Friday, July 14, 2006

The heat makes me cranky


Gosh I don't even know where to start with this story.
Crazy? Yes.
Kicked out of a public health facility? Almost.
And it's all Zweifels fault. (Dr. Zweifel, he was quick to point out to me on the phone) That's right, hundreds of miles away from me and you've still managed to make me look like a crazy person in public.

So my shots. We are all aware of the bagillion shots that I have to take before I can start the rad tech program right? Right. So I found myself today back in the waiting room to get the TB test read and round 2 shots. Today's poison? Measles Mumps and Rubella (MMR). Sounds familiar....Wasn't Zweifel telling me something about this shot? He's on a research team? Yea, I even wrote it down....Note says 'new bottle, shake 15 minutes'. Ok, yea I remember now, there was even a speech involving 'If you don't listen to anything else I say....Something something....Shake at least 15 minutes. Promise me.' And I did. Which leads me back to the waiting room where today I was #17.
Knowing this time when your number is called doesn't necessarily mean your going behind the magic curtain Dorothy, I asked the nurse when she gave me the paperwork, if I could go ahead and get my vile and rub it between my hands Mr. Miagi style.
And here is where the trouble began.............. (hey I have immediate access to the back room!)
'Your shot is fine'
Thanks for the vote of confidence but I would like it mixed for 15 minutes. I understand your busy, so I'll do it myself if you just give it to me and come back in 15.
We go over why, and she tells me I have bad information, and I tell her I'm not really concerned with her opinion, I am decided on this. (Besides I did promise)

'Fine I'll shake it' (she leaves the room with the vile, and just in case you've never been in this situation before, you can here EVERYTHING said in the hallway at the nurses station)
Whatever, I've been called worse. She comes back 6 minutes later, and holds the vile close to my face.
'See, nothing in the bottom, all dissolved'
(enter black woman that secretly lives inside of me. 'hello black woman, haven't seen you in a while' And you know, once the black woman is out, there is not turning back)

Clear a path

"Yea. I don't think it's about what I can and can't see. And you know what? I don't believe you just shook that vile while you were out of this room. (I lean in) You need to talk quieter. Besides that it hasn't been 15 minutes."

(this set an obvious poor tone for the rest of my visit at the office)

She refused to continue to mix the vile while staying in the room with me, and I refused to let her give me the shot.
"In my 27 years of a nurse I have never been more offended in my life"
Yea yea.
What are you offended about? This has nothing to do with you. This has to do with me and what's in that vile. You didn't make the shot, so I don't see what your problem is. So now we have just wasted 5 minutes arguing this when I could have been shaking my own damn shot.
(I reach over and take it off of the tray) But if you have any intention of getting this shot into my arm, it's going to be 15 minutes from now. Stay here or leave and come back. I don't care.
(we continue to argue.) Seriously argue. And I don't argue...Unless the black lady is out. And god help us all she was out in 102 degree weather, which just makes me cranky. And the whole time I have my vile inbetween my hands surprised at the fact that I haven made fire with the speed of my hands.

But I got my shot.
And I'll now have to find a different facility to receive the rest of them.

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