10 things one nurse is thankful for this year

1. The flu shot. I’ve had the flu twice. Both times I thought hard about asking somebody to shoot me in the head. Anything that reduces my chances of going through that again, even by 60 percent, is a welcome thing.

2. Other nurses. There are times when you need a shoulder to lean on, and nurses understand other nurses.

3. The frozen food industry. Without frozen broccoli, artichoke hearts, asparagus and greens, I’d probably never see a vegetable on days when I work.

4. Nursing humor blogs. There are a few out there that make me wonder if some of my coworkers don’t have a secret life.

5. Good shoes. I still have feet thanks to custom-fit insoles and good, supportive lacing.

6. That nurses don’t have to wear skirts and pinafores anymore, let alone the cap. I could just see a skirt hitching up at the wrong moment, or a cap falling into a sterile field.

7. Ibuprofen. That’s self-explanatory.

8. That so few of my patients are bug-eyed weirdos. The few that are add a little spice to the parade of truly nice people I work for on a daily basis.

9. Florence Nightingale (or, as I call her, Flossie). Say what you will about her politics, she understood that nursing could be a science, not just a gin-soaked last stop for the female dregs of society. (Also, she had a sister named Parthenope. You can thank me when you win the next trivia night at the bar.)

10. Decent doctors and therapists and housekeepers who are all trying their best, just as we are, to get people back on their feet and the heck out of the hospital. There are a few bad apples in the bunch, but on the whole? We work with the smartest, kindest, most dedicated people in the world.

What are you thankful for this year?