Nina the Alcoholic

The nights at Rose Care Nursing Home could be long and often it was a struggle to stay awake. Every two hours we made the rounds and changed the patients, gave a drink of water or called the nurse when one needed meds or had other problems. 

I remember how Nina loved to munch on ice, and always kept a glass setting on the desk at the nurse's station. When we would go back to the desk after making the rounds part of her ice had melted and she would drink the water then munch the ice while we wrote in the patients charts.

One night I had a bright idea and sneaked the rubbing alcohol and poured some into her glass. Nina took a big swig and about choked to death on it. I thought she would always be cautious about leaving it after that, but time after time I pulled the same trick on her.

I told Nina that it would be my fault if she became an alcoholic.