Have Skills, Will Travel

My travels have taken me to the frozen Northeast.  That's okay.  It's been cold in my town lately, too.

If going to cultural events and visiting friends were my goals for using my free time during my prior assignment, then visiting friends and family, and searching for my ancestors are goals for this assignment.  Fortunately, I'll be here off an on through March, so I'll be able to get around to my many friends and even make it down to Princeton to see my East Coast grandnuggets. 

Some of my ancestors on my father's side were in New Hampshire around the time of the Revolutionary War.  I've already located the burial place of one of them, just an hour and a half's drive away. 

It's so much nicer to be in an extended-stay hotel with a real (although Barbie-sized) kitchen and a sitting area.

It's nice to start the week with things put away and organized.  My husband will definitely laugh when he sees these pictures.  I'm never so tidy at home.

Two things I really missed during my last assignment were an extra blanket (aka "accessory blanket") and a small extra pillow.  I like having an extra blanket to wrap up in when I'm on the sofa.  Hotel pillows are often not as flat as I like.

A Dumpster Fire of a Year

2017 was not a great year for a lot of people.  It seemed to last forever, and I am glad to see it go. 

As I thought about this past year with its struggles and pain, I compared it to what I would consider to be the worst year of my life, 2000.  If 2017 was a dumpster fire, 2000 was the equivalent of a multi-thousand-acre forest fire, burning everything in its path, taking a long time to be contained.

But like a forest fire, burning everything away definitely led to new growth. I made some huge advances in my personal spirituality, faith and strength that really needed to be made.  Perhaps they couldn't have been made without having my life as I knew it torn to pieces.  Heavenly Father put me in a place where I wasn't excited about being, but He knew that I would make wonderful friendships and have great opportunities that would be formative and nurturing.

Things didn't turn around right away.  It took years for some blessings to be realized, but like burned forest land, my life came back stronger, richer and more beautiful.

This last year hasn't been nearly as devastating, and the cause of the stress has been very different, but I am trying to look at things as a way of having some things torn down in order to be built stronger and more usefully.  It's painful, and sometimes I wonder what is going to happen and when things will come back together.  But I know that they will...eventually.

Back in 2000, my friend, Nettie, reminded me of a scripture which has gotten me through so many difficult times since then.  It's from the Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 11:17--"...I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless I do not know the meaning of all things."  Knowing that the Lord loves his children gives me strength to keep going when I don't know the outcome.

Getting Real

Blame it on the fact that I was so tired today from staying up until 1:30 to finish reading Big Little Lies (a great book!), or maybe it's just hitting the wall from being away from home for so long, or maybe it's just the natural evolution of things, but today felt like the day where the mask came off and the party manners were dropped.  I had to put my foot down about some things that I was asked to do by referring physicians.  While I regret that perhaps I was not as empathetic as I should be, I just don't have the resources to do the things that people were asking me to do.  They didn't seem to know that I was not Burger King.  But now they do.

Christmas Without Surprises is Like ze Nuts Without ze Nutcracker

Which is why I am giving you zis surprise nutcracker!....Damn!  Daaaaaamn!!

Today was full of nice surprises!

I came back from a procedure to find a package from Amazon containing...

two fun books from Stephanie!!  Great!  I needed something fun to read.

Then I went off to do another procedure, and what to my wondering eyes should appear on my desk when I came back?

This gigantic gift basket, a present from the good people at Adventist Feather River Hospital.  I can't even remember what my last workplace gave out for Christmas.  Probably nothing.

The basket contains a bag of brown rice, rice chips, almond butter, cashews, four kinds of almonds (two chocolate, one savory and one sweet), strawberry spread, mustard and olives.

Lastly, this should come as no surprise...hey kids, what day is it?!?

That's right!  I mixed it up today by having barbacoa and chicken, instead of one or the other.

Favorite Things of the Month--Part II

Two things that make the week go by faster:

1)  Exercise

I do like to work out, but I can be really lazy about it when I'm home.  My hotel has a little fitness room with a treadmill, stationary bike, stepper and weights.  Those are nice, but to give variety to my exercise schedule, I signed up for Beachbody on Demand.  It's pretty cool--hundreds of different kinds of workouts varying from 10 minutes to 50, and I can play it on my laptop, Kindle or phone.  So some nights I've come home from work and done the Country Heat workout, sometimes yoga.  In the mornings, I usually do either something from the 21-Day Fix or Turbo Fire.  I like Turbo Fire because it's very kickboxing-oriented.  It's also pretty inexpensive, particularly if you're thinking cost/use.

https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/programs

2)  Culture

There's a surprising amount of good cultural opportunities in this area.  I normally don't go to things by myself, but it's been easy and fun.

