Fall

Waiting in the ER as a family member is boring and nerve-wracking. Waiting as a family member and a physician, watching your parent wince in pain is excruciating.

When I arrived he was seated in a wheelchair in the “Green Zone”, where the sprains and strains are waiting. He looked pale and sweaty and his heartrate was about 110. (Normal is 60-80). I found the nurse, explained who I was (daughter, not doctor) told her in medical terms what I had found when I saw him. She did an ECG (normal except for the fast rate) and moved him into the main ER. And two hours later we are still waiting to see a doctor. He is triaged as “back pain” and so we wait.

I finally couldn’t take it anymore watching him wince in pain and asked a nurse if we could get him something for pain and moved to a bed. About twenty minutes later the doctor shows up and my dad is lying down in a bed. He’s still sweaty and in pain. He also says he’s a bit winded and has a bit of chest discomfort.

The squeaky wheel gets the grease.

Percocet on board and labs drawn.

More waiting.

And the worst of it? I was supposed to be with my daughter and Aunt watching a live production of Cinderella.

Day 8 – National Blog Posting Month.

There is a rather large oak tree on my neighbor’s lawn. It offers wonderful coverage for our bedroom window but it produces two things which I can’t stand.

Acorns and leaves.

Lots of both.

A few years ago I noticed a lot of acorns on my front lawn one day in late summer. So many in fact that I couldn’t walk barefoot because those acorns were like shards of glass under my feet. I’ve lived in my house for 8 years and it’s only been the last 2 or 3 years that I have noticed the acorns. And then there are the leaves. I’m not sure what it is about my house in particular but I feel like every single lead falls into my driveway, backyard and front lawn. These leaves are everywhere! I swear I see them down the block from my house too. I know they change colors and are quite pretty for a few weeks in October but they are a bloody nuisance to gather year after year. Just today I filled 5 paper lawn bags. Five!