Adventures in Scrub Caps

So...think this is gonna be a Labor and Delivery Operating Room tell all? Ha. Not even. I do have some amazing stories, but you know...there's laws against sharing, and I'm just trying to feed my family, love on folks, & save some lives every once in a while. I do have to do a little commentary on what happens when people wearing scrub caps try to live their everyday lives out in the community. It actually boarders on being comical...like people haven't ever seen anyone in a scrub cap before. Some people can't handle themselves when they see a scrub hat wearer - it's like all etiquette on what to say to people flies out the window! Here's two prime examples. They occurred on the same day, about an hour apart from one another.

I left work a little early, like 1745 - if we're gonna talk medical here today, we gotta be legit - so, my husband and kids wanted to meet for dinner. I hopped outta my car, hugged my peeps, and started walking through the doors of a local restaurant. I walked in with my family and you would've thought that Moses was parting the Red Sea. The host dude clamored all over himself to get to us. Here's the convo:

Host: "Hi ma'am! How are you"?
Me: "I'm good, thanks".
Host: "Did you have a good day today"?
Me: "Uh, yeah. It was pretty good".
Host: "Were you busy"?
Me: "Sort of, but not too bad".
Host: "Come right this way".

We go to sit down at the table & host stays to chat....

Host: "So, I just have to ask you a question".
Me: "Okay".
Host: "Are you, like, um, um, a surgeon or something? Um, what are you"?
Me: "I'm a nurse". (it took every fiber of my being to not make up a killer, Grey's Anatomy type story about my day in the OR and how I saved 4 lives while The Fray was playing in the background and I had to wear a diaper because I was so hardcore that I couldn't even stop to pee)
Host: "Oh, a nurse. Do you work in an operating room"?
Me: "Yes. Today I scrubbed c-sections".
Host: "OH MY GOODNESS!! That would be absolutely amazing" Then he proceeds to tell me birth stories - because he has numerous brothers and sisters.
Me: "Awesome. Yeah, it's a pretty cool gig".
Host: "Well, if there's anything I can get ya, just let me know".
Me: "Okay".

The convo ended pretty non-exciting. The crazy part to me was the beginning. Seriously, just because I had on green scrubs and a hat, this dude thought I was somebody. He about knocked down the rack of balloons to get to me and my fam because he thought I was a surgeon. Really? Had I had on my typical off-day outfit of my hair on top of my head in a ball, minimal makeup, cropped black leggings & a big t shirt, him and his buddies would've paper-rock-scissored on who had to even get up off their humps to talk to me, my husband, & my energetic kids. Is this how surgeons are treated for reals out in public? Drop everything and fawn? Wowza. Add up all of my schooling & I went just as long as most of them. Maybe folks oughtta be droppin' the mic for me and my peeps. Ha ha. Not really. We all put our pants on the same way.

So, our dinner ends & I've gotta make a CVS run. I'm alone (woah, yeah, it never happens, but it did)!. I get my stuff and mosey up to the cashier.

Cashier: "Hey".
Me: "Hi"
Cashier: "Did you have a good day"?
Me: slight smirk "yeah, it was okay".
Cashier: "You were at the hospital, right"?
Me: "Ye--" (didn't get the word out yet....)
Cashier: "Oh gosh, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked you that. I mean, your hat". (appears flustered)
Me: "What"? (Confused. Just give me my Sally Hansen & let me go home)
Cashier: "I mean, you're okay, right"?
Me: "Huh"? (looking back, I'm a woman of many words at this moment - ha ha)
Cashier: "You're not sick, are you"?
Me: "uh, naw, I'm good".
Cashier: "I mean, like, you could've been at the hospital because you work there. Or, you could've been there because you were sick. Um, I wanted to make sure we didn't have an escaped patient".
Me: I busted out laughing. I couldn't handle it. "Naw, man, I was there to work. I'm just fine".
Cashier: "I'm glad. Have a nice night".

Absolutely hilarious. An escaped patient??!?!! Ha ha!! I think his first instinct was that I worked there...but then he started second guessing himself and trying to backpedal in case my hat was for a different reason. Should've just left well enough alone, dude. Straight asked if I were sick. That particular scenario has happened more than once. I always feel like I should say, "well, if I were, wouldn't you feel bad that you just called it out to me right about now and put me in an awkward position in which I have to discuss my medical condition with a random rude stranger"? Who asks people that?? The scenario of people thinking you're a surgeon happens frequently too. It happened at Rack Room Shoes, of all places, one night. I wanted to say (but, niceness won out & I didn't) - "dude, if I were pulling in surgeon salary, I wouldn't be up at the Rack Room Shoes". Ha ha ha!!!

Never ceases to amaze me. Another funny is when the biker crowd sees you out & compliments you on your "doo rag". Ha ha!!! It makes me smile and say "thank you" & tell them to go to www.blueskyscrubs.com to check it out!!!

I'm sure there will be many more adventures in scrub cap wearing...so until then, remember, maybe that person in a cap is a scrub tech, a nurse, a surgeon, a patient, or a biker. But, we all put our pants on one leg at a time & deserve to be loved equally. None of us like to wait for a table and we all may need to hit up a Rack Room Shoes occasionally. Share the love!!!! :)