I'm getting a little to focused on my next phone. It's after all JUST a phone. Or maybe it's more appropriate for me to call it an internet device. I rarely make or receive calls, but I have it constantly (outside of work of course) at my side and am constantly looking things up on the internet.
When I got my current phone in July or August last year I was very excited. I had wanted an Android phone since they first came out. I had seen friends and even family with them and was so deeply green jealous that I just couldn't stand it. It wasn't completely selfish though... I wanted to bring my Mom into the smart phone age too. I was still new in the job and reveling in having enough money to pay any bills, so I decided to pay back Mom. She had been paying for my cell phone bill for years. And while she didn't really know what she would even do with a smart phone, I told her flat out that I was going to get her one and take over paying the bill for it.
Shopping for them was fun. There were really two 'big' hero phones out at that time. The Samsung Galaxy S4, and the HTC One. They had similar specs, similar sizes, and similar features. I was actually leaning toward the One as it had an aluminum back and, to me at least, therefore felt higher quality. But then the sale came. Sprint (my carrier of choice for the past 13 years or so) had a 'Buy One, Get One Free' sale on the Galaxy S4. That made it both more economical over all and easier to convince mom to get a good phone.
So for the past 14 months, I've had a Samsung Galaxy S4. It's... well it's nice enough. I put a nice case on it that took away from it's cheap feel, and it's worked well enough. There was one bit of slow down on the phone, but backing it up and doing a factory reset made it all right again.
This past month I started considering what would replace it. I could of course get a Galaxy S5, but honestly besides a few evolutionary steps, it's the same phone. I could always get the newer version of the One (the HTC One (M8)), but again it's just an evolutionary step forward. So I sat back and considered what I really wanted out of a phone. Usage analysis is always my friend. This past month I have used 13 minutes of voice.
13 minutes.
Yeah... I don't talk a lot on the phone.
According to Sprint I've used about 4 gigabytes of data... but I use my phone in WiFi hot spots A LOT. I'd guess that I'm actually closer to 15 Gigabytes of data on my phone. So what I want out of a phone is a better internet experience. And for that, there's only one way to go... the Phablet.
The phablet category has grown quite a bit int he last few years, and almost every manufacturer has one. Samsung's current version is the Note 4 which was just released. I'd consider it, but it has the same drawbacks as the S4... it's common. Don't get me wrong, it has the highest set of specs and features of any phablet, But I've held one in the store, and it just feels... average. There's HTC's new entry... the HTC One Max. Yes, it's basically a bigger version of the HTC One which I already like... but they kind of spiked the ball on the specs. Slower, less ram, smaller.... it firmly sits in the shadow of the Note 4. Since I really do want 'one of the best', I have to take it out of consideration.
I was about ready to just throw up my hands and wait until I was elegible for a new phone (not until April 1st), when I saw that Google was introducing a new phone in their Nexus line up. The Nexus 6.
A quick word about Google's Nexus line of phones and tablets (and now a TV device). Google's idea behind the Nexus line was to show what Android could do in it's raw format. Most manufacturers (Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG, Asus...) that put out Android devices add their own 'skin' to it. Yes, it's still android, but the operating system plays under their format. Samsung has Touch Wiz, HTC has Sense. They add extra features which on the surface are nice, but it makes upgrading them more difficult. When Google puts out a new version of Android (they just released Android Lollipop (5.0)), these manufacturers have to develop a new version of their skin to work with it. Even the newest phones (The Note 4, the Moto X, the One Max...) have months to wait until they get upgraded. The Nexus 5 (Googles phone from last year) will have Android 5.0 in a matter of days. When they inevitability unleash a new Android (say 5.1), the Nexus devices will get it in a matter of weeks. Other manufacturers will get it in months... if ever. There still hasn't been any concrete evidence that my S4 (only a little over a year old) will get Android 5.0.
