Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Happy New Year 2007

Happy New Year to everyone. This year holds exciting things for me, I know it already! I have been talking about becoming a traveling nurse. I have been thinking a lot about it, and have talked to many people. Everyone I talk thinks that I should do it. They all say..." You are young, single....you should do it now, while you can!"

So...you ask, what is a traveling nurse? Well, a traveling nurse, is an RN who accepts 13 week contracts anywhere she wants to go. For instance, if I decide I want to go to Florida, I can call my agency up, tell them I want a job in Florida, they find it for me, and I go. The best part...they pay for transportation, provide a furnished apartment, pay for utilities, and pay me more than I make now.

So, what is the hold up? Well, I am currently in a lease with my apartment here until June 3. So, if I left before that, I would need to continue making rent payments, or speak with my leasing office, and see what my options are. It wouldn't be a big deal to keep sending rent checks, since I wouldn't be paying rent wherever I decided to go.

Where would I go first? I have no clue...except, my friend Mara, moved to California (just recently) and has mentioned it would be cool if I did an assignment near her. Which, I agree, would be totally cool. I could see cool sights, and be close to a friend to start with.

Where to go after that? I have no clue. I really want to go all over. I would love to see the East coast, maybe do some midwest assignment. Maybe Colorado. Any ideas? Another good motivating factor...they offer bonuses sometimes...so maybe I will go where the bonuses are.

Well, what do you (my blog readers) think?? Do you think this is a good fit for me? Do you think I should wait until May, or go in, say, March? If I wait till May/June, then I will have just about 2 years experience under my belt. Right now, I just have 1 1/2.

Let me know what you think, I really want your comments and constructive criticism. Let me know!!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Kath!
I work with a few traveling nurses and they love it. They are BF/GF and travel together. I would say go for it! Who knows where you could end up?? I didn't know they pay for travel, rent, etc...that is really a great deal!

Tash said...

Happy New Year Kathleen!! Hope you had a great one! I think the travelling nurse thing sounds like a great opportunity to visit lots of new/cool places, meet tons of new friends and earn a lot more money doing it.. There is potentially no down side!! If you do decide to do it are you able to bring Charlie with you too? I also think that if you go into your leasing office and tell them that you are being relocated for your job then you should be able to break lease either for free or a small fee instead of having to continue paying the full rent! Sounds exciting! And good luck with your decision!!!!!

Jeffrey said...

That seems like such a perfect way to see different parts of the country and meet new people. You may even find that some of us East Coasters are a little more appreciative of your qualities ... The love of your life could just be a 13-week working stint away. Anyway, sounds like a great opportunity to diversify your life. I often wish I had done more moving around to see all this country has to offer. Anyway, best of luck in your decision. ... And thanks for the info on Sparkpeople... ;)

Brandi said...

kathleen you HAVE to do it! what an amazing experience, and if you hate it, you can always quit after a rotation...I am jealous!

Anonymous said...

Ooh,ooh, pick Sacramento!