The local community theater group put on this very cute play.  I was impressed with the acting. There was one particularly madcap scene that they pulled off perfectly.

My "nephew"/"godson"/"cousin" invited me to his choir concert.  It was great!  

"If the United Nations had a house band in 1962, we'd be it!"  So goes the blurb on their official YouTube site (https://www.youtube.com/user/OfficialPinkMartini).  I was acquainted with at least one of their songs, so it seemed like a good choice over the local symphony concert.  Three ladies out on a Girls' Night were seated next to me.  I had a pleasant chat with the one nearest me, so when the singer announced that she wanted all of the women in the audience to come to the stage to join her in singing the next number, my seat-neighbor was able to convince me to go up with her.  Yup.  Yup.  We sang, "I Am Woman".  It was easy to get into it and have fun with it.  I mean, how much of a Northern California experience is that--getting onstage and singing a feminist anthem with a bunch of chicks that remember when that song first dropped.  Lots of hugging all around.  

Coming up this week:  Star Wars and Handel's Messiah!!!!!  I can't wait!

Favorite Things of the Month--Part I

When I planned my locums assignments, I wanted to make sure that I had a good work/life balance.  Places near family and/or friends were high on the list.  If the job was located near or relatively near an LDS temple, even better.  I also wanted to be able to fill my off-hours with other good things, like exercise and cultural events, maybe even some sightseeing.

This assignment is located a reasonable drive from one of my oldest and best friends.  You know (or at least I hope you know) that kind of friend--the one that you can basically tell anything and they'll understand, where you can not see each other for a couple of years or more and pick up where you left off as if you just lived across the street.  It's a balm to my soul to be able to spend time with this "sister from another mister" (and--fun fact--we are actually distant cousins through our paternal lines.)

I also have a very good group of friends from my days in New York.  We have scattered all over the place, so being able to visit one can be a rare treat.  One of those friends lives nearby, and she recently had the life-changing miracle of giving birth to a beautiful baby boy.  It just so happened that his blessing (what we in the LDS church call a christening) was scheduled for my first weekend up here.  It was absolutely wonderful to see her and her little son and see the joy that she feels to be a mother.

I am LDS, and one of the things that is important to me is taking the opportunity to attend the temple.  We believe that families can be together forever, and the place where we make those covenants with God to have the opportunity to do that is in our temples.  For those of our ancestors who for whatever reason did not have that chance in this life, we perform those ordinances as proxies for them.  I had the name of a very distant relative that needed her temple ordinances done.  I thought that I would only be able to do two of the four ordinances for her with the limited time I had, but through a series of miracles, I did all of her work the other evening.  It gives me a lot of joy to know that she has the chance to progress and be with her family forever, and I felt (and feel) very strongly that she was aware that was being done and was super-happy about it.

Hello From LHITBW

Two weeks into my month-long stint at LHITBW, I guess it's time for an update.

Things are still pretty mellow and enjoyable.  I couldn't stay here permanently.  It's just not set up to be a very vibrant practice.  The best person for this job would be someone at the end of their career, burned out on a busy IR service and happy to do more "Specials" than IR.

The physicians that are based are very collegial and pleasant to work with.  The other locums have been interesting to talk to and network with.  My field is really quite small.  There's usually someone who is at least a mutual acquaintance.

Did I tell you it was a tiny place?  The list of the inpatients today was one page long.  One.  Page.

It's situated in the Sierra foothills, nestled in a wooded area.  Having grown up in the Pacific Northwest, the forest feels like it's part of my DNA.  The smell of the woods and the soil is one of my favorite things.  I don't realize how much I miss it until I experience it again.

Did I mention the free food for doctors?  This is just some of the bounty in the Doctors' Lounge.  The fridge is full of sodas, juice, water, sandwiches and salads.  The freezer has frozen Amy's Organic bowls and burritos and all kinds of different ice cream novelties.  And don't forget the rack of chips and the baked goods.  

I took this picture because I never wear nice shoes with my scrubs.  It's usually my Danskos (I call them my "work boots") or running shoes.  I think that I look like an unmade bed or a particularly precocious twelve-year-old when I'm at work, but I feel like a badass in scrubs. 

Work Spa

A locums pulmonolgist at LHITBW and I were talking about our experiences at LH.  She works at a large hospital in Sacramento, and she loves coming up to LH because, "It's so peaceful.  I only have 8-10 patients.  It's like a vacation." 

