We were hit hard with snow while I was at work on Wednesday (the 12th)! Often times, light flurries cause things completely shut down around here, but this storm was no joke! The Governor declared a state of emergency. Everyone was advised to stay off the roads. A few coworkers (physical therapists, case managers, one nurse) left early in hopes of avoiding the traffic- but it took them hours to go what normally would take < 20 minutes! I had to work the next day (Thursday) and the roads were treacherous, so Perry and I decided I had no choice but to stay overnight at the hospital. Lovely. I would be miss my family and be uncomfortable, but at least our baby girl and I would be safe.
Our unit's conference room became my sleeping quarters. Being 6 months pregnant and having a difficult time getting (and staying) comfortable in my nice TempurPedic bed at home, I was not looking forward to spending the night on a sleeper-chair surrounded by a bunch of my coworkers! Honestly, I felt panicked. I went in early and claimed my spot- the corner furthest from the door (the door beside my "bed" is not used for anything and stays locked). I also went out to the parking lot to move my car into the deck as there were no spots available this morning! The snow had temporarily stopped but was already so deep! Smarty me didn't pack an overnight bag. Thankfully Perry has go-bags in both of our vehicles so I had a sleeping bag and a few essential toiletry items; I was lucky because the gift shop sold out of everything very quickly. Again smarty me hadn't packed clothes for the go-bags when Perry asked me to. I lucked out finding a random pair of jeans in my car- otherwise I'd be sleeping in Perry's go-bag boxers! I had a book in the car (something to pass the time between my shift and bedtime!) and my supervisor let me borrow a charger from her office for my cell phone. It all worked out. The Lord provided everything I needed!
After my shift ended, I got dinner in the cafeteria. They offered a Snowstorm Special. It was less than $5 for as much as you wanted from a buffet of random items- I think they used the opportunity to clean out their freezers! I got an egg-roll, jalapeno poppers, fried okra, mixed vegetables, baked ziti, fried chicken and chocolate milk... And a coworker gave me some Tums! I ate in the solarium with two of my coworkers and watched the cars go by on the main road below, and snacked on candy from the gift shop.
My manager set-up a movie night on the TV in our chemo treatment room but I was tired so I decided to just go to bed. She also made a shower sign-up sheet and let me have first dibs since I'm pregnant! The nice thing about unexpectedly sleeping at a hospital is there are plenty of linens and pillows. My "bed" turned out pretty good. I slept in my jeans and Perry's shirt. Sadly it didn't smell like him since it had been packed in the car for so long- I missed him and Gabriel so much! We weren't sure how well Gabe would go to bed since his routine was messed up (I am the one who tucks him in). We talked on the phone for a while, and Perry intentionally kept him up a little later so he would hopefully sleep well and not wake up in the middle of the night!
I, on the other hand, did not sleep well. I turned from side to side and fought with my pillows all night. And had to walk down the hall to use the bathroom several times. I woke up to my cell phone alarm and headed to the shower room. It felt good to shower and put on makeup, despite having to wear the same scrubs again {if anyone is wondering, I did have clean underwear on! I got disposable mesh panties from the hospital supply room. Hah!}
And that was my crazy experience of being snowed in at work {I hope it never happens again!} That evening after work the roads were somewhat better; I slowly made it home, safe and sound. Boy, was I glad to see Perry and Gabriel. The next day was Valentine's Day- I needed to be with my loves!!
