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On Monday morning I started writing an entry on how things were finally starting to settle down after the big move and how much I was looking forward to getting back into a regular routine. When I got home from work, though, I started having some stomach pains that turned into a pretty miserable four hours. Unfortunately Heidi was in Orlando, FL for CTIA so I was all alone. When the pain went down enough so I could stand up and walk, I made a break for the ER.

A blood test revealed I had pancreatitis and would be admitted into the hospital when a room opened up. Easier said than done, I guess. I arrived at the ER around 10:30pm and was seen by someone around 11:30pm. It wasn’t until 3:00pm the following day, though, that a bed was available and I was in an actual hospital room. I guess prisons and freeways aren’t the only things crowded in California.

Thankfully, our friend Juiane stopped by and kept me company for a few hours while Heidi was flying back from Florida. It really meant a lot to me that someone was there to visit with. I felt bad that Heidi had to interrupt her trip; I even contemplated not telling her I was sick until her business stuff was done (I knew she’d insist on coming back). I figured she would freak, though, if I didn’t tell her, so I called her early on Tuesday morning. She was sure a sight for sore eyes when she walked through the door on Tuesday afternoon.

I went through a bunch of tests on Tuesday afternoon/evening. After some ice chips for dinner, Heidi and I enjoyed a scrumptious cable treat and watched three straight hours of Miami Ink on The Learning Channel.

There’s not much else to do but sleep and think when you’re stuck in bed without books, magazines, the Internet, or TV. Here are some of the things I learned during this latest “adventure”.

• Folks in the medical profession are a godsend. They really make a difference in people’s lives and, like teachers, are a bit underappreciated. (Until you really need them, that is.) Spending 15 hours in an emergency room will help open your eyes to all of the crap these people have to put up with and how well they are able to handle it.
• Sitting on your ass with a dead mobile phone battery, nothing to read, and really no one to talk to may be the content of frequent daydreams, but when realized, kind of sucks.
• Old people are tough as nails. Many of them are continually fighting their failing bodies all while maintaining their wit, wisdom, and sense of humor.
• The medical profession needs to work harder at decreasing the time gaps between “information feeds” to their patients. Personally, when I’m in the hospital I’m looking for status updates from someone on what the plan is and what the MDs are thinking. And, I need these more frequently than once a day.
• Ice chips are no substitute for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
• I totally want a bunch of bad-ass tattoos.

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