My feelings exactly.  The last week was so completely relaxing.  I was able to easily get back into reading diagnostic studies, which is delightful.  As far as IR, well, I did several biopsies and a couple of drainages--"light IR".  I almost had a GI bleeder, but they were able to treat the patient in Endoscopy. 

This leads to my only true complaint/concern about this posting: IR, real IR is hard to practice in this tiny hospital.  I don't know how the prior group kept their IR skills sharp.  Maybe they rotate out to bigger hospitals.  There is no dedicated IR suite, it's a Cath Lab.  There's no IR call.  I was told about the GIB when I walked into the hospital at 7:45.  The Cath Lab tech didn't even come in until about 8:30.  I checked out the IR inventory, and there was the necessary equipment to perform the procedure, but it still was suboptimal. 

So generally, LHITBW is like a spa (maybe things will be more exciting as I am there for a month solid). 

Now I'm off to the ACR Education Center in Reston, VA, for Mammo Boot Camp!

Little Hospital in the Big Woods

The hospital I will be spending time in this month and next is in a teeny-tiny town at the foot of a mountain range.  It's set in a residential area that is tucked into the trees, and behind the hospital is a canyon.  In the canyon is a river, and I am told that you can hear the river rushing in the summer.

This very tiny hospital is so small that it smells sterile, like the OR.  And that is because the ORs take up most of the floor plan of the first level of the building.  The second (actually the lower) level has the medical unit, which currently is closed because there are not enough patients to fill it.

Benefits of a tiny hospital include ease in finding one's way around, learning most everyone's name pretty quickly, a general feeling of happiness and teamwork, having referring physicians drop by to discuss cases and (bonus!) free food for doctors in the teeny-tiny cafeteria.

I had such a great time today.  Finally, I'm back to being myself--really loving my job, feeling happy and comfortable.  And (bonus bonus!!) since it's RadTech week, one of the vendors brought in food for lunch--real Mexican food!  It was so good, like El Pollo Loco but better.  (Food means a lot to me!)

And Now For Something Completely Different

I quit my job at UAMS (way too much drama involved in that situation).  My last day was October 31.  My original plan was to take a job with a radiology practice here in Little Rock.  If they had offered me a job back in August when I interviewed, I'm sure I would have accepted it.  However, they were not in a particular hurry to make a decision, which gave me time to think about what I really wanted in my work life and in my work/life balance.

The thing is, I realized that I didn't want to take a job based on convenience--I need a job, they are offering me one, I'll take it.  That didn't work out well at all last go-round.  So to fill time while I find what I want (let's not say the "perfect" job--nothing is perfect, not even the very wonderful job I had at Kaiser), I'm going to do some locums.

Physician locum tenens jobs are plentiful.  I put a few feelers out there and was inundated with possibilities almost immediately.  Oftentimes, these are to fill a spot somewhere in a not-particularly-popular part of the nation, such as Anywhere, North Dakota or Bordertown, Texas.  Radiology is growing as a specialty while radiologists in mid- or late-career are becoming burned out with the case load, so there are openings as those physicians cut back, take early retirement or retire on schedule.  So there are lots of opportunities to temporarily fill those spots.  The groups are hoping that they will find a good locums person and get him or her to stay on permanently.  It also helps the locums figure out where they want to be and what kind of practice they want to be in.

I have worked with three recruiting companies that have really impressed me:

1,  Foster Crown (http://fostercrown.com/)--they advertise themselves as "The Boutique Recruitment Firm", working only with radiologists, vascular surgeons and hospitalists (internists).  Steve May is the CEO.  He is very approachable, knowledgeable and trustworthy.  His assistant, Saj Cherian, is prompt and professional (as is Steve).  They scheduled my first locums, which will be at Feather River Hospital in Paradise, California. 

2.  Medicus Healthcare (https://medicushcs.com/)--Medicus is a larger company, but I have been very happy with them.  Scott Dulac is my recruiter, and he's been totally on top of things for me.  He scheduled my second locums assignment.  I'll be in Nashua, New Hampshire, January through March, 2018. 

3.  Staff Care (https://www.staffcare.com/)--I haven't booked anything with Staff Care yet, but I have really liked my recruiter, Ashli Lakey.  She's really positive and pleasant, and she's keeping up with me.

So, here I go!  I'm leaving for California on Sunday.  I'll spend a week there, then come home for a couple of weeks, then go back until the end of December.  Rowdy will hold down the fort here.  I will update my blog as things go along.  Feel free to ask questions, make comments.

