Thursday, April 23, 2009

A Change of Plans

I took a few photos at Keeneland but was really too busy having a great time. We got there after post time of the first race and plunged into the teeming masses. All the reserved seats (in the shade) were sold out so we skulked around for a while trying to find a place to lean. Finally DD went and weaseled her way to one ticket that we shared. Actually we sat in seats that were empty around it but agreed with the dragon lady usher that we'd leave if the people came. (How rude did she think we were? Just because we're Yankees doesn't mean we're philistines, although I will say that those people were, en masse, the most polite I have been among in years.) I discovered a gift for the ability to choose and bet on the horse guaranteed to come in dead last. I flung my hopes, and $2, to the wind in 9 out of the 10 races. In only one did I choose the winner and reaped a tidy profit of $7.20. We were able to get down to the rail for the final race to see the horses flash past. It was a ton of fun and not terribly expensive.







That was Friday. On Saturday I felt a bit under the weather so after having a traditional Hot Brown Sandwich (toast covered with sliced turkey, ham, white sauce [mornay?], shredded cheddar, crispy bacon, sliced tomatoes, and then broiled) for lunch (Durwood and I split one or we'd both be in the grave), I napped while Durwood and DD went to Woodford Reserve distillery for a tour. They brought back bourbon chocolates and bourbon caramels. I highly recommend each. We met DD's friend and her mom for a Japanese hibachi/sushi supper which was excellent. Around 10 PM I got a pain under my ribs that wouldn't go away. Fearing food poisoning I spent 4 hours in the bathroom with no relief. We finally concluded that it was time for a trip to the ER. Durwood studied the map and phone book, plotted a route and got us there by 2:30 AM. It's good to marry an Eagle Scout. The doc said I was having a gall bladder attack, hooked me to an IV, and gave me some lovely drug that felt like ants were crawling in my veins but I didn't mind because they took all the pain away with them. Ahhh. And when the ants thinned out and the pain came back, they brought more ants so the pain went away again. Wasn't that nice of them? I had a CT scan and they said I had gallstones. The only thing to do is take out my gall bladder. They wouldn't do it then, I had to go home and get it done, so they gave me lots of nice pills (I think some have the same ants that were in the shots) and sent me away. I knit on Swifty on Sunday while the ants played pinochle on my snout.




I called my nice doc once we were through Louisville on Monday morning and got an appointment for Tuesday morning. Knitting on Thuja got me home. She got me a Tuesday afternoon appointment with the surgeon, and yesterday morning at 9 AM I had my gall bladder taken out. As easy as that. I was the star patient because I had to pee right away, didn't have much pain, and campaigned from the beginning to get the hell out of there. I won't horrify you with the photos of my bandaided belly and my sealed up bellybutton but I will show you the sock I cast on in the prep room and knit on whenever I had a chance. I finished the last row of the 2nd ribbing just as they said I could leave.







Now I'm home for a week with my able chef and manservant making me yummy things to eat and fetching yarn. He'll drive me to Friday Night Knitting Club tomorrow at Harmony Cafe so I don't miss any more time with my peeps, and I've convinced him that I need to go back to work next Wednesday. I've got one dive guy who called today and volunteered to come carry heavy stuff for me so I can go back sooner. They love me, my little dive guys. I love them too.

1 comment:

Ann said...

Aw, someone is very nice to offer to do your heavy lifting! Is it JJ?

I'm glad you were the star patient, and I'm glad you're feeling better. :) I love you.