Previous Nexus phones have been firmly mid pack. Not the biggest, not the fastest, mediocre cameras, nothing that really made them stand out besides coming directly from Google (Google supports them, but technically they are manufactured by other companies... the Nexus 6 is from Motorola, so it naturally looks like a big version of the Moto X). But the Nexus 6 DOES stand out. First and foremost it has a 5.96 inch screen. Six Freaking Inches! That's bigger than the Samsung Note 4, the LG G3, the HTC One Max... it's bigger than almost every phableet out there. They also piled on with one of the biggest batteries, one of the highest resolution screens, one of the fastest processors, and 3 GB of ram.
So.. unless something unusual happens before April first in the phone/phablet world, I've decided upon my next phone. The Google Nexus 6.
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Had an odd day at work yesterday. Thursday was my day off, so that evening I checked into my work email to see if anything special was going on. It seems that we would be getting 20 transfers in. 20!!!! The team was one LPN, one RN, and myself. So I'd either be in the Med Room (ick), or dealing with 20 transfers plus all the other quirky madness that would eventually derail any chance of getting 20 transfers done (ick).
One RN wrote into a supervisor and suggested he and I trade places. He was scheduled to work on the North Side, and figured since he works 12 hours as opposed to my 8 hours, he could offer more help. Thankfully the supervisor decided to go with what we already had planned. Logistically it would have been a pain to make this last minute change. He would have already been scheduled with call outs on the North side. The first for hours of callouts would either have to be crammed into my 8 hour shift, or taken up by other RNs. And while he would have more time than me to prep the transfers, there was no way to say whether the transfers would get in early enough to take advantage of that extra time.
So... I stayed on my South Side. I did end up in the Med room, but I had a light call out schedule so I was able to lend a hand with the Transfers. Between me, a first shift RN, and the scheduled second shift RN we got them all done. Hell, the other RN actually got done early enough to leave 25 minutes early.
One thing that's pissing me off at work though, is how the med rooms are run. We have to have a corrections officer outside of the med windows to do mouth checks. Yes, when our inmates take their pills they have to open their mouths and prove they swallowed their pills. This CAN be done by the nurses, but the COs make the process run faster. We call out our inmates by the housing unit they are in. We have eight housing units, and divy up their meds by unit. So while we are going through Unit B, we only have meds for Unit B at our finger tips. Again, this is done to make sure we get through the medline as fast as possible. AS is, it takes us about an hour to run the med line. If all the inmates were able to come up to the med window whenever they wanted, it would be chaos. Chaos that would last easily for two hours.
So.. it's been firmly set for at least the year+ that I've been there that inmates come up when their unit is called. If they come early, they get sent back and told to return when their unit is called. The only honest problem is inmates that have other callouts during med line. Say a visit, or a class, or gym time. Between the nurses and the COs we decided that there would be a 'Last Call'. This would happen about an hour after the rest of the medline, and ensure that those that were unable to come to the med line could still get their meds.
Lately though, that's been changing. Inmates come early to get their pills (slowing down the line). Inmates come late to get their pills (slowing down the line). Inmates come to last call without having any reason that they couldn't have come to the regular med line (slowing down the last call). I can understand the inmate's reasoning.... they want to control something in their lives and don't want to be told exactly when to come up and get their meds. They don't' want to stop what they are doing (playing basket ball, playing cards, staring blindly out of a window....) to come and get their meds when they are told. Hey... I get it... I wouldn't want to do that either. But these are not merely patients... they are inmates. They have proven that they cannot live within society's rules and therefore get to live for a time in a place where they MUST live by the rules.
Most of my job is as a nurse. I care for these inmate's health and well being. But part of my job is also as a representative of the Michigan Department of Corrections. I should stand up and demonstrate what a good member of society looks and acts like. So should all the other nurses. So should all the other various employees. So should all of the Correction Officers.
I think many of the med room nurses have forgotten that second part. When inmates come up out of turn, they just slow down and get them their meds. As a nurse I completely agree with that... a patient of mine has come to me for meds therefore I will give him his meds. But I'm not completely being a good nurse to them. I'm encouraging their behavior to act outside of the rules. I'm letting them know that it's OK to come early or late.
