HannahP

I'm reading a Topeka thread on city data. Apparently Topeka is what passes for a 'ghetto' in Kansas.

Did you look up Wichita?

i'd guess they expect that area and kc to merge by the time cited.

Who the hell wants to live in Topeka? It's almost on par with Wichita and at least Wichita has cool aerospace stuff.

Depends what you want. Your interests. Respiratory Therapist appears to be a cool job! Radiology or ultrasound tech, less pt involvement than a RN, but I think (never looked into it) the pay is decent! Since I work nights, no interaction between Physical /occupational therapists, but thats another avenue. I'm not trying to paint a doom/gloom picture of a RN, lol, just trying to be honest.But their is always downsides of every job.

I can tell you that rad-tech is just as competitive as RN. (My sister is trying to get into a program for rad-tech right now.) And they have fewer programs with fewer openings than RN schools.

I'll be graduating in May as a BSN. I've applied for 25+ new grad jobs. I was immediately declined for ten of those jobs and haven't heard back from the rest. The market actually seems to be getting better. I was looking at nurse tech/extern jobs and at this time last year, there were absolutely NONE. Now there are several dozen which kind of pisses me off but never mind that.

She is like beetlejuice, say her names 3x and she will come back and be difficult to get rid of.

Bahahahaha!

Okay. I don't eat RUB food at all. I'm a vegetarian and I hate beets so Borscht is out. However, I have to cook a RUB-authentic meal for a club that I'm in.

I need something that's fairly "eater friendly" but still authentic. It doesn't need to be vegetarian -- I mean, is vegetarian an option for RUB folks? But yeah. Figured you guys would be the best to ask. I google RUB recipes but have no idea how they'd taste.

Who was that poster who harassed/stalked everyone and finally got banned? The only clear thing that I can recall is when she remarked that someone's husband looked like Hermann Munster.

Someone with an Egyptian so did just that, and another vj member satirized her videos on their blog. Granted the videos were pretty amazing, and no one forced her to post them on YouTube or advertise their availability on YouTube, but some feelings were definitely hurt in the whole thing.

I don't think her videos were actually satirized -- that particular member pointed out that the original member flew more than 2,000 miles to meet her fiance, as stated in video. Several people pointed out that having 10+ kids and wanting to marry someone who was at least 30+ years younger than you was kinda funny.

And it's not just the outside bloggers you have to beware of. I think quite a few of us remember a certain VJ member who lifted photos from an unpopular MENA member's profile, then re-posted them on this very forum later on (months after the MENA member had removed them) in an attempt to harrass her.......... BTW the "perp" was neither banned from VJ nor from this forum, but instead was actually elevated to MENA moderator by the site owner. So ladies & gents, be very careful what you reveal here.

Dammit, this is driving me nuts! I like to think that I've been around/lurked enough to know who you're talking about but I don't. I know the she-who-must-not-be-named, however.

On the flip side, you can just videotape every moment of your vacation to Moroc.

If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck - it's a freaking duck.

Ignoring the signs of fraud is the problem with many in this forum. I have seen year after year several navigate over to the effects forum and legitimately ask " why doesn't the consulate DO something"? For real. Well, they are. And always have. It's your (general you) stupid ####### that begs/pleads/throws chat logs around to prove mutual love. Eventually MOST of the time the consulate gives in or accepts the new case (ie: denied K1 reapplied as a CR1). Don't blame the consulates.

Oh snap.

Kiwi -- I asked because I wasn't certain. I know different countries have different standards. Your particular qualifications do sound more like a US paramedic. I mean, hell, in the US, RNs have to be specially certified to administer many of the drugs that your paramedics can give! (Twilight sedation, clot busters, etc.) I don't know if you necessarily need to transfer qualifications over. Like flames mentioned, you have experience and that's what is really important for getting a RN job. Even just getting into school. You'd probably have more issues if you were a traditional student with a B-average applying for nursing school but you have a lot of things going for you that nursing schools look for: post-degree nontraditional, international, with varied experience in the medical field.

It probably does depend on the area. In my area, none of the major hospitals will hire ADN students into *new grad* positions for critical care. The big children's hospital doesn't even let ADN students do preceptorships in the ICUs there. For some reason, this has morphed into Magnet hospitals don't hire ADNs? at least around here.

I haven't graduated yet but I have a handful of friends who have already been offered RN jobs based on CNA/nurse tech performance.

BSN's the way to go if you want to work in critical care. Some larger hospitals will only hire BSN RNs to work in the ICU or ER in new grad positions. (Flames is right about the Magnet hospital rumor 'tho!) However, you probably won't get as much practical/clinical experience which is sometimes held against BSN candidates.

What sort of EMS training do you have? Can you put in IVs, intubate, etc? Were your grades for your business degree good? Nursing school is super competitive these days, especially in BSN programs. My school had twenty-five applicants for every student spot last year. Also, the job market for new nursing grads is not as good as you'll be lead to believe. (There was something like 800+ applications for 78 new grad jobs last semester at the hospital my school is affiliated with. Statistically, 40% of new grads do not find nursing jobs and the average time between passing NCLEX and getting a job is 8-9 months.) Especially if you can't relocate. EMS experience might help you get a job but look into either getting your CNA or getting hired as a nurse tech on a unit after you start school.

