Appropriate
I was feeling down. A patient at work who should be doing better wasn't, and a good relationship with a set of parents had gone a bit sour, partly through someone else's fault, but partly through my own.
On another front, the grocery store was out of a number of things, and I couldn't find any pecan rice to make my pecan rice turkey stuffing, although maybe that didn't matter because I couldn't find the recipe for my pecan rice turkey stuffing either. Now, in the fancy produce market, the "fresh" turkey I had ordered and just picked up was mostly frozen, with only a limited time before Thanksgiving to thaw it, and clementines, those seedless tangerine-like things that are a favorite fruit of mine, were outrageously priced at$7.99 per crate. Life, I thought, is a bear.
Then I heard someone say, "Excuse me, but aren't you Dr. Neonatal Doc?" The speaker looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place her or put a name with her face. "I'm Jane Doe," she said. "I worked in the special care nursery when you were at St. Mordecai's Hospital." I remembered, and we had a nice chat. She was now enjoying retirement.
Before we parted, she said to me "You know, I just wanted to let you know that I thought you did a great job in the nursery." I thanked her, and she went on. "You were always so," she paused, searching for the right word, "so...appropriate." She made my day. Then, on my way out of the market, I found a bottle of a favorite German wine, a Piesporter, for the ridiculously low price of four dollars per bottle. Things were really looking up.
Now, as I think of it, I'm not certain what it means to be appropriate, but I'm sure it's better than being inappropriate. I think I'll have a good Thanksgiving, even without the pecan rice.
On another front, the grocery store was out of a number of things, and I couldn't find any pecan rice to make my pecan rice turkey stuffing, although maybe that didn't matter because I couldn't find the recipe for my pecan rice turkey stuffing either. Now, in the fancy produce market, the "fresh" turkey I had ordered and just picked up was mostly frozen, with only a limited time before Thanksgiving to thaw it, and clementines, those seedless tangerine-like things that are a favorite fruit of mine, were outrageously priced at$7.99 per crate. Life, I thought, is a bear.
Then I heard someone say, "Excuse me, but aren't you Dr. Neonatal Doc?" The speaker looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place her or put a name with her face. "I'm Jane Doe," she said. "I worked in the special care nursery when you were at St. Mordecai's Hospital." I remembered, and we had a nice chat. She was now enjoying retirement.
Before we parted, she said to me "You know, I just wanted to let you know that I thought you did a great job in the nursery." I thanked her, and she went on. "You were always so," she paused, searching for the right word, "so...appropriate." She made my day. Then, on my way out of the market, I found a bottle of a favorite German wine, a Piesporter, for the ridiculously low price of four dollars per bottle. Things were really looking up.
Now, as I think of it, I'm not certain what it means to be appropriate, but I'm sure it's better than being inappropriate. I think I'll have a good Thanksgiving, even without the pecan rice.
posted by neonataldoc at 5:10 PM
7 Comments:
well, since you are so appropriate, i won't tell you that i got a crate of clementines for $4.99.
oops!
i thought it was funny to disover today that i bought the last bag of miniature marshmallows in my town. that is if i am to believe the store manager telling the lady in line behind me. my little circus act will be garteful as they eat their candied yams tomorrow.
someday you must share the pecan rice stuffing recipe.
in the meantime, pour a glass of that delicious wine for me and accept my wishes for a happy thanksgiving to you.
enjoy your holiday neo! and try to remain 'appropriate' lol
Appropriate seems to be a term embraced by professional nurses. I can't think of any other professional that uses the term quite so often.
It sounds like your day is turning around after all. It's amazing how a compliment can turn things around and make our day.
Here's a little homemade ice cream and maybe the day will go a little better. (I remember how much you really like ice cream.)
Happy Thanksgiving to you too.
Thanks, all. Laura, I still haven't found that recipe for pecan rice stuffing.
Sometimes that little bit of encouragement is so needed. I'm glad you received it when you were feeling down.
As a NICU nurse, I laughed out loud at Bryan's comment. I'd never thought about it, but I suppose we do use "appropriate" a lot, at least in our charting.
Maybe she meant that you found a good balance between calming fears and not overreacting to things, while still taking things seriously and not seeming too cavalier.
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