The Long-Awaited Story of How Rowdy and Diane Ended Up in Little Rock

(The details may be somewhat sketchy here, but these are the basics from my point of view.)

Somewhere in April or May of 2015, Rowdy reached the end of his rope with living in California for a lot of reasons, including the lack of personal liberties, high taxes and cost of living, and a general need to move around.  Ten years in one place was more than he could bear.

Unfortunately, this caused a lot of strife.  I was perfectly happy in San Diego.  I was in the perfect job--I loved the people I worked with, my work schedule and the kind of work I was doing.  Let's face it, I spend as much time at work as at home, so that was important to me.  I also loved my ward family and my other friends.  Rowdy made it clear, though:  he was out of San Diego by May, 2016, with or without me.

So I cried.  We argued.  I have moved before, so I knew that I could find friends and make a new life, but the thing that really scared me was finding a new job.  I'd gotten pretty cozy and complacent where I was, and I didn't think that I'd be able to get a job that would bring in the same level of income and be something that I was happy doing.

Blah, blah, blah. This probably isn't in chronological order, but we did struggle about this for weeks. One day, Rowdy said, "You know, in the ten years we've been married, we really haven't made a habit of praying and reading scriptures together every day.  I'd really like us to do that."  I think that was the real turning point.  We humbled ourselves and asked Heavenly Father where He needed us to be.  In addition to improving our daily prayers and studying the scriptures, we fasted and went to the temple more than we had before.  If you get nothing else out of this post, I hope that you get that Heavenly Father loves his children, we can have personal revelation to know what path we need to follow in life, and the way to get answers is to humble yourself, pray with real intent, and be willing to listen for that revelation and follow the counsel given by the Lord.

Rowdy suggested that we both make lists of places we would live, and we would compare the lists.  The final list was:

1)  Austin/San Antonio, TX

2)  Raleigh/Durham, NC

3)  Boise, ID

4)  Utah/AZ

5)  Little Rock, AR

Our main criteria were:

1)  firearms-friendly

2)  proximity to family

3)  good cost-of-living

4)  good quality of life overall

Rowdy was surprised to see that I had listed Little Rock.  I had never been there, but he had been several times and was always complimentary of the area.  Since it was somewhat close to my parents in Austin, and Rowdy had the greatest opportunity to improve as a shooter there, I thought it was worth a look.

I enrolled in a couple of job search boards through professional associations, contacted some recruiting companies and looked into teleradiology groups.  I had a couple of phone interviews with a practice in Ogden, Utah, but I wasn't right for that practice, and they certainly weren't right for me.  Recruiters called with opportunities in Texas, but we had the luxury of not really needing to pick just anywhere.  Beaumont and Amarillo just were not in our plans.  Nothing really turned up in Idaho or North Carolina.  I cold-called a practice in Little Rock, but they weren't sure if they needed an Interventional Radiologist.

Finally, I decided to sign with vRad, a teleradiology group that provided overnight diagnostic radiology interpretations.  The company itself is really outstanding.  I wasn't thrilled about the prospect of working from 7 pm to 7 am, but they were very accommodating and offered me a 2 pm to 10 pm shift.  I also wasn't thrilled about not having the opportunity to interact with patients and do procedures, but I was hoping that there would be a way to find a group that would be okay with me coming in on a part-time basis.

So once we decided on that, we both felt that Little Rock was where we needed to be--where the Lord needed us to be.  We scheduled a trip to Arkansas in November to look around at homes and the town in general.  Meanwhile, I was still wanting to try for an IR job, if possible, but I thought that maybe my cover letter needed revamping.  My friend and co-worker, Danielle, graciously took a look at it and made some very helpful suggestions.

Rowdy and I took a trip to New Jersey for our grandson's first birthday, then spent ten days enjoying Spain the last week of September/first week of October.  Sometime near the end of the trip, the ACR job board posted an IR position at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock.  I thought that was about the nuttiest thing in the world. I really wasn't thinking that I wanted to be a full-time academic radiologist--I wasn't sure that I would have the skill set they were looking for, and I was sure that they would not have much to offer in the way of income, but maybe they'd be the kind of place that would let me just be a part-timer.

The details of this whole experience are a little fuzzy, but it seems to me that it went something like:  we got back from our trip on a Saturday, Sunday evening I sent of my new-and-improved cover letter and my CV, and first thing Monday morning, I got a call that went something like this:

Mollie Meek, MD, UAMS IR Section Chief:  Hello, is this Diane Bricco?

Me:  Yes!

MM:  Uh, uh (splutter, silence)

Me:  Can I help you?

