My son is an ER nurse at a large teaching hospital. My niece is a telemetry nurse in her hometown. She works two 12-hour shifts one week, then three shifts the next week. And she also teaches two classes of Anatomy and Physiology to student nurses. She bought a house and is currently painting and tiling her bedroom. She has done some extensive yardwork, including built-up gardens for veggies (and flowers, I think). And a bunch of other stuff I don't remember right now. All this by herself. For recreation, she studies biology books and suchlike. She manages a few hours with her mother when she's at Borders, grading student papers and having a cuppa.
My son works three 12-hour shifts a week in the ER, then 4 days off, which gives him plenty of time for fun things like frisbee golf, riding around on his motorcycle, or camping out, or whatever else he feels like doing. My son recently designed a patio and built the wall around it. He did have the concrete professionally poured, but he did all the rest of the work. He said he didn't have to go to the gym at all because the work was keeping him fit. Imagine!! He said he'd NEVER again work a med-surg floor. Too boring. Besides, in the ER nurses make decisions that only doctors make on the med-surg floors. He likes the autonomy. And the go-go-go!
Whew! Exhausts me just two write about those two fireballs. There's a big difference, though, in the way these two conduct themselves. Trish has a quiet way of speaking and gives off a feeling of calmness. However, I don't think I'd like to be the recipient of her tongue if I were a nurse and goofed off. Nursing to her is like a religion I think, and you just simply do NOT let your attention wander from the job at hand.
Drew on the other hand, is a bundle of energy and nerves. You can feel his presence a block away. He's noisy. He talks loud. He laughs loud. And he's exhausting to be around. But, oh! how I love that boy. Boy, hmmm. He'll be 48 this month, and he still allows me to call him Sonny Boy. Trish is 3 years younger, and I can't believe she's that old. She certainly doesn't look it. My! how time does go by.
Of course, I've noticed lately, too, that police officers don't look like they're old enough to buy beer.