So What Now?

Am I supposed to introduce myself? Somebody please explain to me Blog Etiquette. Is there a handbook out there that I should be following? Blogging for Dummies, perhaps?


In any case, I guess you should all know a little bit about me, this way you can pass judgment later. Just kidding. Maybe if I can tell you a little bit about myself, you'll soon begin to understand why I write what I write.


I grew up in North Jersey (please, spare me the New Jersey jokes and don't think that I "haven't heard that one before"). I have two wonderful parents who never let me get away with any more than I should and a 17 year-old brother who thinks he can get away with anything. My childhood was filled with your standard pony rides and backyard birthday parties, ballet classes (and gymnastics, figure skating and music lessons), take-out pizza on Friday nights, Girl Scout meetings after school, Friday night football games and the best family and friends a girl could ask for. I went to a Catholic all-girls high school and would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I was a member of Mock Trial, the Junior Statesmen of America debate team, Students Against Drunk Driving and C.A.R.E (Christian Actions Reaching Everyone). I sang Alto in the school choir and acted in the ensemble cast of the Spring musicals. I played softball, Varsity volleyball and even spent a season cheering on the football team of our brother school. I made friends with some of the best girlfriends I could ask for, broke many a boy's heart and learned a little bit about life inbetween. I had the quintessential high school experience. And no, we didn't "look like Britney Spears in our uniforms and knee socks." Boys, consider yourselves lucky if we remembered to shave our legs on date night.


I met my soul mates at Villanova University. And no, I'm not talking about the first love of my life, but my college girlfriends. While pursuing our degrees in Nursing, we laughed until our sides hurt, cried until we thought we couldn't cry any more, learned our tolerance for beer pong and fishbowls at the local pub, climbed in and out of a few boy's windows, broke some more hearts and made memories that would last a lifetime. There's a saying about how you go to college to find your bridesmaids and that's exactly what I did.



Although I spent many long hours tucked away in the
library cramming for Nursing Research, Organic Chemsitry, Pathophysiology (or some other subject that I thought was going to be the demise of my nursing career), I managed to get out long enough to find the true love of my life, my husband Michael.


For the sake of typing, Michael will further be affectionately referred to as "Hubs." Maryland boy meets North Jersey girl. It was a match made in heaven. Not to mention we made a killer beer pong team. After three years of dating, Hubs finally listened to me and proposed. It was a storybook proposal that I will save for a future post, because in truth, it really does deserve a post all it's own.


I graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing in May of 2005 and until recently, have been employed by the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania as a Registered Nurse on the Hematology/Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit. It was here that I began one of my life's passions, working with patients diagnosed with cancers of the blood, such as leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma. Much like Hubs and his proposal, my experiences as an Oncology nurse and the many patients who have touched my life cannot simply be crammed into this simple diatribe. Recently, I made the transition to the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania where I currently work as an Outpatient Chemotherapy Infusion nurse. Thoughts on this transition are in the making.


Are you still with me? I'm a blissfully, happily married newlywed who's working as an Oncology nurse until she a) finds the cure for cancer or b) grows up to become a trophy wife/stay-at-home mom. I grew up with a relatively crazy/sometimes normal family in the suburbs of North Jersey and within the last thirty days, together with my husband, I've decided to get a puppy, change jobs and move into an 80 year old twin home. All while trying to reign in my sanity.






Hold on tight.. this is sure to be a wild ride.