MM:  (incredulously) Are you really moving to Little Rock?

Me :  Yes.

MM:  (still incredulous) And you're really an interventional radiologist?

Me :  Yes. 

MM:  Well, uh!  Wow!  Okay.  Do you know Mike Beheshti?

Me:  No....(Like, should I?  I don't know....)

MM:  Well, he trained me and he's amazing and the nicest person ever and he's the Chief of Radiology over at the VA right now, but he's just the best and HE'S THE BISHOP OF ARKANSAS!!!

Me:  (chuckling)  So you mean to tell me that he's LDS?  (I have my affiliation with Mormon Women in Medicine and my experience in stake and ward callings on my CV.)

MM:  Yes!  And he will be so excited to meet you!

Mollie and I talked some more.  I told her that we had a trip to Little Rock planned for the following month.  She asked me if I wanted to come by to see the place, or maybe interview.  I figured that I might as well go interview, if nothing else to get experience and to let them know that I'd be interested in working part-time.

But the interview ended up going really well, and I was offered a job pretty much at the end of the day. [I did have an interview with Dr. Michael Beheshti, AKA former Bishop of the Pinnacle Ward, AKA Little Rock Stake President (at the time of my interview, so I got both a professional and stake president's interview) and currently Elder Michael Beheshti, Area Authority.  He is a really good guy, and also happens to have graduated from Bountiful High School the same year as my friend Sharon's brother, David.  Small world!]  My prior experience with interviewing at academic centers was that their salaries were far below what I was making at my current job, but Mollie offered me something that, particularly with the difference in cost of living between San Diego and Little Rock, really wasn't much of a pay cut.  Of course, I would have to be full-time--no part-timers allowed.  And they didn't seem to be that bothered by the fact that I hadn't been doing a lot of the stuff that they do regularly.  

Long story short, it just felt right.  Rowdy gave me a Priesthood blessing before I went to my interview in which I was told that it would take time and work on my part, so I figured that meant that getting the right kind of job would take that.  But it seems that the real counsel was that I was going to have to put in time and work to succeed at that job.  Which is okay by me, and I have had the opportunity over the last six or seven months to really prepare, study and get up to speed on some things.  Plus, my offer letter from the University stated that my success was important to them, and they make sure that I had what I needed to do well.  So I think it's going to be a little stressful at times, but ultimately really good for me and my progression as a physician.

And more importantly, this move is going to be really good for Rowdy and his progression in his field.  He's already shot more matches and had better opportunities for good training than he had in San Diego.  There are probably lots of hidden blessings in this move that we have yet to uncover.

We are both adjusting to life here in Little Rock, but we are loving it.  Even Mr. Oliver Hammond is getting happily settled in our new home.  I will probably write other posts about the process of buying a home and selling our SD home and land (an amazingly simple process, as it happens), my experience living with my sweet friends for five weeks while I was working out the end of my contract with SDPMG, the many "tender mercies of the Lord" that I received during this experience, the drive out to LR from SD with Ollie and my sweet parents, and our adventures in Arkansas.

So, that's basically the story from my point of view and how I choose to recount events.  Trust me, I shed a lot of tears about it.  It hasn't been easy for me, but I know that it's the right thing.  

I'm Not Catholic, But I Like Lent

One new post every five months...sounds about right!

Lent starts tomorrow.  It is not something that is a part of my religion (LDS), but I like the concept of having a defined period in which to better myself in some way, either by giving something up (the traditional Lenten sacrifice) or taking on a new virtue.

My friend, Jen, introduced me to the "40 Bags in 40 Days" decluttering program, which is scheduled to begin tomorrow.  I certainly have drawers, bookshelves and even rooms in my house that can use some decluttering.  My office at work definitely needs some work.  What I like about this program is that there are also "non-stuff things" that can be decluttered, like email inboxes and computer desktops.

That got me to thinking about other "non-stuff" areas that I can declutter.  I can declutter my mind of negative thoughts.  I can declutter my body of fat, excess calories and (maybe) sugar and artificial sweeteners.  I can declutter my heart of judgement and grudges.  Those things sound like good things to do any time of the year.

I could also do a "40 Days of Personal Progress", which would probably get me to complete Personal Progress.  That would be pretty fun!

I am also working on doing at least one kind of physical activity every day for the next 40 days.  I'm pretty good at doing something for five or six days in a row, then I blow it.  I'll be counting even my short ride or walk to and from work, so that is helpful.

What could you do for Lent, Dear Reader?

