A typical day in the life of me, and as I work different
kinds of shifts I’ll just discuss a day shift.
Set my alarm for 0430 and crawl out of bed straight into
the shower. Dress, eat brekkie and choke down a coffee then head out at 0515,
to get to work by 0545. I’d get my bags ready, talk, get the truck ready,
talk, and by that time it’s 0610 and time to start. Whatever time we start
we’re given a 10minute grace period to prepare the vehicle. It never takes just
10 minutes so most people tend to get to work earlier. Everyone has a bag of
PPE (personal protective equipment) and each Paramedic has a bag for drugs and
equipment only medics have been trained to use. Essentially you have two sets
of everything because the truck is fully equipped as well but you can take
these medic bags into jobs for easy access.
As soon as you become ‘Available’ you are good to go and
you’ve probably been given a job. First thing in the morning is when you
commonly get someone who has passed during the night and has just been found.
You do tend to get cardiac arrests in the morning and frankly I’d rather get
them first thing, it gets you jump started into your day, you’re awake, raring
to go. But most likely you get an elderly patient who has fallen out of bed
during the night and needs a hand getting back into bed. If for whatever reason
you take a patient to hospital, you take them in, speak to a staff member, most
likely a nurse, and then wait to hand them over – dump them in a chair or a
bed. But dump them carefully and politely. Then you have a few minutes to
chillax before you become available again. Hit that button and you guessed it,
you’re off to another job.
By 8am most people are up and so are all the silly billies –
people who can and should take themselves to either their GP, pharmacy Chest
infections (with prescribed antibiotics), nose bleeds, colds, those unable to
sleep, 3 week old symptoms they haven’t seen their GP about, people in 10/10
pain sitting there texting on their phones, period pain, are just some of the
jobs I’ve been to.
Example Job A: Chest pain. We get to the patient’s house and
take in the life pack and oxygen bag. The life pack means we can do ECGs and
use the defib if needed, and the oxygen bag is full of everything
airway-related. We waltz in… “Hi my name’s Patrice and this is (insert name of
crewmate here), what’s the problem today?”
“Pardon?”
“Why have you called an emergency ambulance today?”
“Oh well I’ve been having this pain.”
So we get the patient to tell us when it started, how long it’s
been going on, what it feels like, if it radiates anywhere else. Oh this is my
favourite…
“So what have you taken for the pain?”
“Nothing.”
“You haven’t taken anything for the pain you’ve had all
day/week?”
Because the don’t like taking medicines, don’t want to get
addicted, don’t have any in the house but they have cars out the front/family
members present/have had it long enough to essentially walk to the shop 30
times and back again for analgesia.
Example Job B: Unresponsive patient. The caller is no longer
on scene and no further information is available. oooooooooOOOOOOooooooooo
We get on scene, the patient’s drunk. Lying on the ground,
awake, slurring words and we’re not surprised. They may or may not have ID, so
for a place of safety we have to take them to hospital. We give them a full
check over in case there’s some underlying illness. I’ve had some incredible
luck with drunk men with head injuries hitting on me. They have to have a head
injury though, just to really make sure that blurred vision’s set in. I’ve been
to a guy who really looked like Mark Wahlberg, but was drunk as a skunk and had
a massive head wound just pouring blood. The laceration was awesome, blood
everywhere, all down his shirt and the towel he already had to his head but the
flirting was a bit much to handle before 0700.
There are normally too many jobs waiting to get a meal break
during your shift so it’s given to you at the end of the day, meaning that you
can become unavailable for the duration of your meal break at the end of your
shift, but as you can’t really time your jobs, you most likely get off late
anyway. I can’t remember the last time I had a hot meal at work. I bring in my
own lunches, and no it’s never salad. I do know that eating healthy in this job
is important but I have to be realistic. I have tonnes of snacks, lots of
fruit, granola bars, lunch is normally left overs from the night before (pasta,
tuna, sandwich), yoghurt sometimes makes its way in there and on occasion a
chocolate bar or packet of Haribo Gummy Bears. Yeah I’m still obsessed with
them since Alex on the Camino. So in the few minutes after you dump your
patient, albeit gently, into the hospital or you leave them mat home, you sit
on your truck like a loser and scoff down some food. And go get a coffee,
because you need it.
