We were shortstaffed, had no nurse's aides, our supply of linen was cut off, doctors weren't calling us back...in other words, it was a typical night shift.
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| My normal commute to work |
Our blizzard shifts really weren't that bad. Getting to and from them was an issue. Some nurses drove four hours to get to work. But within the confines of the hospital we were sheltered from the weather, got free food, had the ability to sleep over if we wanted, etc. Several stayed for 16 hour shifts or even slept over and stayed inside the hospital the entire three days. Other than that, things were pretty normal. I know, it's disappointing that I don't have any heroic stories of saving people who were half-frozen and stranded on the highway, or buried up to their armpits in snow. But I think most of the populace was pretty sensible and stayed indoors. An ER nurse did tell me about a few heart attacks from shoveling snow (lesson: stay in good cardiovascular shape the rest of the year!). And that some people came in completely covered head-to-toe with snow. So did I. But at least I didn't have to walk or dig my car out. Luckily, I got rides to work.
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| Yeah....no. |
I think we were all subconsciously affected by the constant news reporting of how everything in the world had shut down - so everyone within the hospital was moving slower. Things were relatively quiet. It seemed like we shouldn't do anything non-essential.
The kids loved it, of course.
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| The only thing better than a trampoline is a SNOW-COVERED TRAMPOLINE!! |
I took more photos, but they're your typical deluge-of-snow images you can find everywhere. My favorite photographic article so far is at
the Daily Mail UK, including a satellite composite image showing most of the Northern Hemisphere under ice and snow and many amazing pictures of how completely the snow shut our city down.
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