This Month's Fix

Stitch Fix is still coming regularly, but I didn't blog last month's picks.  Eh. I kept two things.  One was a dressy-ish blouse that I promptly splashed oil on.  Of course, it was dry clean only.  The other thing I kept was a peacock blue sweater with dolman sleeves (that's the third Fix in a row that included a top with dolman sleeves--what is their obsession with dolman sleeves?).  I kept it only because the color was gorgeous.

Here's the latest:

This skirt is really comfortable and flattering, but it is 6" too long.  I'm probably going to keep it and have a friend shorten it. The stylist wrote, "A maxi skirt by Market & Spruce for your model frame will give you modesty and also still flatter your model height,"  I would have to be a good 4" taller and still wear heels not to trip on it.  I've told her several times that I have a long body and short legs, but I guess it's hard to really understand a person's dimensions when you don't ever see them in person.

You can see how I feel about this top.  Just because I'm turning 50 next week and am going to be a grandmama in a few short weeks doesn't mean that I have to dress like one.  It's from a good company--Kut from the Kloth--but it's made out of icky polyester and has those roll-up sleeves with the tab and button that I loathe.  There are probably people who can wear this and make it look cute, but I am NOT one of them.  I just don't want to, is the thing.  It has too many elements that gross me out.

Both of these tops are meh, M-E-H, meh.  My t-shirt drawer is overflowing, and I can't justify paying $54 and $68, respectively, for them.

This scarf wasn't too expensive, it is soft, and it's pretty cute, so I think I'll keep it.  However, it's hard for me to muster too much enthusiasm for it when it is 91 degrees here today.  It doesn't ever get too cold here, anyway.  Maybe in January I'll wear it to work, or in my office when I am freezing.  I can also wear it in our travels.

Nostalgia

There are some things that give me a nostalgic feeling that almost bring me to tears. Often those feelings are tied to books.

When I was a little girl, we had some book, perhaps it was

It had a picture of a little black-and-white cat in an English garden.  I loved that picture, and when I see Oliver in the yard, surrounded by flowers, my heart overflows with love for him--my sweet little kitten in the garden.

I like to read the blog Luxarrazi, which is all about the Luxembourg and Lichtenstein royal families.  These are Catholic countries, and they are often having big events with their cardinal or archbishop or something.  That august person usually looks like this:

with the big tiara (mitre?  beats me, I'm not Catholic), and the shepherd's crook.  And that, even though I'm not Catholic, brings me back to a book I really loved when I was little (and still love)

I think that's where I originally saw that kind of image, and it brings such a warm, happy feeling to me that I think I might try to hug that person if I ever saw him in person.  (Which would probably be creepy on a number of levels.)

Today, I had another strong feeling of nostalgia (non-book-related), and I almost teared up.  I was able to go into the OR and perform a procedure.  The IR suite isn't quite the same--we wash and gown up beforehand, but not in the same way as the OR.  There's something so special to me about the OR and surgery.  Perhaps if I had completed my medical training earlier in life, I would've become a surgeon, rather than an interventional radiologist.

As I was traveling home from work today, I was thinking about why I felt that way. I think it's because the OR is similar to the temple, and it feels sacred to me.  Here are the similarities I though of:

1)  You have to be worthy to enter.
2)  There is ritual washing.
3)  You are dressed in special ceremonial clothing.
4)  You are doing something that someone cannot do for themselves.
5)  If you're in the right frame of mind, you're in partnership with God.

Maybe that is why something about the OR reaches into my heart and tugs at it in a special way that I can best describe as nostalgia.  Don't get me wrong--my current job is perfect for me, and surgical training would've been a disaster for me to try to go through when I was a resident.  But I will always be just a little jealous of my surgery colleagues, and I will always have that tender feeling when I have the opportunity to join them in the operating room.

Being a Stepmother

Frans Schwartz, The Agony in the Garden

Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to view the Sacred Gifts exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art.  The centerpiece of the exhibit, in my opinion, is this beautiful painting.  It is so tender to see the angel supporting The Savior through the pain and darkness of the Atonement.

I started to wonder about the angel.  Who would be given the role of comforter for Jesus?  This is absolutely NOT doctrine in any way, but what if that was the privilege of Heavenly Mother?  She is the mother of Christ's spirit, but when you think about it, she's the stepmother of his earthly being.  Mary had the job of bearing the Christ, raising him, comforting his earthly hurts and calming his fears.  But in this moment when he also needed that mothering, she obviously wasn't there, or we would have heard about it.  I'm sure that she just couldn't have been there.

