So Much Happening

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It is almost a month since my last post and whilst I would not necessarily say I have been busy, I have not felt ready to share many of the things that have been going on as they all seem to have ‘work in progress’ status.

Cars – this has been a real juggling act. After our jaunt to the Melbourne Motor Show which I wrote about here we went to Ballarat and test drove a Geely X5. This confirmed our thoughts and we ordered one which we should have within the next week or so. GMan agreed to sell the Hilux ute so that has now gone to a new home. Meanwhile, the Subaru Forester which was damaged in a traffic accident in late February has finally been repaired and the hire car which we have been driving for nearly 3 months has been returned. The next step is to sell the Forester which coincidentally had a ‘spa day’ after the repairs were completed so it is looking bright and shiny and hopefully will be sold soon.

In other news, I spent a week in Brisbane recently. My visit was specifically so that I could attend several reunion events planned for the group who began our student nursing training at Princess Alexandra Hospital in March 1976. It was amazing to reconnect with women, most of whom I had not seen for 47 years since we finishing our general training. There were many hours of laughter, memories and friendships rekindled. Preliminary plans are already afoot for another in 3 years to celebrate 50 years since our graduation! I was also able to spend some time with several family members which was a lovely bonus.

The minutae of life continue and I will continue to share the regular stuff as I have been doing on this blog for over 15 years. That milestone slipped by in March without me noticing. As a matter of interest, I would love to know how you found this blog and how long you have been reading.

Finding Friends

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I went to Melbourne on Saturday and had the absolute pleasure of catching up with these ladies. They are colleagues from my student nurse training and we were barely 20 years old when we last saw each other.

Our lives have taken remarkably divergent paths yet we are bound by a common thread from all those years ago.

This connection occurred because one of our former colleagues took the time to reach out on what was the 50th anniversary of the commencement of our student nurse training. The wonders of social media has meant that some of us have managed to arrange a reunion next month. I am really looking forward to that but in the meantime it was a happy coincidence that we were able to meet up briefly the other day.

Friendships are made through all sorts of encounters during our lives. Some endure and others fade. Some are rekindled in new circumstances, others not so much.

50 years is a long time and we have all matured, changed and been shaped by our experiences and the world around us.

End of an Era

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This week I made and finalised a decision which marks the end of my working career.  I decided not to renew my registration as a Registered Nurse.  This allowed me to work within my scope of practice and it now expires at the end of next month.

I finished work almost 10 months ago but not renewing my registration rules an even more definite line between my working life and that of retirement.

Due to the nature of my work there are limited photos but here are a few that encapsulate the last 44 years.

Student nurse in starched uniform and cap.

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A celebration in the tea-room with some of my operating theatre colleagues in the 1990s.

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The workplace set up and ready to go.

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Another tea-room celebration.  This was my farewell afternoon tea when I was leaving Adelaide in 2000.

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After more than 30 years of clinical nursing, I opted for a desk job for the final 10 years.

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Even desk jobs have their fun and games.

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Thanks for the memories.