Happy 2010!

I've been meaning to check back in for awhile, but overwhelmed with work and travel, and not wanting to sit at the computer, I have been uninspired to do so...until now!

It all started with an 8am post-shift craving for a bean tostada and a fountain drink after three nights of working the graveyard (which means leaving home around 6:20pm and arriving home around 8:15am). I spent all 3 nights tending to a 35 week old baby (> 1 month early), who was having some respiratory issues and needed to be tube fed and oxygenated. Working with my shifts in a row like that basically means that I disappear from the "real" world entirely, and go into a semi-zen like state of sleep, drive, work, drive, sleep (Repeat x 3), and really I prefer it that way, because then I don't try to squeeze in any sort of outside distraction (or pleasure). I just get into the groove and go with it, and honestly, it goes by relatively fast...the only thing is, I loose track of time completely, and since the hospital is not my ideal place to spend my time, I usually come out of it feeling like I'm wasting my life a little...but regardless, on with the story! (and mind you, I'm positive in the end, because if it weren't for my lifestyle, events would not unfold like they did tonight).

So tonight (well now that I write this at 5:38am, I mean last night) I slept in after my last shift until 6pm (tostada coma). I then went to a meditation at a dojo from 6:45-7:45, showered, and then my friend Patrick came over to salsa dance and chat in my kitchen until about midnight. I then went to Corazón, where my friend's funk band was playing. Thankfully he put me on "the list," so I got to breeze on it, and I was immediately blown away by the jam my ears were hearing...It turned out that John Popper of Blues Traveler was in town to record a record and jumped up on stage to jam out on the harmonica with them. I threw my funk down, and danced with some boys who were traveling around the wild west from Nebraska. I then proceeded to close the bar down with the band (and John Popper, who kissed my hand on the way out), something I never would have done in my normal waking life, as I'm generally (and supposed to be) a morning person.

As everyone was leaving, two guys were trying to call a cab, and I offered to drive them home instead. It turns out that one owns 6 regional radio stations and the other is a musician/producer. Needless to say, I arrived at a phat pad and they invited me in. I figured, why not, really? It may be nearly 4am, but I'm on night shift schedule. So I went in, warmed myself by the fire while drinking wine, hot-tubbed under the stars and brightly shining crescent moon, checked out the production studio, got some free music, and had a generally faaaabulous evening! They invited me to go skiing, so I just may take them up on that soon....
I returned home, and was still wired, so went for a sunrise hike while intermittently writing this.

In other news:

• We've had some drug addicted babies recently, which has motivated me to contact a non-profit to come to Española called project prevention, which gives drug addicted women $ to go on long term birth control like IUDs or to get their tubes tied.
• I'm trying to ward off becoming the fat nurse by doing lots of hiking and exploring around Santa Fe. The land is so beautiful and strange here; I love it! So I'm basically never hanging around home: either working, sleeping, dancing, or exploring. Lots of outdoor loving to be had here.
• I had a nice Christmas in Santa Fe, albiet nontraditional. I had a Solstice/Festivus couchsurfing party the week before. My work party was two-tiered: one at the casino (naturally) for the whole hospital, which involved the finance guy karaoking "Baby Got Back," and a party for my unit with the traditional New Mexican Christmas foods: sopapillas, tamales, red chile beef enchiladas and green chile chicken enchiladas (of course), pumpkin roll, and a big delicious bowl of guacamole. My sister and brother-in-law (Kristen and Dave) came down Christmas day from Denver and we ate Indian food and went hiking. And on Christmas Eve, I did the gallery stroll down Canyon Road with my wonderful roommate, Amanda, to enjoy the farolitos (luminaries), bonfires, and carolers.
• For New Years, I went up to Colorado for the 20th anniversary show of a bluegrass group called Left Over Salmon at the Boulder Theater and got to love up my old friend, Sarah G. I found myself high for about 5 min in the hot-boxed theater, despite not smoking a sniff, and giggled my head off about the idea of stuffing all the fallen glitter into my pants.... On New Years day I hiked around Golden with Kristen and Dave and checked out Lo-Hi, where they are hoping to re-settle.
• Now that's it's 2010 and I'm finding myself a little more settled in New Mexico (though still traveling a lot domestically for congresses/workshops and still debating a move to Albuquerque for school or the outlying areas of Santa Fe), I'm thinking more about what I want to manifest and culture in my life....I see salsa dancing, yoga, honing my healing skills (be it reiki, chinese medicine, and/or midwifery), ever-more mindful eating, and living in a community that inspires me to live a more connected and intentional life...with lots of laughter and dancing of course! Let's see what kind of magic I can conjure!
  

Sending everyone love, peace, and fun surprises this new year! xoxo, Rachel

Festivus party outfit

PS If you haven't seen Avatar yet... do!

