the one where donald becomes a nurse

it's honestly all very surreal. donald becoming a nurse has basically been the goal we've been working toward since we got married, and now that it's here we're just kind of staring at each other in disbelief. 

nursing school is a trip. you start the process strong, ready for what lies ahead. 

you take your prerequisites [even the stupid ones]. this takes much longer than you initially anticipate. 

you apply to a program. 

you get accepted! 

you cross all the t's and dot all the i's so you can actually start the program.

you fall into the same rhythm each semester:

survive the clinical rotations. 

pass this big test. 

pass that big test. 

pass the final. 

and pass the class. wash. rinse. repeat.

then comes what feels like the big day. the last final. the end is so close. 

you pass: the test. the class. the semester. the PROGRAM! you graduate. 

but then...

you keep studying. because there is yet another test to take.

you study. and you wait.

a month after graduating you FINALLY get your boards scheduled, but alas, the test is still another month away.

you study some more. and you wait some more.

it seems it will never end.

and then one day...

it does.

he's a nurse.  now and forever amen.

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our oldest friend

i've been honored to have quite a few friends over the years who were eligible for the senior discount, but so far i've only known one to hit the century mark. our friend edith lived to be 106...and a half. i may have only known her for the part of her life, but even as she neared and then passed one hundred years, the best words to describe her were funny and feisty. you wouldn't typically expect a centenarian to surprise you with an off hand comment that makes everyone belly laugh, but edith did. last november we were able to celebrate with her on her 106th birthday, and she treated us to a song at my request. she had a good one about overalls, but that day i picked "i wish i was born a boy, oh gee", which was another edith classic. she wasn't quite up to her usual hip shaking, but she sang us every word with gusto.

we'll miss you granny.

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anniversary number four

i have to admit...this one kind of snuck up on me. with all the birthday hoopla immediately following christmas i've been at bit lost in the calendar. a whole week seemed to disappear without my realizing it and when missy asked about our anniversary plans on tuesday i muttered something about figuring it out next week. to which she replied, "it's in two days". whoopsie!

thankfully our fried chicken tradition takes some of the pressure out of the planning process. we started the night at gus's world famous fried chicken and then hung out at the up-down with all the youngins. donald was like a kid in a candy story reliving his arcade days. his favorites were ms. pac-man, x-men and taking turns on crazy taxi; i basically stuck to skee ball and serving drinks to the patrons on tapper. we wrapped up the night with fudge stuffed peanut butter cookies at tannin, because that's what donald's dreams are made of.

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