So when I'm in the med room, I take a stand. If an inmate comes early, I tell them politely that their unit has not yet been called and that they can get their meds only after their unit has been called. I DO allow them to come late, but only because the COs often run the medlines too fast, calling the next unit before the current one is done.
I of course get a lot of flack from the inmates about my stand. Cries of "The Other Nurse Gives Me My Meds!!" are a common scene at my window. I also get people trying to come early with a 'reason'. They try to say that because they have an appointment during med line (say a class in school) that they can come early. Again I get howls of dissent when I tell them that their appointment means that they can come to the Last Call... not early. I even occasionally point out that they are skipping out on an their current appointment by coming to the medline, and therefore can earn a ticket.
Two things about this bother me. One... I get nothing but support from the other med room nurses for taking this stand. I dont' think they realize that one of the reasons I have to take this stand (and therefore take the flack from it) because they DON'T take the stand. If we all would enforce the rules, then it wouldn't be any surprise to the inmates that I ALSO take the stand. So while I appreciate their support, I am also angry that I'm one of the few doing so. The other thing is the inconsistent Officers.
Inmates of course complain that they can't get their meds early. They even complain to the officers standing outside our windows. Now remember, this wasn't simply a nursing decision.. we worked this out WITH the officers. So when the officer comes into my view and tells me to "just give him his meds".... well I get especially angry.
First off, who the hell are YOU to tell ME when and where to give medicine. Second, when has an inmate whining about the rules meant that we can bend or break the rules just to shut them up? I don't ever tell an Officer to 'do their job'. I'm not a correction's officer and I don't know what their responsibilities are.. except that none of their responsibilities include anything health care related. So by doing my job in the way that eveyrone agreed my job should be done, I'm getting flack from the inmates that's actually encouraged by the actions of the other nurses AND the corrections officers.
Yesterday I took a stand. When the officer looked into my window and said "Oh, just give him the meds and let's move on", I stood my ground and said simply "No". I made no move to get the meds and continued to stare down the officer. It was only for a few seconds, but the officer backed down and told the inmate to move on and come back when his unit was called.
I may be putting to much into that seconds long stare down... but I think I saw respect in the officer's eyes. I think he wanted to do the right thing, but was buckling under the pressure and was relieve that I was going to take the stand.
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It SNOWED last night! I actually had to use the snow brush on my car before driving home from work!
YAY SNOW!!!!
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I'm starting to get a little pissed off at British television. I had been told to watch Luther by many friends and finally buckled under the pressure. I was a fan after two episodes and looking forward to enjoying the three seasons. Then I found out that the first season has only 6 episodes. The second and third seasons only have 4 episodes apiece. That's not a season of shows... that's a freaking mini series.
Now I'm getting sucked into Sherlock. I was hooked 20 minutes into the first episode. DAMN IT!! It has three seasons, each with three episodes. Nine episodes isn't even considered ONE season here in the States!
That being said, I enjoy these shows enough that I'm going to be looking up other British television shows to watch.
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Michigan's athletics director quit. Dave Brandon has officially stepped down. I'm not sure how to feel about this. He was successful in getting and spending money for the university. He upgraded many of the athletics buildings while at the same time generating more profits. This year, Michigan has a five million dollar surplus in the budget. That's five million dollars that can improve buildings, pay more for coaches (so that they either come to the school or stay longer at the school), charge less for tickets.... for anything.
At the same time, Mr Brandon has treated the University of Michigan athletics program like a business. He's trampled some traditions, and been in the spotlight as much (if not more) than the coaches or the student athletes. He screwed up on the Shane Morris incident earlier this year. He's written emails to fans that include statements like "You're drunk, go home and go to bed", and "You should pick another team to be a fan of, we'll do fine without you".
So... now he's gone. Michigan now has to hire a new athletic director to run it's 122 million dollar department with a president that only took his job in July. His previous stop? The athletics heavy Brown University (yes... that was sarcasm). And that athletic director's first job will more than likely be firing Brady Hoke and hiring a new college football coach.
Good luck.
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I guess that's all for now. It IS Saturday and while I have to work, I still want to get some College Football Gameday in before I do!
Ta TA
C
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