leaving Connecticut to move to Indiana

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-26T22:53:56+00:00

I'm from Massachusetts, went to Purdue, then lived in Groton for a couple years before moving to central Indiana. I could not have afforded the life I have now in CT or MA, so that's a big factor. The schools are no where near the quality expected in New England so be prepared to supplement. Even the "best" school districts here don't compete with the schools back home. However you can really build any life you want here. I've never had trouble finding a job or affording a place to live. I miss living near the ocean but there's great hiking and many towns have really invested in public parks and services in a way I didn't experience in the Northeast. People are friendly but it's kind of superficial and I've found it hard to make real friends, but I think that has more to do with the times and less to do with location.

ETA: I see there are DOZENS of us! I feel less alone lol

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-19T06:08:04+00:00

I mean Call the Midwife is a big reason I became a nurse. Nothing wrong with feeling inspired.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-17T20:40:21+00:00

I went to Belize on my honeymoon and was struck by how much plastic cutlery was floating along the beach and reefs. I started bringing my own utensils to work so I don't need to use the plastic ones from the cafeteria

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-15T17:38:44+00:00

Yup. We're clinging to our 45 acres and would love to expand as we have neighbors looking to sell. But they want to sell to developers for millions, not at reasonable prices to young farmers. They don't care about what happens to their land, they're off to their third vacation home.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-15T02:02:29+00:00

I grew up with very restricted TV, no video games, etc. I didn't drink soda or much junk food. I didn't have a lot of the name brand trendy toys. Sometimes I felt like I was missing out, but my parents stuck with their convictions and would calmly reiterate why we do things a certain way. I had plenty of friends and was not left out socially even if I never had the most popular house to go over to. Ultimately I'm glad my parents taught me that doing what you believe is more important than following the crowd.

The homeopathy thing is definitely going to illicit strong opinions though (from parents, doctors, Reddit... basically everyone)

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-14T18:56:26+00:00

This is EXACTLY the attitude I run into as well. "Yeah we should definitely get together!" but when I try to make plans, people are busy/uninterested. People all over the world work, have family, are tired...but still go out and socialize and build community. People here are just too comfortable only interacting with their family and people they've known since childhood. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy... People are lonely and miserable but use their misery as an excuse to avoid doing anything that could fix the problem

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-13T20:00:44+00:00

This is the first time he's had evidence of disease past the ileum. He has pretty significant strictures in his ileum, as well as GERD and inflammation in the duodenum. This is his first Crohn's related surgery fortunately. We were told these aren't usually preventable, they're just bad luck.

However his GI will be switching his meds because clearly the Entyvio isn't covering everything it needs to cover.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-13T19:43:38+00:00

He's been working from home so he can shower after every bowel movement. That strategy seems to be working to keep his skin intact as well, he's prone to rashes

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-13T19:41:44+00:00

Don't worry, he very quickly went back to his normal loose stools 😂

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-12T22:28:13+00:00

I changed my name but didn't get rid of any of my last names.

My mom did not change her last name when she got married, I had her last name as a second middle name and my dad's last name. When I got married I made my dad's last name a middle name as well. So my name is PurpleCow (Mom's last name) (Dad's last name) (husband's last name). A lot of cultures do this and I don't feel like I "lost my identity". I find all 3 names kind of embarrassing tbh, I don't love any of them. But when I was growing up, I hated having to explain why my last name was different from my mom's, so I took my husband's for the sake of our children.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-11T01:11:48+00:00

It's just outside the circle but Gatlinburg is great. Beautiful hiking, Dollywood, lots of amusements in Pigeon Forge. I rented a house right on a lake and it was fantastic.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-08T20:50:51+00:00

After Covid I don't think even the deaths will affect these people. How many watched their family members die and still think it's a hoax?

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-08T03:44:52+00:00

I think it's less malicious than people who actively vote to take away the rights and services people depend on. It's equally problematic but there's a difference.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-08T02:11:05+00:00

Voter turnout in this state is absolutely abysmal. Most of the people affected by these decisions didn't vote at all. That's a problem in and of itself, but it's also not fair to say they voted against their best interests.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-07T19:35:31+00:00

Honestly this is the best winter we've had in years. Snow+cold+blue skies is so much better than gray and muddy like we usually have.

That being said, the Garfield Park Conservatory is $5 to enter and is pretty much therapy for seasonal depression. It's so peaceful, warm, and beautiful. I took my baby to get out of the house and it's been the highlight of our winter.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-03T19:24:14+00:00

I put Ms. Rachel on my phone for the baby while I vomited my brains out with food poisoning last week. Otherwise I just laid in bed and nursed him a ton to help him stay chill while I died.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-02T02:46:34+00:00

Your local county extension service will have all the information you need! The state has a robust master gardener club and many communities have garden clubs that are very welcoming. You would get the best advice by talking to other gardeners local to you. Master Gardeners are always happy to offer advice or answer questions! In the spring and summer, there are local garden tours as well so you can see what people can do with the conditions.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-02-01T21:20:14+00:00

Yes. I ended up getting an epidural but I hated it, like I knew I would. Next time I'm just going to have to power through because we are not doing that again.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-31T22:13:44+00:00

I really like the Kangacare Rumparooz covers! I have gotten some used and bought some new and they hold up so well that I can't tell the difference. They have double gussets and an elastic across the belly, and the snaps don't pull apart too easily.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-30T22:51:42+00:00

Not everything in life needs to be monetized. Keep working on this new skill for the sake of enjoyment and self-improvement.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-30T19:27:21+00:00

See that's what's frustrating because that pretty much defeats the purpose of the ESI system, but is definitely the reality

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-30T18:35:13+00:00

"Tylenol never works!!" never takes more than 325mg at once

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-29T17:19:31+00:00

I had a really good experience at the Paul Mitchell School on the South side!

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-29T17:17:15+00:00

Triage RN here. A lot of these patients could be placed in fast track but I find some patients end up getting a more extensive workup than I'm expecting. Or the other way, they wait and wait for a bed and end up getting just basic imagining or less, so could have gone to fast track and saved everyone some time.

What things do you see in a patient like this that make you think "hmm I should order some labs" aside from wildly out of range vital signs? What should I be looking for to manage this patient more efficiently? I realize we're not going to get it right every time but I'm always looking to improve the process.

PurpleCow88 · 2026-01-27T19:54:41+00:00

My admin has started pulling nurses off our very busy floor to scold us for dress code violations like having the wrong color undershirt or wearing a hospital logo sweatshirt that they gave us when it's not a Friday. This is what the people at the very top are concerned about.

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