On the road again...

I know it has been a while, well almost two months since my last blog post. But I took a month off from work and used that time to take a much-needed break from work. In that time back home, I was able to enjoy my house, spend time with Maui, friends, and unwind before I started my next assignment in Houston, Texas.

For those of you that do not know, I have accepted my second assignment at Ben Taub, which is a level one trauma center in the heart of Houston, Texas. It is also a teaching hospital, and just like my assignment at NewYork-Presbyterian Columbia, it is an adjustment in getting used to how they do things here in terms of new residents, attendings, and policies. I spent the first week in training going through what seems like every e-learning module that was ever created. Then in the second week, I hit the ground running with my orientation shifts. While I am working here in Houston I am working three shifts a week, which is a much-needed slowdown from what I am used to. As of yesterday, I have completed two weeks of working on my own. Each shift has been filled with patients that you could say you could find in any emergency room across the country. But the needs of these patients in terms of mental health and resources are more than I have seen before. Although it may be a grueling pace at times, it reminds me why I love the ER always pushing me to learn and grow not only for myself but for my patients. (In the pictures below you can see what color scrubs I wear, the view from the parking garage of the hospital, and lastly a snapshot from one of my shifts working in the "tents".

Having four days off a week has allowed me to catch up with some beloved friends the first being my dear friend Haley and her family while she was on assignment to Corpus Christi. I left to see them after getting off work and drove nearly three and a half hours from Houston to Corpus Christi. We immediately went to the beach and were able to spend most of the day in the sun with the sand between our toes and talking about the experiences we both had been through taking care of COVID patients in the ER and ICU. A beach day is exactly what I need, I feel at peace when I have my toes in the sand and hear the waves rolling in. One thing that I was not accustomed to was driving my car directly on the beach, but it was nice being able to get out of my car and walk straight on to the beach.

While on the drive home I was able to roll down the windows enjoy the beautiful Texas air, a lightning show, and of course jam out to George Straight, Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw, Shania, and Midland. All of which reminds me of home and for those of you that truly know me know how much I love driving and having a good jam session. These are the little things that make me happy.

Then my dear friend Susan came to Houston for us to get lunch, go shopping and get our nails done (she had just recently gotten engaged) an all-around fabulous girls day!

Seeing both of these sweet sister friends of mine gave me the much-needed feeling of not being alone. While I've been home I haven't gotten to see much of my family due to my being an ER nurse and not wanting to put them at risk due to me being the on the frontlines of fighting this pandemic. Having Maui here with me has helped with not getting to see my family, he has been extra cuddly and always there for me in his own unique quirky way.

We haven't gotten out much due to me getting accustomed with work and then testing positive for strep throat. But we go for our daily walks and of course, we had to go to Starbucks to get my favorite the Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew. And it turned out to be quite the adventure, I thought I would wake up walk to the Starbucks down the road, and pick up my favorite drink, well it wasn't that easy. I pre-ordered my drink and walked to the store only to find they were only taking orders through the drive-through. So I had to wait for a kind individual to let me pick up my order through the drive-through window while holding Maui on the leash and then walk home.

The past three weeks of being in Houston, have been full of adventure, sweet friends but nothing could have prepared me for Hurricane season. Yes, I knew coming to Houston that hurricanes happen here but I didn't think that I would have to be so prepared so soon. But Hurricane Laura had other plans, thankfully I have an amazing support system that made sure that I was prepared and made the trip to the grocery store to stock up. Thankfully Laura missed Houston and now I am prepared for the rest of Hurricane season.

I will try my best to update my blog on a more consistent schedule to keep those of you that follow my journey through here. I hope that life is treating you well wherever you may be and that you remember to hug and kiss your loved ones. After all, today is a day to remind us how quickly it all can be taken away from us. As much as I love being home in Texas, my heart keeps calling me back to NYC. I know one day hopefully very soon I will be back in the city that I fell in love with through my walks around the city, especially when I walked around the 9/11 memorial and remembered how that very day changed my life and the life of my family. I will always remember exactly where I was on this day nineteen years ago. I was a young fourth grader living in England unaware of how my family was going to be changed forever from that day and how dedication to this country would instill in me the undying need to always give back to the country that I love in the ways that I am able.

Love,

Destinee