In a 12hr shift you can do an average of 8 jobs. On an 8hr
shift you do about 6. So at 17:30 you’re done, you finish up your last job, hop
back into the truck and drive back to station, take your bags off and sign out.
These days I’m on a shorter rota so I don’t have 12hr
shifts. I can get home and go out for dinner with friends even allowing for
possibly getting off late. I can go to the gym before work if I start late, I
can go for walks when I get home and best of all, I can get 8hrs sleep at night
and actually feel rested when I wake up.
I’ve done a lot of travelling since my last entry, let’s go
back over all that.
Bruges.
I needed to go back a second time to really appreciate it.
I’d only been once before, for possibly a total of 4 hours, just enough tome to
see the main square and eat a waffle. Granted, this time we spent a lot of the
trip in the main square and ate 2 waffles, I had 7 beers and countless
chocolates. Those cobblestones streets and small bridges over the canals are
idyllic. Evenings are the most beautiful, with the warm setting sun giving off
a glow and making you believe in the love of – well anything really. The love
of possibilities, if nothing else. I went with a friend from work who messaged
me one day saying he wanted to go and asked for the days I was free. I
mentioned this weekend and 20 minutes later we had our train tickets and
accommodation booked. In the two days there we managed to see it all. You have
to take a boat tour down the canals, that’s how you really see Bruges. I didn’t
get to climb the Bell Tower, again, so I guess that just means I’ll have to go
back. A good friend of mine back home works in a brewery and recommended some
Belgian beers for me – I am now a beer snob and will only drink Belgian beers.
The Geuze Boon is my favourite, followed by a Flanders Red.
Then I went on holiday with my Alex. I'll never forget it.
NORWAY!
Bergen.
Bergen was such a good surprise. I only meant it to be the
starting point for the cross-country train that was supposedly the most
beautiful in Europe, but now I’m thinking I would have like a bit more time
there. Alex and I travelling together is so easy and fun and stress-free. We
climbed a mountain… ok we walked to the top of the hill overlooking Bergen. We
did it in 35 minutes, 10 less than all the guides suggest, so I felt better
about my fitness knowing that. I hadn’t done any exercise in ages and no hikes
since Scafell Pike. I’m glad we did it, it wasn’t only a lovely, green walk
with a stunning view but the next few hikes were going to be tough so the
practice did me good. To top off an incredible day we got to see Andreas! Our
friend from the Camino who lived, coincidentally, in Bergen! Alex used the word
closure, I think she was right. It was so nice to see him again and I think
that daily meditating worked for him over the last 10 months. He seemed so
happy and positive. He showed us a little bar where we could have traditional
Bergen Been. They’re not known for good beer, according to Andreas, turns out
the Norwegians just like to get drunk and quickly on weekend. The train ride
really was amazing. Going through and over and around the mountains, lush
valleys and farms and lakes so clear they looked like mirrors. I think the heat
or the humidity snuck up on me, even that early in the trip because even if we
were doing nothing I was permanently tired and thirsty.
Oslo.
All of Norway is expensive and I think once you get over
that you enjoy your trip more. First thing we did after dropping off our bags
was go for a beer. I’m really liking the sour beers, so that’s what we had, in
a bar called The Crow. We bought a bag of lollies and started our exploring.
All on foot, of course. The pier was full of people fishing but seemingly
failing to catch any fish but enjoying their time all the same. It reminded me
of the piers near St Kilda, that water being so dirty I wouldn’t be surprised
is the fish knew to keep away to cleaner waters. Dinner was on the main
restaurant stretch that out hostel guide showed us, packed with locals. You
could tell they were locals as they were in single-layer clothing, no
down-jackets like us. And trousers, apparently the flowy kind is in, in Norway.
We wanted to see Oslo all lit up by just lights, no bright sun, so we took the
easy 1hr walk to the Botanical Gardens on a hill, just following the tram
tracks, it was impossible to get lost. We stood at the place that inspired “The
Scream”, and no we didn’t scream, but you could see how the artist could feel
that way. We could see the whole city, at 2130, still buzzing with life, many
going home from work, but many backpackers. As the sun doesn’t completely go
down until, well I want to say midnight, we went back and had a wine before bed.
