Saturday was a Great Day!

Day 4: A picture of your night (a night late)

Yesterday was my first official day of Spring break and I couldn't have asked for it to be any better.  I headed to Portland in the morning and after dropping my roommate off, I headed to my old place of work to visit.  I had worked at an Assisted Living Facility for three and a half years as the Health Care Coordinator before transferring for school and the staff and residents all became family to me.  Since it was a weekend, there was no administrative staff around so the atmosphere becomes much more laid back.  A handful of my favorite coworkers were there and we just hung out and laughed A LOT!  These women can be quite hysterical and a good session of laughing to tears was really needed after a week of studying for finals!

I also went in to talk with a resident with whom I had formed a bond with.  We talked about current life a lot.  I told her my plans for school and career which she fully supported and thought I would be wonderful at.  My choice of profession would be beneficial to her and she said she would be glad to have me as a care provider in that field; what a nice feeling knowing all the support you have :o) She updated me on her family and her health status and then we somehow got to talking about death.  Not about death in the personal sense, but our experiences in caring for people who have died.  Because of where I have worked, I have obviously cared for a lot of people until their last breath.  However, she began to share the story of her mothers last days with me and how she cared for her and how she felt being able to spend those last days with her.  This story brought tears to my eyes not because it was sad, but because it was so sweet.  When she finished, she asked if I had ever taken care of anyone till their last breath.  I was so caught up in the emotions of her story, plus the people I cared for that she's asking about were people she knew and there are only so few details I could share with her.  But I did tell her how proud I feel to be able to care for those nearing the end and to make sure they are as comfortable as possible.  I find it is in these times of a lifespan that you hear some of the greatest stories; sometimes from the person if they're able, or from their families who are so diligently posted at their bedside.  I've learned a lot about life by hearing the stories of people who have experienced some really amazing things.  When I was through talking, she said to me, "Well, Rebecca, I would be very glad to have you there for me when that time comes." She was just tugging at my little heart strings!  It felt pretty amazing for someone to tell me they would want me to care for them in their last days.  I have been receiving a lot of other compliments lately, mostly about my character.  I feel it's a testament to the great example my parents and others in my life have provided me.

So on to the real topic of this blog, my night.  After visiting at work, I drove over to my sister and brother-in-law's.  Steph and I had plans to go to this event called a "Twilight Rummage Sale."  It looked really cool online and being in Portland we figured it would have really cool artsy things for sale.  Plus it included a full bar and grill and live dj.  I mean it sounded like it could be really cool, right?  Well we plug the address into the GPS; we're sitting at this intersection where the location is supposed to be, staring at a bunch of crappy old buildings thinking, "this can't be right."  I said, it's at "The Eagle Club." Which we then looked over and I realized "The Eagle Club" is kind of like a VFW.  Well, we were pretty skeptical of the "coolness" this event was going to deliver, but decided to check it out anyways.  I think we were both slightly relieved that there was a sign on the door that said the date posted online was wrong and the event was next weekend.  We decided to stroll the streets and look at a few shops instead.

Our little excursion had us feeling quite hungry so we went home and got Eric and headed to MacMennamins Edgefield; you can check it out online, but it's a pretty awesome place!  There are several MacMennamins all over Oregon, but this was the coolest one I'd been to.  So we were hoping to just head over and get a table.  I mean, they have like three restaurants and several bars on site so there shouldn't be a wait, right?  Wrongo!  It was their St. Patty's day celebration complete with an Irish rock band and a separate bagpipe and drum line.  We waited for 30 minutes just to get seats at the bar for an appetizer and then another 20 minutes for an actual table.  BUT, I had a pint of my favorite beer, the Ruby, to keep me company so I guess it was ok :o)  Once we finally got our table, it didn't take long to decide on a menu item; corned beef and cabbage it was!  It's such a festive meal I felt like I had just had Christmas or Thanksgiving in my tummy.  After dinner, we headed home where Steph and Eric's friends were waiting to head out for some drinks with Eric while Steph and I planted ourselves on the couch with the last of the cupcakes I made and brought over.  Sorry to those who didn't get any!  Steph and I aren't just cookie monsters, we're all sweets monsters!  So that was my day/night.  Pretty simple, but that's generally how I like life, simple.

Ok, on to the next blog!