Stepmothers get a bad rap sometimes (wicked stepmother, anyone?), but it has been a sacred gift in my life to be a stepmom to my husband's children.  

Stitch Fix Nails It!

I really liked everything I got in this shipment.  Having credits from friends signing up, as well as the credit for buying the whole shipment made this a pretty easy decision.

Pomelo Gwendolyn Printed Mixed Material Sweater.  It matches the mint-green jeans I bought at bodenusa.com.  The jeans are Sold Design Lab Christopher Distressed Boyfriend Jean. 

Ellison Lena Contrast Striped Knit Shirt.  It is very light and comfortable.  I'm wearing it today with denim shorts.

I don't know how to pose without putting my hand on my hip, apparently.  This is the Pomelo Corinna Striped Heathered Dolman Top.

41Hawthorn Harper 3/4 Sleeve Jacket--Chanel-inspired, worn over a simple black tee.

Stitch Fix April Delivery

Well, what can I say but I do love this service.  I wear the jeans from last month all of the time.  So I was very excited to find out what was in April's delivery.  Ahem.  Well.  Let's just say that the Stitch Fixers and I are going to have to work to come to an agreement on my style and tastes.

This dress is just a big piece of NO.  It makes me look like a rectangle with teddy bear legs. I'm having enough of a complex about my weight right now that this picture doesn't help.  From the side, however, I still am okay.  And that, my friends, is really a rope belt.  Who am I, Ellie Mae Clampett?  No, no, no.  Ugly, ugly, ugly.  I am going to ask them never to send me another shapeless dress that belts in the middle.

I was gleeful when I first saw these cute, mint green jeans.  Then I tried them on and realized they were more like jeggings.  Again with this feeling unhappy with my weight right now, so maybe once I wore them they'd look better?  Or maybe they just aren't right for me.  The top is cute from the front buuuuuuttt...

not garment-compatible from the back.  I'm not wearing another shirt under it.  It's just not cute enough to make me want to do layers.  But as an aside--check out that firm neck.  Nerium!

This top is pretty cute and comfortable (worn with last month's new jeans).  Anyone would have to wear a tank underneath, as it gaps like crazy when you lean forward, but I like how it is snug around the bottom.  The dolman sleeves aren't bad, either.

Finally, they included a pair of pretty cute chandelier earrings.  I'm not sure that I will keep them.  They're $48 and heavy enough to make me worry that the earring on the right will pull through my already-stretched hole.

So, one out of five, maybe two if I can convince myself that the green jeans are not completely unflattering.

Shameless Commerce, pt 2

Okay, so the next thing I want to shill--I mean, tell you about, is this really cool, online personal stylist service called StitchFix.  R happened upon it and thought I would like it.

Here's the deal, you go to their site, fill out the personal profile where you tell them your size(s), your personal style, how much you would spend on certain items, and if you are looking for work clothes or casual or something for an upcoming event, etc.  Then you pay them $20 and wait a month.  A box full of clothes, and sometimes accessories, comes to your door.  You jump up and down and squeal  like a little girl, then try the clothes on.  You keep what you like, pay for it on the website, and return the things you don't like.  The $20 styling fee is deducted from your bill.  If you send everything back, then they keep the $20.  You can schedule regular shipments monthly, quarterly, whatever.  If you want to halt a shipment, you go to the website and halt it or reschedule.

They request links to your blogs, Pinterest account, Twitter, etc., so they can see what you like.  You can also send them photos, I think.  And if there's something you don't like, you can tell them on the website why you didn't like it.  It helps them refine their search for you.

I love, love, love this service.  My first box came last week.  It contained:  dark-wash skinny jeans; a tulip-patterned blouse; a long-sleeved tee with lace embellishment; a grey cascade sweater; and a black shirtdress.

I bought:

The jeans, because they fit great and were exactly what I wanted.
The tulip blouse.  This one gave me pause, because it's not something I would have ever purchased for myself.  However, I thought that it was something I probably should have.  I wore it the same night to a birthday party, and got lots of compliments, so it was a good move to keep it.

This is the untucked version.

I ended up tucking the blouse in and not wearing the necklace.  On Sunday, I wore it with a grey pinstriped skirt and a camel-colored cardigan, accessorized with my Young Women's medallion.  

I sent back:

The tee, because it was pretty boxy.  I have a rectangular shape from side to side, so things like that just make me look boxier.

The sweater, because I already have something quite similar (so it's a win for StitchFix that they chose it for me).