Getting into the sheets at 2300ish felt early because it was still bright but
getting 8hrs sleep was so worth it. I don’t even get that much sleep before a
full day of work. The guy from Arizona in our dorm said he went to a few of the
parks and also an Ice Bar and seeing as neither of us had been to one before we
thought we’d check it out the next day.
Monday, that was a big day but I always like a big day on
holidays. Two coffees each for breakfast, croissant, yoghurt and a 1.5hr trek
to the other side of Oslo. We took lots of little streets winding out way from
East to West. The sculpture park is one for the books. As we got there I had a
bad feeling we’d have to walk for 5-10 minutes in between each one and just
really tiring us out. But! To my pleasant surprise, you round the corner and
BAM! They’re all there. And they’re al naked. Mostly they are of nude adults
holding – or attacking! – nude kids. I’d love to read up about it because we
were so confused. And in the middle of it all is a totem pole of nudes climbing
and sleeping and curled around each other. These Nordic folk did not care too
much for clothes. We hit some big buildings, just checked them off to say we’d
seen them. The Ice Bar, omg, minus 5 degrees, we were our downs as well as the
ponchos they supply for you. It definitely made the outside air seem balmy! We
found a cute little bar/café with dimmed lights and rugs everywhere, I decided
I’d buy a lava lamp when I get back to London (WHICH I DID AND I LOVE IT, I’d
never had one before) and we talking and laughed about anything and everything.
Tuesday = road trip day! We hired a car for an unbelievable
amount but hey, the only way to travel here. The car was auto but right hand
drive so we both drove, that was a bit of a challenge for me. I loved it, if
the roads weren’t so damn narrow I would have lasted longer than 2hrs at a
time. The whole day was beautiful and consisted of snapping as many photos as
we could. I miss the view already. The clear blue lakes, mountains that have
patches of snow making them look like Dalmatians and the houses with grass on
their roofs so they lend into the landscape.
Walk #1: Trolltunga
This was a long ass day. A very long day. I’m clearly not
used to the heat anymore, because Alex said it was barely mild but I burnt and
had to dip my tee-shirt in a lake to cool myself down. The walk started with a
steep incline, just to make sure you’re awake. Guides say it takes 10-12 hrs
return and we believed them so we got up at 0530, left just after 0600 and
started walking by 0645. You would not believe the landscape. After the 2hr
incline we hit like a marsh-farm-land that had large stones and wooden bridges
to help you cross from one side to the other. You’re in a valley surrounded by
mountains. It was open and vast and remote, and there were houses there. I
think that’s a tad too remote for my liking. The rock steps were large and
steep, then there was the mud in between the stones. By the end of the day our
pants were covered. It was a cloud-free day, the sky was as blue as the fjord
below which was a mirror image of the mountains it reflected. It took us under
4 hours to get to the rock and half an hour waiting in line to take a photo.
And that was short! By the time we left I think the wait would’ve been about 2
hours judging by the length of the queue. And wasn’t so scary out there, as
long as you didn’t look down. We rationed our food but because of the heat and
mere duration of the trail, I really felt it on the way back. We even swam
butt-naked in one of the glacial lakes up there. It was liberating but more so
cold. Just really, really cold. We finished in good time as well, 9.5hrs but by
the time we got back down to that valley we had had enough. Yes it was
beautiful but no, it was time to go home. I was proud of how we did, how much
we tackled in the time we did. That night, we smashed a celebratory beer,
pizza, burger each, packed our bags, showered and were in bed by 1845. I was
fast asleep by 1900.
