In Your Face, Ethiopia (Or, how I got from Apple Valley, California to Petaluma, CA)

It may be a couple days, or more, before I get to my next destination in Oklahoma, so I thought I would post something else I wrote. During my years as a travel nurse, my son and I had quite a few adventures. I wish I had done more writing about them, but I just didn't take the time. One of our more memorable trips was when we moved from Apple Valley, California to Petaluma, California and I did write about that.

Apple Valley is approximately 70 miles east of LA in the San Bernadino Mountains. It's about 500 plus miles from Apple Valley in southern CA to Petaluma in northern CA. My goal was to take a leisurely two-day drive along the famous Hwy 1 coast, stopping along the way to see the sights. Sounds good, right? Right....All I had to do was head west, get on the highway that looped around LA, and then get on Hwy 1. Piece of cake...

In Your Face, Ethiopia (Or, how I got from Apple Valley, California to Petaluma, CA)

One of the hardest things about moving from assignment to assignment is the packing. After almost two years of travel nursing, I still haven't found a smooth, easy way to do it. The "good intention stage" starts about 8 days before it's time to move. First, I vow this time it's going to be easier, smarter, and less stressful. I start making a to-do list, find boxes, stock up on tape, black magic markers, and scissors. At last count, I had four pairs of scissors -- it's easier to buy another pair then try to find the ones I moved with last time but that's another story...

Following my "good intention" stage comes the "denial stage". I start telling myself there's plenty of time to pack and not to stress out over it. I quit buying groceries during this stage, in hopes that we'll eat up the stuff in the fridge and cabinets and I won't have to waste a lot of it. I start to get this little uneasy feeling that I should be doing more, but I soothe it by making arrangements for my phone to be turned off and my satellite service to be transferred to my new address.

I'm down to five days before the big move and I still have two more shifts at work. Which means I really only have three days, if I don't sleep. Plenty of time. Obviously, I'm still in my denial stage. That uneasy feeling is growing, but again, I quiet it by getting on the internet and going to mapquest. I print out directions to my next assignment, how to get from my new address to the hospital, and any sights we might want to see along the way. See, I'm being productive... It's also when I realize I not only have to pack, but I still need to think about cleaning the apartment, too, which is about when the next stage hits me.

Panic. I don't have enough time, I don't have enough boxes, I don't have enough room in my Jeep, and I still have at least one more shift at work.

Oh, and Matt, my son, woke up this morning and his bottom lip is swollen. Should I be worried? It's swelling from the inside. His gums aren't swollen, so it's not a gum infection....no fever, no nausea, no difficulty breathing or swallowing...just spontaneous swelling. Yeah, that's normal. We'll just watch it for a day or two.

But now he's showing me the inside of his lip every 15 minutes...what if it gets worse while I'm at work tonight? He thinks he sees a "puncture wound". So, either an insect crawled in his mouth and bit him, or he's bit himself because of the swelling. I keep telling him he's fine, he has no fever, he has no other symptoms whatsoever, but for the first time in almost two years, I call in to work and tell them I can't make it. I can't leave Matt and risk it getting worse while I'm at work and he's home alone. Meanwhile, I'm telling Matt he's fine and there's nothing to worry about, but just the fact I called in has alerted him to the possibility it could be serious. He's showing me his lip every 5 minutes now.

I pack 14 boxes, yes FOURTEEN, and take them to the post office to mail to my new address. Matt's school books, plastic dishes, office supplies, the junk drawer in the kitchen, anything I can possibly think of to mail is mailed. I will still have more than I can fit in my Jeep, but this will help. As I drive away from the post office, I wonder if it would have been cheaper to just buy a bunch of new stuff rather than mail it. I hate it when I wonder stuff like that.

My refrigerator is still full. We're leaving tomorrow. Even if I had a cooler, there's no room for one in the Jeep. I have no idea where a soup kitchen is or have the time to go to one. It's going to have to be thrown away. I can't make myself do it, though, it's just too much food, and it makes me ill to think about it. I put a trash can by the fridge and ask Matt to do it. I go into the bedroom to work on packing and cleaning in there. I hear a "thud" as the first item hits the trash can. Then another "thud". Then I hear Matt saying, "In your face, Ethiopia!" (thud) "In your face, starving Africa!" (thud)

I shut my bedroom door. 16 hours to go.

...to be continued....