Dizzy D'Phi

When I was in college the first time around, I was in a sorority called Sigma Delta Phi. We were known as the D'Phis around campus. Every week, at our meeting, we awarded a rubber chicken to the sister who had done the most ridiculous thing that week. That sister was the Dizzy D'Phi.

My second year in the sorority, there was a senior named Denise who most often got the prize. However, once she graduated, I often found myself with a rubber chicken hanging from the door of my dorm room. Yes, I do stupid things relatively often. I like to think it is part of my charm.

I tell you all this because I want to highlight two "Ooops!" moments of the past week. The first happened Tuesday at work. Now, let me preface this by saying we have a LOT of patients right now. And they are on the sicker side of the spectrum. Tuesday was a CRAZY day. Call bells were ringing left and right; there were LOTS of bedpan requests; STAT bloodwork had to be done on patients several times. It wasn't a day when planning and organization could get you anywhere. It was One of Those Days.

It took me about 45 minutes to pass out the twelve lunch trays on my side of the unit. I kept getting interrupted, and it was getting to the point that all I wanted to do was get that last lunch tray into the patient's room so he could start eating. So I grabbed in and hustled down the hall and into his room. So far, so good.

As I tried to balance the tray in one hand while cleaning off his bedside table and moving it into the proper position, disaster struck. Yes, it's true. I lost my grip, and the entire tray, full of an uneaten, PUREED lunch hit the floor. It was a mess. The first thing I did was call the dietary office to get a new tray. The second thing I did was clean up...pureed chicken, mashed potatoes, and pureed green beans. All...over...the...floor. And my pants, for that matter. It was a messy day.

Anyhoo, I got it all cleaned up with some bath towels, and then I sent those in a bag down the laundry chute...potatoes, chicken, and all. Perhaps not the best thing to do...but I opted to let the laundry handle it. Not my most shining moment at work. But I think I shook it off well.

Fast forward to last night for moment #2. It is no secret that I am trying not to spend as much money as I used to. So last night, I headed to Wegman's to get the makings for dinner...boneless chicken thighs (on sale), mushroom soup (store brand), instant brown rice (store brand), and frozen peas (on sale). It was a grand total of $9 worth of food. I was doing good. I decided to splurge and get a copy of Family Circle. I was still doing good. And then I saw the bulk Jelly Belly section. And I thought some of the flavors looked good, so I put some in a bag, put it in my cart, and headed to check out.

My friends, I put SEVEN DOLLARS worth of jelly beans in that bag. SEVEN DOLLARS! And I was too embarrassed to say to the guy at the checkout, "Whoops! I didn't want that many!" So now I am the proud owner of seven dollars worth of Jelly Belly jelly beans. Just goes to show you that Wegman's puts scales in the bulk department for a reason. Use them.

So that's my Dizzy D'Phi update. Now I am off to find my rubber chicken so I can put it on proud display.