January 24, 2009



Greetings to All!!
Please accept my apologies for such a late posting. Dow has been in town and my timing has somewhat changed. We have been so busy since him getting here, familiarizing him with the area, getting the room set up to occupy two, and acquiring the basics for minimal housekeeping.
In incredibly memorable moment of the week was the inauguration!! The newspapers were slathered with pictures of the Obamas and the events. I worked that day, and the swearing in was to take place at 4pm, London time. I asked in bay 1 if it was alright with them if I turned on the event, and received approval. All eyes were tuned in and the interest was intense by all. I heard it was being aired all over town, and some places were charging as much as 60 pounds to view! Everyone who we have talked to is so hopeful with the new presidency!
Another highlight of the week was Jan. 21, when we went and saw Phantom of the Opera, a Christmas present to Dow from the girls. It was a perfect day, as we both had our hair cut, Dow in the bathroom by me here in the dorm, and me at Mr. Toppers, a chain all over London. My hairdresser was a cute gal from Australia who gave me some good tips.
So after our fresh cuts, we headed out to have an Italian dinner, followed by the theater. It was a perfect evening, except for the fact that I was coming down with a dreadful cold that was hitting hard towards the end of the play. I went into work the next day, wishing that I had not. I felt so miserable, headache, sore throat, throbbing ears, cough, and partial voice. I managed to get through the shift, but regretfully, called in sick the following day, which was yesterday.
Dow and I lounged in the whole day, deciding to go to Harrods later that afternoon for an outing (this dorm room can get quite small!!). On our way back to the room, at approximately 830pm, we stopped at a Barclay’s bank machine where I checked my balance to see if I had been paid. I was ecstatic, because my account actually had money in it!!! Yeah!!!! I had been pinching pounds for so long as they were dwindling, and I finally had significant pounds to my name!! Yeah!! I got a printed receipt, and at that point, the atm said that it had gone out of order, and my card was not returned! Darn!!!!
Today, Saturday, we went back to the bank and told them my situation. They said they would send me a new card, gave me some money and a printed receipt, and off we went. I then looked at my receipt and it was 500 pounds less than what I expected!! I went back to the bank and they pulled off a record of all transactions and looked at the video. While all of this was going on, THE THIEVES WERE STILL IN ACTION, AND WERE PUTTING THROUGH 1,000 MORE POUNDS OF ACTIVITY!!!! So apparently, thieves have some sort of system where they get your pin number, jam the machine, retrieve your card, get the 300 pound limit, wait till after midnight and get another limit, go home and do some internet shopping, and shopping, and shopping!!!!!!
This was my first paycheck, my first time to use the atm!!!! So now the situation is going through the fraud department, and they tried to assure me that I will have reimbursement in 10 working days!! My confidence is shaken, but I have no choice but to go through the process. I felt like throwing a full-blown temper tantrum, but kept myself in check for Dow’s sake. I did not want to embarrass him!
To give our spirits a lift, we took the bus to Camden Market, strolled around, ate, bought some trinkets (Erin, I got a leather coat, but no tattoo or piercing!), then back to the room. My cold is winding down, but Dow is now in the middle of his!! We are looking forward to both of us feeling well, good weather, and an outing to the English countryside!!

In the meanwhile, work is going very well. I am working with a very international team. I have met nurses from India, several countries in Africa, Phillipines, Australia, and Poland. I have heard that at least 20 countries are represented. A nurse from India told me that he was recruited from his country to come to the U.K. A few incidentals: It takes 4 nurses to logroll a patient, any patient who needs log rolling, pre surgery or post surgery. When you log roll, you are not to wear gloves, as they can come off and you would lose grip. Patients may be put on an insulin drip before surgery with hourly cbg checks. A nasogastric tube may be ordered when a patient is eating well and an iv is going, as you may still need more hydration.

Anyway. Come see me!!! Sue, come over!!