Walk #2: Kjeragbolten
We had another early start this day as well, hitting the
road by 0610. We said a nice little goodbye to the owner of the B&B and I
got behind the wheel again. We took a short ferry across a lake and swapped the
driving, and then our GPS I swear had a sense of humour, took us on a fjord
cruise. I don’t think we needed to take any kind of boat that day but I’m glad
we did. It was beautiful. Alex loved the cruise and I loved watching her enjoy
it. Now this climb! Hot damn! There’s a
blog online that a woman wrote about this climb, she’d said her kids did it
(reassuring, good) and that if you can make it over the first hill, then the
rest is fine, the next two hills wouldn’t be as bad (very reassuring), best of
all I saw dogs doing it (brilliant). I didn’t cry but I was pretty shaken by
the first bit, I’ve already discovered my fear of falling when I bawled my eyes
out at an indoor rock-climbing centre. The rock was so steep and flat and
didn’t have many foot holds because it was so smooth. There were chains to hold
onto and pull yourself up with, thank goodness because I don’t think I could
have done it otherwise. Oh, I haven’t yet mentioned yet mentioned the wind. You
needed to hold onto those chains, or lie flat on the rock, or you’d blow away.
Seriously. Out noses were all running, I used my dad’s hanky I’d borrowed
(thanks, Pa), that wind was crazy. It played havoc with your footing, moving
your leg before it hit the ground, and it made it hard to inhale at all at some
points. It felt like a CPAP machine, just constant air forced into your lungs,
very uncomfortable. Every now and then, I got that feeling. When you step back
and look at your life and marvel at where you are and what you’re doing. It was
one of the best days of my life – I’m putting it up here. The climb itself
wasn’t overly physically demanding but the whole trail demanded full concentration.
Skipping forward past the beautiful landscape, was the boulder suspended 1000m
up above the ground and wedged between two sides of the cliff face. And we
hopped onto it. And hopped off. And I did NOT look down. A mentally exhausting
walk back to the car park and the whole think took up about 5hrs, including a
few snack breaks and a 45minutes photo/lunch stop. Another celebratory beer and
we were off to Stavanger. The hostel was small and simple and unbeknownst to us
at the time, full of bed bugs.
Walk #3: Pulpit Rock
Our third and last hike of the trip and Norway didn’t
disappoint. We’d somehow saved the easiest till last, luckily. We were fitter
than the start of the week had us believe and we made it up in 1.5hrs. This
hike was different still, it was through trees and Alex said it looked like a magical
woodland where you’d find fairies or Snow White. Careful footing again as the
large stones were slippery in the rain. It had been spitting all morning and we
were talking our rain jackets on and off. We’d had great timing each hike,
ending at the top or the rock de jour with little to no crown and photo wait
time. Now this view from the top was my favourite. We got there before the
masses and took great photos. And thank goodness. It was cloudy, dark clouds
coming in toward us but, at the far end of the fjord, which we could stare down
the length of, were streams of bright pale sunlight. The mountains covered in
trees rose straight up out of the water, a dark grey. It was a scene from Lord
of the Rings. It was beautiful. If you paused up there and timed it right,
angled your body away from the other people, it felt like you were the only one
around. You could feel cut off, completely alone but in no way lonely. It felt
like I belonged there, that that spot at that time was exactly where I was mean
tot be. With Alex. I’ve had that feeling a few times before, the last time was
on the Camino. Funny how they’ve been different but rewarding times, cut off
from civilization and most technologies, getting back to basics and what really
matter in life, finding out who you are and what you’re made of. How much you
can take and how far you’re willing to go. Nature is so much more beautiful
that anything us humans can create. Another celebratory beer.
Stavanger.
If you know anything about me and Alex, you’d know how much
we love our food. The few days we had in Stavanger we just happened to stumble
upon the largest food festival in Scandinavia. I mean, of course we did. It was
fate. It wasn’t that big, the Borough Market could rival it’s size each week
but they had large boats and a cruise ship at the port open to the public
serving beer and nibbles. We found the quaint little cobblestone streets of Old
Town with white houses, coloured doors and bright flower. That evening I
noticed bites and a LIVE bed bug on the mattress. Another Aussie girl staying
there said she’d had them as well as about 15 others in the previous 4 days. No
one had done anything about it. Alex and I stayed up washing our clothes all
night. And I mean all night. I got about an hour’s sleep at 4am on the wooden
dining room chairs. Despite changing the sheets we just couldn’t go back into
the dorm. We still doubt we’ll get our money back. The next day we just left.
Barely checked out. Just left. Found a hotel.
