Newborn Exam Day

I did no fewer than 13 newborn exams today. I did not, of course, catch all of those babies (I caught one and observed two others); there was a baby backlog when I arrived and a steady stream of babies in preparation for discharge. Today, there was a dad that WANTED to be there for the birth, supporting his wife and crying happily once his baby girl was born, following her to the warmer and taking pictures, and then singing along to some R&B type music he had on his phone, appearing to mesmerize his daughter with his swaying. Luckily nobody in the packed-full labor room seemed to mind, one mom in a world of her own across the hall, the other right next to him humming along, his own wife rather engrossed in hating being sutured (not that it was awful, but who in their right mind would LIKE that?).

No drama on the ward today. Two of my favorite people were on day shift, so that's what I did. A nursing student (they are not assigned shifts the same way I am, and I think they just have a number-of-hours requirement) that I'd signed off on one of her first vaginal exams a week or so ago assisted at a birth today; she was too busy standing there crying happily to administer the syntocin that they do routinely around here, which was such a lovely thing that I couldn't get upset. She'll get over that eventually, but hopefully never completely.

I left a little after 3, which left me enough daylight to go get changed and walk into town for some food at the waterfront. Chicken and fries and oversugared soda cafeteria style right next to the water, sharing a table with a woman and her shy 3-year-old granddaughter who were on the island for the weekend from "the next island over that way," which pretty much meant nothing to me. It was good to sit and talk though, and hear about her family. I think I understood most of it.

On the way back to the "resort," walking through the village-in-a-city area, I heard the rather unlikely sounds of a trombone and a trumpet, practicing two different scores simultaneously.

Back now, it's dark outside, and should I decide to leave the TV on I would have a choice between Meerkat Manor and rugby. Maybe I'll try to figure out the rules of rugby (football, as they say here)? It seems to involve short-shorts and jumping atop one another. Beyond that, the rules elude me.

Maybe just some reading time tonight, instead.