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2009-08-03 - 2:05 p.m. It's been a while since I've used this, but this seems like an appropriate place to answer questions. Cindy and I went on vacation last week. (this is the boring part that you have to get through or skip to get to the answers) We went to see some friends in Danville VA, a pleasant town with some good food and good deals on books. Then we headed south. Stopped by Wrightsville Beach, NC, a beautiful little beach town that we would like to visit more at a later date. Then we visited a cousin in NC and then then next day visited a cousin in KY. From there, we were going to go to Madison, Indiana, a historic town filled with interesting antique stores and other shops. Or is that shoppes? I can never remember. We never made it to Madison. Just north of Campbellsburg, Kentucky (maybe Campbellsville?) we went around a curve, one of the tires went off the road and when I tried to correct, the van pulled to the right and we slammed into a tree. Or group of trees. We ended up hanging at 45 degree angle or so over more trees and a stream. I found where my cell phone had been plugged in (thank god it wasn't still in my pocket) and pulled it until the phone appeared. Somehow, I managed to disconnect it and not drop it and call 911. When 911 asked where we were, I was totally lost. "In a tree" would not have helped at all. Fortunately, two guys stopped and told us what road we were on and what town we had come through last. Soon, a deputy sheriff was on site and help was on the way. I was unable to move my left foot because of the parking brake jammed into it. My shoe was soaked in blood. My hand was bleeding, fortunately from minor scrapes. Knuckles bleed alot. Cindy's legs hurt and her chest hurt. We were shaking like mad. Little absurdities from an accident: 2. I found my GPS and, being trapped and unable to do anything, I checked it. It was working. So, I clicked "Where am I?" and saved the location under the name "Wreck". 3. I almost died and killed my wife. Yeah. It's going to take more than a day or two to wrap my head around that little nugget of truth. They eventually were able to pry my door open and then were stuck about how to get me out. I finally reached down, moved my bloody foot out the door and stuck out my hands. They pulled and I walked (with help) up the hill to the road. They immediately strapped me in to a body board and cut away my favorite sweatshirt and shirt. An EMT ended up with my cell phone and returned it to me in the ambulance. I asked not to be transported until they knew that Cindy was out, ok, and being transported to the same hospital. Absurditie #4 Don't comment on the ambulance driver being a woman. When I did, she called back that she was lost and trying to stop for directions. We were all joking. They joked to keep me calm. I joked to keep from screaming or crying. Baptist Hospital Northeast in La Grange, Kentucky should be cited for excellent service. They were friendly, professional, and wonderful. If you ever have to hit a tree, do it near that hospital. Offer my name as a reference to get 10% more stitches free. My father called while the ER doc was examining me. He was calling to tell me that he had an MRI scheduled. My news was more exciting. He got ready to come down to pick us up. Then a friend called to "See how your vacation was going?". Turns out, he was already on his way to Louisville, which is pretty damn close to La Grange. We made plans for him to come get us and I called my dad back to tell him to stay home. I had a couple fainting spells and then we were discharged and sent home. We went to the junkyard, gathered up all we could (ended up leaving a box of tomatoes, a cooler, and a stuffed animal that I simply could not reach in the windshield) and headed home. The ride home was uneventful. We got to my in-laws house, watched as friends moved all our crap into the house, and then I sat down in the kitchen. The world went fuzzy, the ocean roared in my ears and when I could see again, the ambulance was on it's way. Turns out, I had blacked out again and was on my way to the ER once again. Remember all the great things I said about the people at the ER in La Grange? Yeah, I'm not going to say the same for my local hospital. I was strapped to the body board for over an hour. It would have been longer but my friend Tony went to find a nurse and told her I was nauseous. (Not a lie) Since throwing up whilst strapped to a board on your back is not a good thing, they quickly started service. After that, things went fairly well. It was determined that I was dehydrated and in shock. A bag of Saline and rest was in order. It's been a few days now and we're still staying at the in-laws. We're moving slow and healing. I have a follow up doctor's appointment tomorrow, but I think the advice will simply be to rest. I had my iPod while recovering. Many thanks to Helen E.H. Madden of HelenEHMadden.com and Philippa Balantine of www.weatherchild.com for their podcasts. They helped me through some sleepless nights. Much thanks to friends and family for the support and help. Even if you just tweeted a short word of support, it helped. One of you made yourself available for a 1 a.m. phone call. I greatly appreciate that. Ok, I'm done mind-dumping. Go do something fun, but for pete's sake, where your seatbelts. Seriously, without seatbelts, my wife and I would not be here today. We came a lot closer than I really want to think about and maybe someday, I'll be able to stop thinking about it. Love to you all and you know who you are.
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