Skipping around crazy beautiful New Mexico

Homies

Remember the little homie figures that were sort of cult popular in the late 90's/early 2000s? You know:Well I have recently learned that these characters were created in Espanola based on the people who live there...I am somehow not surprised, and very amused. Espanola is the town I work in about 25 miles north of Santa Fe. It's the heroin capital of the country. It is also the low-rider capital of the world. (I shit you not. Just ask MTV) Needless to say, the equation equals an interesting health care population. Lots of baby-daddy drama, crazy baby names, and a few too many hard drug-related consequences.
The work itself is going pretty well. I mean, it's a hospital, so it's not my ideal, and working 12 hour shifts means waking up at 5 and getting home around 8:15, but then I get 4 days off, and of course I am learning a lot. Oh yeah, and I have health insurance now! Of course, I sliced my finger the day before it started, and now will probably have a gnarly scar, but I think it will be a nice reminder for me of the year and a half I went without health insurance...something to tell my kids when the country finally has universal health insurance...See kids, this is why it's important for everyone to be able to see the doctor when they are hurt or sick...thankfully, mommy was a nurse and had the skills and resources to care for herself, but not everyone does...

Santa Fe living is treating me very well. I have a great roommate, who makes maps for the gov't and bakes wonderful pies. And I've had several couchsurfers in my 3 weeks here, a couple of whom have been absolutely wonderful, and I cannot imagine my experience without them. One was a nurse-midwife from Miami with whom I went salsa dancing at the gay retirement community as well as gallavanted around town. The other was a cancer massage therapist from Monterey, CA, who cooked me fabulous meals when I came home from work and delighted me with great conversations. I've gone on several nice hikes and checked out some meditation centers with another friend who I've met through couchsurfing.
I'm now a proud card holder at the Santa Fe public library and a member of the Santa Fe co-op. And I have a punch card for the Japanese hot spring spas. It's a goooood life!

Come visit! I anticipate writing much less frequently, since my life seems less and less entertaining to the observing eye, but more and more fulfilling to ME! Hence I plan to spend more time living it and less time on the computer :)

Love to all,
Rachel

PS to throw a wrench into your idea of Espanola, I would like to also note that Espanola is additionally home to the largest community of ethnically diverse Sikhs in the world.
New Mexico is a very strange and diverse place if you haven't noticed (even aside from the alien sightings). One time my roommate asked a foreign couchsurfer, "what is the strangest thing you have ever seen in your travels?" And he responded, "Santa Fe, New Mexico."

Home

Well my job was supposed to start last week, but so goes the slow-paced, easy-going culture here, and so they didn't have all the paper work in order for me to start. It might have frustrated me if I hadn't just spent 2 months in South America and 3 months on the Tex-Mex border. So I was unsurprised by their incredible disorganization despite being a large hospital system, and instead was happy to have the opportunity to explore and enjoy my new state a little more. I visited Tent Rocks, a national park of incredible volcanic canyons/rocks in the shapes of mostly tents but also strange formations. I went down to Albuquerque for a hike in the Sandia foothills and to see the largest hot air balloon festival in the world with my sister's brother-in-law (there must be a word this relationship, anyone?). Unfortunately it was too windy so the balloons didn't go up that day, but we enjoyed the carnival that goes along with it (at 5am), which included a simulation dome of Texas, which incidentally = hilarious if you ever get the chance....

Yesterday was my official first day. It was another day of having to say, "hellloo! I'm here! Are you going to orient me or something? What do I do if there's a fire?" Oh New Mexico. The flip side is, that everyone is incredibly friendly and I met everyone from the kitchen staff, to the housekeeping, to IT, to admin, to security...pretty rare for a hospital. The other cool thing about Presbyterian Espanola is that although it is a tiny hospital in a tiny town, so it has the benefits of being able connect with the people and park in the free parking lot, it also has access to up-to-date research, technology, and is actually with-the-times of big hospitals (not that I always agree with hospitals, but that's another story). It's going to take some time getting adjusted to the schedule (leaving the house at 6am, getting home at 8pm or later if like last night I couldn't help but dash to BumbleBees to get something to eat)...it'll probably take about the amount of time I'll have before they switch me to nights in fact. But in general I feel very positive about this new job. I just need to organize myself and figure out: ok, when am I going to cook? When am I going to exercise? How is my sleep schedule going to work? When will I have a social life? Ah the complexities of starting a new job...in a new town...with silly hours.

Below are some pictures from my grand week and a half of adventure and bliss.

One of the many beautiful homes on the East side, near Canyon Road

Tent Rock

The Aspens up near the ski basin

PS in case I haven't noted, I am a labor and delivery nurse, and the hospital is great because it has a very low C-section and epidural rate, but also a high rate of interesting complications like drug-addicted babies and teen moms...

Hello frito pie, chili, and adobe at 7,000ft

Just a quick update to say that I have moved to Santa Fe. I drove out Weds through Denver--stopped to see my sister--and arrived Thursday evening via a lovely yellow aspen filled drive. The purples, yellows, and reds were just amazing. I am so lucky to have been able to drive during the changing of the seasons. Yum.
I'm working on settling into my new place on the east side of Santa Fe, very near to Canyon Road, where all the art galleries are. We've had a couchsurfer here since I arrived, which has been fun. She is a midwife from Miami, and we've had a great time talking midwifery, relaxing at the Japanese spa, and going salsa dancing. Ah, such a life. My reality call will be around 5:30am however with my alarm on Tuesday, to report to the hospital for my first day of training.
Below are some pictures of posh earthships in Taos.

love the bathroom