Career planning and medieval intrigue

It's been a weird couple of months.  Kind of disjointed, like I've been asleep for much of it.  My application to Health Canada lurches on, though I believe I somewhat blew the interview the other day (No. I DON'T know any more about babies and I do NOT have anything else to add.)  However, I made a different decision in the meantime.  I put my application in to the Critical Care nursing course, to start beginning of September.  Honestly, once I had made the decision and put my paperwork in, it felt right.  I felt immediately brighter and more hopeful.  I still have to see if I get accepted.  My very dear work brother (from another mother) Cameron is applying too, so at least I won't be out in the stress woods all alone.  Health Canada said should they offer me a position, the orientation can be deferred to the spring, so at least my options may still be open.  I love my coworkers on A3 hugely, and they were the prime factor in my not wanting to go.   They are truly my family, and it breaks my heart when I think about leaving them. But this opportunity is too big to pass up.

After approximately 5 and a half hours of sheer torture, the tattoo is done and healed.  I'm so, so thrilled with it.  Big thanks and love to Carly Montgomery at Soul Survivors.



The proportions of this photo are bizarre.



I recently got super into an HBO show called Game of Thrones. It's based on a series of books (that I haven't read) that are apparently about medieval power struggles amongst ruling families in a made-up kingdom. Before she died, Ashley tried to get me into it, and I kept telling her, I'm not some D&D nerd, I'm not watching that!!  But a few weeks ago, HBO ran the entire first season over the weekend, so I PVR'd it.  I watched the first episode, and literally had no opinion.  It didn't make me want to watch more of it, but it didn't turn me off.  So I watched the second episode, and it completely sucked me in....it's soooooo good.  I think I like that it's a period show, but it's not about dragons (much) and magic and wizards, it's much more political and intriguing.  The thing now is, Ashley is the only person I knew that watched it, so I have NO ONE to discuss it with!  Every once in a while, something will remind me of her, and I have these brief moments of truly profound sadness.  I'll come out to the parkade where she used to park her old Mercedes by my car, and I'll think about how it'll never be there again.  I'll look at the next shift's assignment at work and realize I'll never give her shift report again. It's the strangest kind of grief I've ever experienced, and I realized this week that it's made me feel oddly protective of my current senior practicum student (though I try not to act all mother-hen at her!)  Damn Ashley, you'd better be enjoying yourself wherever you are, my girl, we all miss you.