I tripped on uneven concrete steps at a house where I'd gone to look at a secondhand television, pitched forward from the bottom several steps, and planted my face in the street.
Blood everywhere.
As hard as I hit that asphalt, it's a wonder that all my front teeth weren't knocked out!
Somehow, I managed to climb the stairs to the house I'd just left, and the woman living there gave me cold cloths for my face. As soon as I could manage using my cell phone, I phoned The Merry Widow, who took a cab to where I was being loaded into the ambulance and, driving the van I had used to drive to the woman's house, followed the ambulance to the hospital.
In the ER, I spent three hours being assessed: vitals, CT scan, tetanus shot.
No broken bones, no concussion, no blurred vision, but many deep cuts and abrasions — and five stitches inside my upper lip. The numbing injections for that upper lip were the worst part of this entire event. Exquisite pain!
Lots of swelling and lots of pain this morning. My upper lip is nearly inside out and looks as if I've had multiple injections of collagen. Eating is problematic.
The ER doctor recommended that I consult a plastic surgeon. Really? Really? At my age? I think not! I don't have good luck with surgeries.
By the way, the ER doctor never said, "The lip will need stitches." Instead, she said, "That lip will need repair."
Being the kind of person I am, I blurted, "What kind of repair? Do you mean stitches? Why don't you just say so?"
I'll quote Shakespeare's Hamlet on this sad event: "Horrible! Horrible! MOST HORRIBLE!"
ReplyDeleteI'd advise consulting a good, hyper-aggressive trial lawyer to ascertain whether you have sufficient grounds for SUING the owner of those steps –– or possibly the CITY? –– for everything you could possibly get?
If the answer is "Yes." I wouldn't hesistate for a NANOSECOND to pursue compensation through the courts.
Many reputable trial attorneys will agree to work in a CONTINGENCY basis. That means they take a hefty percentage of whatever amount you win, but you pay virtually NOTHING if you LOSE.
I hope you heal quickly. I also hope the Merry Widow doesn't collapse under the severe strain of helping you and your husband through this, apparently unending, series of truly horrendous crises.
FT,
DeleteI'm not inclined to sue. I went to that house voluntarily.
I should have followed my instincts when I first laid eyes on the decrepit place: I almost decided not to pursue the prospective purchase of the television set.
Still - their home owners insurance could/should cover it. Doesn't hurt to pursue it with a Personal Injury Lawyer.
DeleteAMEN, WC!
DeleteI'm sorry to hear it, AOW.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say to make you feel a little better is to be thankful you didn't lose a couple front teeth.
That is a blessing, Ducky, but dealing with the situation, as it is, is more than tough enough. I'm glad The Merry Widow –– dear, saintly person that she is –– is there to help both Mr. and Mrs. AOW through this terrible time.
DeleteI only hope that she doesn't collapse under the protracted stress.
Has spring finally come to Boston, or are you still besieged with snow and ice? If the crocuses have come out, you know relief is in sight. ;-)
Duck,
DeleteI've detected one chipped tooth, but the chip appears to be superficial. When I'm well enough to go to my dentist, I'll schedule an appointment.
Somehow, I managed to protect my operated eye. I will see the ophthalmologist a week from Monday just to make sure.
Has spring come to Boston?
DeleteNo way, we're in the middle of a late nor'easter. Luckily, Boston proper is only in for a couple inches but further north may get close to a foot.
March was several degrees colder that February. Go figure.
Ouch! I hate local anaesthetics. I'm such a baby, I can't stand that sharp kind of pain!
ReplyDeleteI think they can often use glue now, maybe he wasn't sure which alternative would be appropriate? Hope you heal up soon.
So so sorry to hear. Just doesn't seem to end for you...
ReplyDeleteFor all that you have endured it seems that you are handling it quite well!
ReplyDeleteAOW has the patience of Job, Jon, and the strength of a she-lion, BUT I think she's long overdue for a break. Her capacity to endure unpleasnatness never ceases to amaze me. She's a very brave lady.
DeleteI may have those qualities, but this landing on my face is real trial.
DeleteI'm not a big sue-er, either, but if you mount up any medical bills, perhaps there's insurance by those owners?
DeleteI'm SO SORRY you had this awful fall and so grateful your teeth seem okay and YOU are basically okay!
TMW is a saint...
It is possible that Medicare and Medigap may want me to sue. We'll see.
DeleteOh. My. Word. This is awful. I'm so sorry to hear. Hope that you're feeling a little bit better today and that your kitties are consoling you. Wishing you a super speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteI echo FreeThinke's comment about how good it is that The Merry Widow is there to help. That is a big consolation.
Cube,
DeleteWorse today, but the ER doctor said to expect that.
Nurse Cameo has been ailing, but she has still checked on me from time to time.
