Sunday, August 29, 2010

Miracles Witnessed Here

I'm no stranger to emergency rooms, however it only occurred to me today - 24 days After Accident - that my myriad of ER experiences never included Trauma. I've been in emergency rooms for strokes, heart attacks and the usual kid and geriatric events. Never for anything remotely like this. I am in awe of people who choose to work in trauma and have a new appreciation, an undying admiration and respect for them all after this experience.

Being a huge fan of the past drama, "ER" and the current hit "House," I considered myself nearly an emergency room expert of sorts. Besides which, psychological thrillers are my favorite books to read, meaning literary blood and gore is commonplace in my head. Tess Gerritsen is a favorite medical mystery/thriller author. These facts came to me as I nearly passed out at least five times during the nine hours I was stuck in a corner while they worked on my husband. Well, dang it if that blood just wasn't so REAL and so EVERYWHERE. Trauma doctors and nurses and attendants and whoever rushing back and forth with blood bags and tubing and syringes and bandages and electronic doohickies, running tests and sewing stitches and creating a pile of bloody stuff that surely to God I hope they burned.

Oh, and then there was the paperwork. For every 15 minutes someone administered care to my husband there was some poor gal filling out 30 minutes of paperwork. With. Every. Deed. Massive amounts of trees were felled so that the proper papers could be filed in triplicate.

Eventually, blessfully, hubby was placed in SICU around 1am Saturday, August 7th after having been med-flighted by helicopter to Huntsville Hospital around 3pm Friday afternoon. Twelve days in-hospital and 3 surgeries later he is home. Both cheekbones were fractured, his jaw was broken in 4 places, lost multiple teeth, crazy amount of scalp and chin lacerations, broken right upper shin bone and right talus/ankle bone.

The cause? Discovered only the last week in the hospital hubby has an unusual heart arrhythmia that apparently developed over the last year. They only know because during his stay he was having some "blank out" times that couldn't be identified. A heart monitor proved that his heart would suddenly race like a machine gun - often for as long as 2 minutes. His blood pressure would plummet and he would basically blank out, or lose that time. So his last surgery, or procedure really, was the implanting of a teeny tiny defibrillator which will literally shock his heart when it goes into this "sudden death" (their word, not mine) arrhythmia.

Which leads us to the ladder. The last thing I said to him as he was leaving was "Do NOT get on a ladder today 'cause I won't be there." "Of course I won't," he quipped as he dashed out the door. However, right before leaving the lake house to head home he decided it wouldn't hurt to Spackle some cracks before painting. His feet were 10 feet up when he "blanked out." He's 6'1. You can do the math. The maxillofacial specialist said the only times he's seen this extent of massive trauma to the jaw also involved a broken neck, and/or paralysis or death. Hubby was "loose as a goose" therefore his injuries were much less than they could have been. Kinda like a drunk that walks away from a 10 car pile-up of his own creation.

So, there ya have it. I'm now nursing a very changed individual. We have been blessed by the generosity and kindness of manner of family and friends and its to them that this post is dedicated. Thank you all - each of you - for your cards and prayers, thoughts and generosity of time. My photography days have been put on hold for a bit, obviously. But those of you who know me KNOW that I've a bevy of images saved to share and stories to go with them. One day I may even do a great blog about Blue Cross Blue Shield. It won't be a pretty one, though.

Thank you all for your kind comments! I've missed being here and have missed you all!

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Here we go again...

Hubby on his (now sold) Harley.

My blog will be idle for a bit. The hubby fell from a ladder yesterday and is in the hospital. Multiple fractures, bruises, he hurts from top to bottom. I'll be there more than here, watching and praying. Please offer some prayers or well wishes for my husband if you can. Thanks, and I'll be back.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Creative Friday

Painted Lady
New England Asters
Sony Cybershot 5.0 Megapixel
Long Time Ago
Cropped and grainy and black & white
Texture: Shadowhouse Creations ABT3

I'm playing in Photoshop, reading and practicing tutorials from The Coffee Shop and using Jerry Jone's textures from Shadowhouse Creations. I strongly suggest visiting their blogs for inspiration. For you music lovers check out Jerry's new addition to his blog titled "Sackcloth and Ash." It's all music - great, wonderful music. These two folks share their knowledge and give away all manner of things. If you visit, tell them I said "Hello!" Have a wonderful Friday.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Gulf Fritillary

Gulf Fritillary
2009

A Butterfly Lights Beside Us

A butterfly lights beside us, like a sunbeam...
and for a brief moment it's glory
and beauty belong to our world...
but then it flies on again, and although
we wish it could have stayed,
we are so thankful to have seen it at all.

Author Unknown

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Monarch and Bee

Monarch
New England Aster
Bee
My yard
Wheeler Lake
North Alabama
2009

This sassy bee zizzed right in front of a Monarch sipping on an aster. That likely happens more than I think. Flowers are very close together and there are always a plethora of diners at any given time, plant to plant. This was 2009 on a day when the butterflies returned. It was late summer and temps finally warmed enough for them, I suppose. Last year was relatively cool as summers go, especially considering the desert droughts we'd experienced three summers in a row beforehand. Personally, I preferred it but clearly the butterflies thought otherwise for we didn't see any at all the first few months of summer. I can't speak for this year as I'm not there, in my garden, photographing bugs. Here, there are no asters or lantana so I cannot judge.

Are there lots of butterflies your way? How are weather patterns where you are? Here, it's been HOT, in the 100's.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Clouds

The view
from my mom's Sunny Beach Porch

July 2010

Sometimes, there are simply no words to describe the sky. On this day cotton balls floated amidst bridal veils backed by cerulean blue and cobalt. And this show was for free. No charge. It was enough to simply pour the wine, sit back and enjoy. Life Is Good.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Gardening Gone Wild Photo Contest Entry

Italian Rooftop Garden
Florence, Italy

We were in Italy for a 2 week stay the summer of 2006. Italy completely captivated me, my imagination and creativity, opened my heart and brought great joy to my spirit. Our first day there we traveled by train from Rome to Florence. To say Florence, Italy is beautiful would be like saying the sun is hot. Florence must be experienced first-hand for there are no words and no photos that convey how it really is. However, this missive is not to tell everyone about Italy, though no doubt I could fill my blog with tales and photos the rest of the summer. This missive is for my first ever entry into Gardening Gone Wild's Photo Contest. Thought I would give it a go this time ... just for grins.

But to set up the scene you must know that we walked from the train station straight to the Cathedral of Florence, beside which stands Giotto's Campanile. Giotto's Campanile is a free-standing tower residing alongside the Cathedral of Florence along with a host of other buildings. There are 414 steps up a narrow, winding passage. Trust me ... I counted every last one. Thankfully, windows come often, allowing any breezes. Landings allow one to catch one's breath. We climbed up, up, up, pausing at the main landings along the way to peek out to the city below us.

Giotto's Campanile;
Florence, Italy


Taken from the top of Giotto's Campanile;
The red rooftops of Florence, Italy

Once we reached the top we walked around the rooftop, astonished at the sights before us. The red tile rooftops of Florence spread all around us like a tapestry. Gentle green hillsides surrounding the city were dotted with villas and olive gardens while distant landscapes were shaded in blue haze. We enjoyed the scenery and especially enjoyed seeing how people landscaped their rooftops with gardens, one of which is my entry.

What a special memory. This makes me all warm on the inside and smiley on the outside. I hope you enjoyed my little tale of Florence and enjoyed the photos.

Sunday Photo

June 9, 2010
Sunrise

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