Norway was stunning. The people were all really friendly and
the food was tasty and filling but the mountains, I think part of my heart will
be up there forever climbing.
Krakow.
The next day we got to Krakow and stayed in the Old Town.
The upside to early flights (I’m talking waking up at 0300) is getting to your
destination at breakfast time. Perfect! Our second brekkie for the day so far.
Traditional Polish brekkie. I’ve not really enjoyed the last few modern cities,
they lack age and character and all look the same, but as you pass through the
park that surrounds the 11ft high brick walls and enter Old Town, you get
culture. And history. Alex chose the best location for our hostel, right on the
main square! We had two beers there before starting our walk. In true Polish
style we were drunk by 1530 and needed a nap. At night, all lit up, the old
town main square is beautiful. We took free walking tours, then made our own
way around, stopping for a quiet alcoholic refreshment. Met an Aussie guy. What
happened next was a bit of a blur. Poland happened to us. We took full
advantage of the $2.50 STEINS and had two each, plus a shot of homemade lemon
vodka, moved bars and had two pints each, another shot of something, a
cocktail. Somehow ended up in a karaoke bar, singing (at the tables) to Shania
Twain, Man I Feel Like a Woman, then dancing along to Black Eyed Peas, I’ve Got
A Feeling. We looked at photos and time stamps the next day to help piece
together the night and it looks like we spent at least 4 hours sitting up on
top of the Cloth Hall drinking, and I had sang (there’s video evidence) Amazing
Grace for the older woman sitting next to me. Alex cried because my singing was
just so lovely – I swear it was just the alcohol. I kissed some guy at the
third bar and Alex punched his mate, so I had to defend her honour while she
swanned off to get drinks. We still don’t know why she hit him. I’m sure he
deserved it. We then ran home laughing.
Budapest.
I thought it was be a magical little town with lots of
history, thick in culture, a tiny town that took you back in time. It’s more
like Las Vegas, Alex said. Yep. Yes the old, important structures are lit up
along the water at night but during the day it’s bare, almost sleepy. At night
the city comes alive. It’s a lot larger than what I’d thought and if you’re not
on the Danube at night, there’s no magic. Four nights here was more than
enough. A strolled for brekkie before our free walking tour, admired the
extravagant Basilica, Palace, Matthias Church and Parliament. Apart from the
short hour between waking up and breakfast, I don’t think we were hungry in
Hungary. We ate constantly. Ah, holiday mode! It means treating yourself. We
sat at night by the water’s edge on the Buda side and looked at Parliament. You
could sustain a town of 40,000 people for the cost of building it but it’s
remarkable and would certainly bring in plenty of tourists. We just sat, and
reflected on our trip so far and where we were, right there, in Budapest. The
city hadn’t felt so quiet. The Szechenyi Baths were beautiful. Again with the
great timing, we had made it early enough to have the inside baths to ourselves
mostly before getting outside, securing deck chairs and leaving by the time the
masses set it. My muscles in my legs, and my knees especially, felt so soft and
relaxed afterwards. During our own wine tour, I suggested we get our ears
pierced, so the next day we got two more each. That night we stumbled
(figuratively and literally) into a ruin bar and found an Escape Room game
which was amazing! Temple of Doom, come at me!
Generally speaking:
- - I’ve bought new jeans, I know, I actually went
jean shopping and survived. Thanks to Nick
- - My love life is non-existent but that’s ok
- - I’m loving Haim and listening to the Smooth and Magic
radio stations (you can tell what they play just by their names)
- - I temporarily died my hair green before the trip
and it’s mostly out now
- - I’m reading novels again. I loved The Long Way
To A Small Angry Planet – it’s so much like Firefly, it’s crazy. I’m not liking
Nod, it’s not written very well but I love the idea of the plot so I’m sticking
with it to figure out what happens.
- - I’m loving my walking, I get out as often as I
can. I don’t like the gym but I go sometimes 1-2 times a week.
- - I’m having lots of soup. The weather’s been so
terrible that it’s comforting.
- - I saw Adele in concert and love her so much
more. She’s incredible and hilarious. I honestly believe we’d be friends if we
met as regular people.
I
