three people wearing what appears to be down skirts.  They look wonderful.  And warm, a very important consideration since the temperatures have been hovering in the single digits all day with no prediction of a warm-up. Everyone tells me that it has been exceptionally cold this December, that this is more January weather.  The cold doesn't bother me.  And it will bother me less once I get a down skirt and some more boots - but it is still the darkness into the mid-morning that I find so odd.

The dogs appear to be settling in as well with no adverse reaction from the trip.  Riley uses the doggie door with gleeful abandon.  He gets out into the snow and plops his face down, running through the yard snowplowing with his face.  Rosey would rather we open and close the flap on the doggie door for her.  I think she can use it, but chooses not to.  Maybe this week I will get the chance to walk around the neighborhood and explore a little.  That is, if it warms up past 9 degrees.

Until next week!