Just call me The Bride of Frankenstein! I'm avoiding mirrors for a while.
ReplyDeleteThat may be, AOW, but I wouldn't worry, unless you can't see your reflection at ALL anymore.
DeleteYou what THAT means, of course, don't you? ]:^}>
My best wishes for a speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteMustang,
DeleteThank you, my friend.
Did something similar once, glad you're relatively OK.
ReplyDeleteThat's the only decent thing I can ever remember your saying, ThisOne.
DeleteIt's good to find out that you are at least half-human after all.
Stay well.
I am terribly sympathetic, having done something similar not that long ago. I feel that I must remind you that:
ReplyDeleteGravity: It's the law!
The older we get, the less likely we are to be let off with just a warning! Hope you're feeling better soon.
Mike,
DeleteGravity always wins.
I was extremely fortunate that I didn't break any bones. I'm at risk for fractures (early osteoporosis).
I had a bad fall on my kitchen seven years ago. I fell on my face on a very hard ceramic tile floor. It tore out the stitches in my corneal transplant. If it had not been for the fortuitous presence of a neighbor across the street, I would have lost my right eye completely.
DeleteAs it is only a partial repair of the cornea could be done. Three months later it died in my eye, and the entire operation had to be performed again.
I had had 20/30 vision before the fall, now I am stuck wth 20/70-20/90 depending on the weather. Better than total blindness, of course, but hardly the most desirable outcome.
Needless to say, I've walked with a cane ever since to help steady me and help maintain my balance. These days whenever I go out I am never alone, and I must move very gingerly, not because I am in any way crippled, but because I learned –– the hard way –– that "An Ounce of Prevention" really "is Worth a Pound of Cure."
I too am fortunate not to have broken any bones, or even suffered a sprained wist or ankle. I'm also firtunate just to be alive, and still able to enjoy many of the good things in life.
O believe we have to be good sports about misfortune, try to learn frm it, always be grateful it wasn't worse, take what's left wth good grace, and keep on smiling no matter what.
After all there are always untold millions more who have far less to be grateful for than we.
A POET SPEAKS:
“If thou of fortune be bereft,
And in thy store there be but left
Two loaves, sell one, and with the
Dole, buy hyacinths to feed thy soul.”
~ John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892)
FT,
DeleteI'm certainly not to the point of needing a cane.
But I am to the point of avoiding decrepit stairs -- particularly decrepit stairs without a railing.
The irony for me: I chose to go down those stairs because going down that decrepit driveway on foot was clearly not safe. I had approached the house by going up the driveway partway, then abandoned that route for the muddy grass.
My eyes seem okay right now, but I did take a blow over the left brow. I'm concerned about the left eye because of the previous retinal detachment.
"Pride goeth before a fall" – quite literally in your case.
DeleteI strongly urge you to carry a cane from now on as a precautionary measure.
"Better safe than sorry."
FT,
DeleteIt's not a matter of pride. I'd probably trip over a cane. I used a cane after knee surgery in 2009 and actually tripped over the damn thing.
A cane wouldn't have helped me on those decrepit stairs.
Again, I should never have gone up the hill to that dilapidated house.
Sorry to hear that, AOW. I had a similar experience several years ago on a snowy morning when I was helping my son deliver newspapers. I missed a step and landed face first on a brick edging. Very unpleasant. Just a chipped tooth. No law suit either.
ReplyDeleteWishing you a speedy recovery! Take care!
ReplyDeleteThis evening, I'm looking less like the Bride of Frankenstein. Still hideous, though.
ReplyDeleteI haven't yet ventured out into public.
A reminder of how our lives often hang by a thread and fortunately, your injuries were not major. I would avoid mirrors for a while.
ReplyDeleteTry eating bone broth. Lots of collagen replacement for repair.
Mike,
DeleteIt is amazing how fast my face is healing. One of my RN friends told me that facial injuries heal well because of excellent blood supply.
Some of the ER doctor's warnings never came to pass. For example, she said that I would hurt all over for a few days. Never happened! Despite the fact that I'm mildly osteoporotic. I believe that I'm not sore all over because I have good musculature, which makes me younger than my age.
A reminder of how our lives often hang by a thread
No more stairs without railings for me!
I can't eat in public. I'm now a droolie. Damn.
ReplyDeleteAnd I can't sip from a straw, either. Can't purse my upper lip enough to do so. Bummer.
I'm so sorry to learn of your recent trauma. It seems that your unlucky streak with bad health just doesn't want to end. My thoughts are with you at this difficult and painful time. All I can say is one word: Gesundheit. Get better very soon!
ReplyDeleteSorry AOW. Considering things Do cycle, you should be due to be cycling UP now. I hope it goes that way.
ReplyDelete