I remember back in the late 70's, I turned a patient over to get a rectal temp ( I was doing vitals ). When I turned her over, she breathed her last breath and expired. I thought I killed her. I kept thinking over and over, " If I would have left her on her back, she would still be alive "... I suffered terrible guilt for months until someone said just about what TBone said to me. Since then, I've had lots of people pass in my presence. Have even washed them up, dressed them and repositioned them after their passing so they looked 'presentable' to their family members. In some sort of odd way, I reconciled it to myself that it is part of the job even though it is unpleasant . Death is, after all, a part of life and no one will escape it.

The best thing I see from your experience is that the man did not die alone. Your job was done when you gave him the most important element in your field....compassion and comfort.

I appreciate what you're saying. And, no, he didn't die alone. But he also died a very prolonged, agonizing death. It's not that we could have saved him but we could have helped him over and that wasn't done, y'know?

What is really bothering me is that the code went very, very, very wrong. The cart wasn't stocked properly and we didn't have blankets or fent/ativan. You had nurses openly bawling in front of the patient as he died.

My grandfather died a horrible end of life death. He had a DNR in place. When they took him off the vent, he wasn't given enough morphine or ativan. It's a little traumatic to watch someone gasping for breath and reaching upwards.

Maybe I was having flash backs from that? This guy did not die in the way that he should have. Neither did my granddad. I am just so sad...his death was absolutely botched by the hospital.

I get that people die. Everyone dies. I've seen very young babies die and people who lived a full, long life die. This just wasn't right.

I just saw a guy die of a busted carotid. He'd apparently been up and walking the unit, talking, making plans to go home, etc. We rushed in after he put on his call light and he started banging noisily on his bed. It took him about three minutes from the time we got there to lose consciousness as he bled out (in a hospital surrounded by medical professionals who could do nothing to help him). Five to die. He was staring at us the entire time. We couldn't do anything. The carotid cart was mis-stocked and we didn't even have any blankets, let alone the ativan/fent that they usually push?

I've worked codes, rapid responses, had to make very important decisions as POA of my dying mom. Hell, I've held a very dead baby (SIDS) in my arms, and rushed him back to start a futile code. Never seen a guy who knew he was dying as we watched him die until today.

Totally OT but any other oldtimers find this topic nostalgic? I originally joined VJ back when MENA was the active forum and I'd guess that the majority of women there were older women marrying much younger men. See also: she who should not be named.

Five years ago? The OP would have received responses such as:

"It's a red flag that can be overcome! Just ask me!" /AP for years on end

"We overcame this red flag and our marriage is doing great! He's been here for 1 day - couple of weeks and I can't believe anyone ever doubted us!"

Plus the proto-Muslima who always insists that since the Prophet Mohammad took a much older bride, it's all good.

^Also, mold? We're currently battling with our apartment complex. There is mold in our ducts and they refuse to replace the entire heating/ac system. I was actually hospitalized due to mold in my lungs, which I still have.

/cough

//cough cough

///no, I don't smoke!1

Lisa - thank you so much for the information! I'm still digging through everything that you've given me. Honestly, I don't envy your job at all -- this stuff is freakin' complicated. I do have a realtor lined up to talk with. (Seems like everyone I know also happens to know a GREAT realtor that they want to hook me up with - lol.) But I'm sure you'll get a PM from me once I've digested everything.

alienlovechild - Your experiences mirror mine. Hospitals want experienced nurses. It's not necessarily because there's a glut of new nurses (matriculation rates are basically the same as they've always been) but hospitals just don't have the money to hire new grads. New grads cost money to train; on top of that, many older nurses aren't retiring because of the poor economy. A friend of mine applied for a new grad Neuro ICU job last year. She was one of 150 applicants for a single position.

Thanks to everyone for your wisdom and advice.

Hopefully, the market there is better with your BSN. My wife is still looking after 8 months for that first job as an RN.

This, yes.

Nursing isn't recession proof. I'm very lucky that my husband has his job and that we're very middlle class because of it.

^ My general impression was that I didn't need 20%. Our bank (BoA which we don't want to finance a mortgage from) wanted 10%.

Just wondering if anyone has any experience or advice as first time home buyers? FHA experience or not. Obviously, we'll be talking to professionals as well but we're at the very beginning of our journey.

Technically, we could spend up to $150,000 on a house but we're looking in the $80,000-$110,000 range. I'll be graduating in May with a BSN so hopefully I'll add to the earning potential but I'm not entirely sure that I'll get a job right out of school. The only frustrating thing is that we probably won't be able to put down 20% -- probably closer to 10%.

Eh. You get over the whole righteous indignation thing after your spouse gets here.

It's a phase most VJers go through. Some are just more vocal about it than others.

Not too long ago it took up to two years for the proces from application to interview, and before that you have to have been married ( In spousal case) for at least two years before applying to prove that you have a bonafide relationship. No matter all the pictures and chat logs, you had to have been married on paper for at least two years!!

Kind of interested in what the time frame for "not too long ago" is. I can definitely tell you that this wasn't the case four-five years ago when we sent in our application. Processing was actually faster back then -- although it seems to be picking up again? And re. being married for two years, sounds like he's either confusing the meeting within two years requirement or the fact that you get a ten year greencard if you enter the US after being married for two years.

this is starting to sound like a nigerian scam.

Until you're the one taking care of your ill, elderly parents. And I'm only 24, so.

what, you don't wanna take care of me?

Just saying, please have a huge savings account when you retire. It helps you and will help your kids when the time comes.

keep posting like that and i'll move in with you when i'm old and wearing depends.

Dude, as long as you can still change your own Depends...