BLUE LAWS

Some of you may be familiar with Blue Laws; and some of you may have never heard of them. Blue Laws were passed to keep people from working on Sundays or selling goods on Sundays, especially such items as alcoholic beverages in order to maintain religious standards. Blue Laws vary from state to state.

In my research of the life in Colonial America, I discovered just how strict some of these laws were, in particular the severity of the laws in New England. Here’s one that may astound you: A Blue Law on the books in New England in the mid-eighteenth century prohibited a man to kiss his wife on Sunday. 

I guess those lawmakers (men) thought it was work to kiss a woman and not pleasure after all. I have to wonder how well that law could have been upheld. Did the police invade homes and fields, and forests searching for couple who might be breaking the law? Can you imagine the outcry if such a law was enforced today? What about the invasion of privacy or the sanctity of marriage, or plain old freedom in the pursuit of happiness?

Postal clerks even today owe their Sundays off to the origination of Blue Laws. Not to grumble or anything, but nurses thought a Sunday off was a privilege...just sayin'. 

Here in the state of North Carolina the Blue Law prohibits the sale of alcohol from 2 AM and either 10AM or 12 PM on Sunday depending on county until 10 AM on Monday. 

Teddy Roosevelt

Gun hunting is prohibited on Sundays between 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM. I guess that allows worshippers the chance to get out of church before they start drinking or killing things.

Prohibition on Sundays still exists in 12 states due to Blue Laws: Alabama, Indiana, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Just so ya know, for those who enjoy road trips and alcohol, you can still drive to a bordering state to get some booze. Well, you probably already thought of it or did it I guess.

Is your state a Blue Law state? What is your opinion of the Blue Laws? Are you surprised that a state would allow revenue from alcohol sales to go to a neighboring state? Are you shocked that Blue Laws are still enforced in some states? If you were governor of a Blue Law state, would you try to repeal the Blue Law or would you work to keep it?

Sarah J. McNeal

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Nursing When It Was Like "Call The Midwife" by Sarah J. McNeal

Me at the CCU Nurse's Station at Mercy Hospital (1991?)

I binge-watched “Call The Midwife” on Netflix for days…and nights until I was on a zombie TV hangover. For those of you who know nothing about this series, it’s about nursing in London, England at the end of World War II when the country first instituted National Healthcare through 1962. I loved this series and I didn’t think I would. When I left nursing in the Emergency Department in 2009 to retire, I was burned out on nursing. After the medical center bought out the Sisters of Mercy in 1995, the demand for “excellent” care and the decrease in nursing personnel to carry that out made most nurses, including me, and especially veteran nurses who had been nursing for more than 10 years, feeling inadequate, worn out, and dissatisfied. On top of that, in order to cut costs on personnel and save money on wages, insurance, 401 K matching, and so forth, the administration decided all nurses were to work 12 hour shifts limited to 3 days a week and were dedicated to allowing no overtime. Consequently, patients were herded in and out of the department in record time. Quality care became a thing of the past. It got worse after I left according to some of my colleagues who still worked after I left.

So, when I watched this series about nurses dedicated to their patients, delivering the kind of care we used to give in the early years of my career, well, it took me back to those days when I loved my job. I actually woke up in the morning feeling a sense of purpose and eager to get to work and make a difference. My sister, who is also a retired nurse who specialized in psychiatric nursing, was on the same page I was about the change in nursing care then and now. I had the added pleasure of working with the Sisters of Mercy at Mercy Hospital. We changed sheets every single day and at night we changed the draw sheet (a thing of the past) and gave the patients a back rub and refreshments before their bedtime. We had time to do these things and it was encouraged and expected that we would CARE about those patients and spend time with them. And, for me, I had the addition of the nuns and a resident priest who not only administered to the patients, but to the staff, as well. Father King held mass every day in the chapel and he made rounds at every nurse’s station and patient’s room.

We were encouraged to go to classes and some of them were expensive, but we were allotted the money to take courses that would advance our knowledge and level of care. I went as far as Virginia Beach to take a 2 day seminar from Dr. Marriot, a well respected expert on EKG interpretation, to learn how to interpret electrocardiograms. It was fascinating and enlightening. Later on, I even taught 12 lead EKG interpretation and heart rhythms to nurses in the coronary care internship program. I loved that stuff. And I loved those patients and their families.

Things have changed. The Sisters of Mercy could not compete in the financial world medicine had grown into and sold Mercy Hospital to Carolinas Medical Center. New technology has saved numerous lives through the advancements made in medicine like stents and angioplasties along with so many other medicines, treatments, and diagnostic procedures. Nurses aren’t taught to give tender loving care to their patients anymore the way we were. It’s all about cost effectiveness and time management. But I will always remember with the greatness fondness that time I spent delivering care in the same way those nurses did in “Call The Midwife”, and the support and care I received from the Sisters of Mercy and Father King.

By the way, I saw in the news yesterday that the shortage of nurses is so great now hospitals are offering 5 digit sign on bonuses as well as benefits, better hours, and great pay. It’s a hard, often grinding job, but maybe things are changing. Maybe they are coming full circle now and nurses can give the kind of care that nurses and patients both want.

One more little bit of trivia. Do any of you remember when there were ashtrays in the patients’ rooms and patients and visitors were allowed to smoke anywhere and everywhere? I remember one of the nuns, who shall remain nameless, who used to smoke in the utility closet. Just sayin’…

Here Comes Autumn

It’s chilly and raining here in North Carolina. Autumn is beginning to get a foothold now. There is a tinge of colored leaves on the oaks and maples on my street. The dogwoods seem to be in a hurry to get their autumn foliage out. On the news this morning, I heard the leaves have changed colors in the Smoky Mountains. It you’ve never seen that, it’s a beautiful sight.

I am flooded with memories of road trips to the North Carolina Mountains each autumn with the purpose of buying a pumpkin to carve for Halloween at one of the pumpkin farms. Oh sure, I could have bought a pumpkin at the local Farmer’s Market or even at the grocery store, but then I wouldn’t have had that memorable road trip.

One cannot travel through the mountains without stopping to buy apple cider and honey at one of roadside stands. Naturally, I had to visit every antique store along the way to look for a new whirligig or hand crafted Christmas ornament. Sometimes I had sensory overload looking at all the handcrafted items and quilts.

The trip wouldn’t have been complete without having a hot meal at a family owned restaurant. I loved those trips. Those were the days, my friend. I didn’t know at the time that I would be storing up all those wonderful memories to relive now.