Day 10 - Leaving the ICU - Part 2

Hey everyone,

So after all the commotion mom and I finally had a chance to sit with dad in his room and chat.  In addition to severe pain, he was also pretty cranky because there had been a "parade" of people through the room that morning.  Not only were there doctors, nurses, and nursing assistants, but the chaplain had stopped by (not me), one of the art therapists (me), a classical guitar player (me), and a few more.  I think he actually liked the guitar music.  It probably reminded him of Brian who plays quite beautifully.  He didn't do any art.  He said the lady was just there to "peddle her wares."  I felt kind of bad about that.  When I gave the girl at Guest Services his room number and the dates that he would be in the hospital I didn't realize that everyone would show up at once.  "G" is a neurological post-op area.  You think they would realize that bombarding these patients isn't a good idea.

So in the same way Rachel and Gina thrust a sandwich at Joey in the episode of Friends where Gina tells Joey that she is pregnant (big time Friends fans at our house), we thrust a small paper bag at dad to intervene.  Being that it was Veteran's Day dad had really wanted a flag for his room.  We were happy to oblige, especially since balloons and flowers aren't allowed in the ICU rooms, but boy is it hard to find a flag around here!  In fact, it was part of the reason we were so late getting to the hospital.  We called all of the nearby stores and florists before a tip from a hotel employee led us into Palo Alto, the little city next door to Menlo Park, to a party store.  That had gone out of business.  But it was such a cute area, very pedestrian.  Kind of like an upscale Carlisle, Pennsylvania for any of you readers that have attended or visited the Army War College.  So we parked and after walking around for a bit we stepped into the University Art Store and talked to some nice ladies who suggested we check the United Nations Association Store up the street.  Who knew that UN had a gift shop?  It's pretty neat.  We were in a hurry and didn't have time to explore the downtown area, but would like to go back before we leave.  I snapped a few photos of things that caught my eye.

Inside the UN store.  Everything they sell is fair trade.

It's practically flag headquarters.  What a neat find!

The Peninsula Fountain & Grill.  We haven't eaten there yet, but it's something of a local landmark.  Since it was a holiday there were tons of people out walking, shopping, and eating!  There was the cutest bunch of 10-12 year old boys on bikes stopping for burgers and a milkshake.  It was like going back in time.

Have you ever seen a cuter post office?

The nurse in charge, Christine or Chris for short, said it was time to remove dad's central line from his chest.  He had to be lay very still for an hour to prevent any bleeding.  Meanwhile the PAWS lady stopped by and said that they had a dog was there today and that she wouldn't be back until next Monday.  I really, really, really wanted to see the dog.  I'm not sure dad cared one way or the other since he felt lousy, but he said they could stop by on their G hall rounds between 4 and 5 p.m.  At 4:15 Chris said he could get up and because there was no dog in site dad wanted us to walk the hallways.  See, if you have major surgery and/or are going to be bedridden for awhile they make you wear these leg compression "stockings" which fill up like a blood pressure cuff to force the blood in your legs back up to your heart.  It's supposed to prevent blood clots which can cause all sorts of problems.  Dad hates the stockings.  The only way to not wear them is to get up every so often and walk.  And so that was his plan.  Our little family was on its third lap when I caught a glimpse of the dog, it's owner, and the PAWS lady leaving.  I jogged and caught up with them and begged them to come back.  It was all a little confusing due to language barrier issues, but it worked out.  I think it is really neat that the hospital employs so many people who are from other countries and learned English as second language, but it can also be frustrating because I've found that some of them will think or say they understand what you are saying and act on it, when they really don't.  Like with the night nurse.  That can be dangerous.

Anyways, the dogs name was Rita and she was so beautiful.  The owner probably thought I was crazy because I sort of got down on her level and after petting her a bit hugged on her.  She's a bit larger than Winnie, but had a similar personality.  He said he thought she might be part Collie of some kind, but I think she has a lot of Australian Sheppard in her.  She's 14 years old and he has had her for 12 of those years.  He adopted her from a shelter after she had been hit by a car and undergone some pretty extensive surgery on her leg.  Despite pins and plates she went on to become a frisbee champion.  The only downside is that frisbees have pretty much destroyed her teeth.  She only has nubs left and you can actually see the nerves.  He loves her dearly though and she looks and acts more like a four or five year old dog.  We got to play with her in the G waiting area and of course I snapped a few pictures.  I was sad that she only got to stay about 10 minutes.  It was really nice.

After Rita left dad was feeling pretty bad and needed to get back into bed, have is IV hooked back up, and take his medicine.  I shouldn't have pushed to see the dog.  We set up the chess board and he told me about the different pieces and how they move, but he wasn't up to playing.  And it was dinner time.  Chris' shift ended and Catherine or "Cat" for short came on.  Mom and I stayed pretty late, maybe until 10:30 p.m.  Visiting hours technically end at 8 p.m. but nobody said anything. 

I was so tired and pretty hungry too.  Like most of the families there we have been keeping pretty odd hours.  I know in Huntsville that at least some parts of our hospitals' cafeterias stay open all night, but that isn't the case here.  So we headed over to Oasis since we knew for sure it was open.  Also, I had been craving some pizza.  I figured it would be just about empty, but the place was hoppin'!  There were tons of people from Menlo College.  I think they had just left a volleyball game.  The manager Bobby greeted us with his usual, "Hey!  It's my friends from Alabama!"  And I realized that I can pretty much find a friend anywhere.  Except places crawling in gorgeous sorority type girls.  Or reaaallly smart people.  They both tend to scare me.  Also that Oasis is like my California Bandito Burrito.  We ordered and when I went up for a refill on my Diet Coke, Bobby asked me about dad and introduced me into one of the locals, Stan.  The two of them are so nice.  We ate and headed back to the hotel at which point I was so tired that I really wasn't safe to drive.  I'm glad that there wasn't much traffic and that it was only four miles.

Whew! 

Love,

Rocketgirl