The dress, because I thought it was so beastly that I wouldn't even try it on.  It was a simple, black shirtdress, but it had a very 80's shape to it, with gold buttons down the front, kind of epaulet shoulders, and a skinny self-belt.  I knew it would look terrible on my shape, for one, and for another thing, I thought that I would have to have big, boofy Dynasty hair, too much blush and some gold hoop earrings to wear with it.

Maybe someone could style this and look really good, but I doubt I could.  Yuck!  It just reminds me of too many bad fashion choices in the 80's.  Note the always-stylish Mr. Oliver Hammond.  He did not give any opinion about the dress, except to sniff at it.

So, if you count the sweater, 3/5 things is a pretty good result, better than I usually do when I shop for myself.

If you want to try StitchFix, just click on this link:  http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3469648

Multi-level Marketing--Some Thoughts

Nerium, Shakeology, DoTerra, MaryKay, Thirty-One, Scentsy, Pampered Chef...these are a few of the multi-level marketing businesses friends of mine are involved with.  Personally, I have never been that interested in joining any of these businesses.  Sure, there are people who do really well, but I suspect that for every person that makes the "multi-six-figure income" the top sellers talk about, there are twenty or more people who never really make much on it and have a ton of product in their closets.  That's not to say that any of these products are bad.  In fact, I am a big fan of Nerium and DoTerra products (more on that later) in particular.  But I've always thought of these businesses as targeting the lower-earners and the stay-at-home moms trying to supplement their family income that are really, really hoping that they will be able to ride the MLM gravy train.  (And I really do hope that my friends that are selling stuff do just that, because they are wonderful people and I wish them every success.)

Recently, a friend of mine who is an aesthetician asked me to try Nerium.  It's an anti-aging cream.  I was really skeptical, for one, because I have very sensitive skin; for two, because really, how many anti-aging things have I tried and not been able to keep up with and not had results with?  And the MLM aspect was part of it, too.  Like, I have a kajillion Scentsy things in my linen closet that I bought from a friend and never use or give away as gifts like I thought I would.

But, the friend is a licensed aesthetician, and another friend of mine who is also a licensed aesthetician was the person who got her into Nerium.  So I finally said, "Sure, come on over and let's try this."  Sheila took "before" pictures with her phone, and I used the product for a week.  I wasn't sure that I was seeing results, but she retook the pictures in the exact same light, no filters or photoshopping, and there was a noticeable difference.  I signed up as a "preferred customer", and have been using the product for three weeks.  Here's the results so far:

Pretty amazing, right?  My pores are smaller and my skin tone is more even, plus my skin just looks finer, not as coarse as usual. So, I'm sold on the stuff.  And I have to admit that I'm considering becoming a brand partner, because so many of my friends are interested in trying Nerium.  They currently just have the day cream and night cream, but they will be coming out with an acne treatment that someone in the biz I talked to said is going to be "bigger than Proactiv".

Now some people just haaaaate Nerium.  My aesthetician, Theresa, went bananas when I told her I was going to try it, sent me a link to an anti-Nerium site, and all that.  She tried it a couple of years ago and didn't like it.  So, I'm not going to tell her right away what I've been doing when I go see her for my personal grooming needs on Tuesday.  I'll see if she says anything, and then I'll probably tell her.  She'll tell me I'm putting poison on my face or something like that, but whatevs.

Frankly, R and I don't need the extra income, but it could be something that could make us breathe easier when we take six months off and live in Norway.  Maybe it's a business that my daughter-in-law-to-be could do, being the go-getter that she is.  Maybe other family and friends can do it, and it will help them out financially.  You never know, but I will keep using Nerium and expect that I will continue to have good results.

Okay, and about DoTerra--I was skeptical about the whole essential oil thing, but in desperation I contacted my friend, Amberly, when I was having PMS/early perimenopausal symptoms.  I bought some Solace blend from her, and I find that it really works to ease my mood swings, bloating and stress levels.  It kinda also helps cramps, but it's not a cure for them.  Maybe it's just the scent that works as a reminder to just relax and breathe through it, but it does work for me.

I have another item of shameless commerce, not a MLM thing, but I will do another post for that.

Здравствуйте!

Здравствуйте, русские друзья! Мне очень хотелось бы знать о вас. Оставьте свой комментарий и расскажите мне о себе. Где вы живете? У вас есть блог? Вы находитесь на Instagram? Какова ваша жизнь? Я надеюсь услышать от вас скоро!В 2005 году я поехал в Калининград с друзьями. Это единственная область России я видел, но я надеюсь посетить в ближайшее время (может быть, в этом году) и видеть больше вашей прекрасной стране.