A challenging last couple of days
May 21, 2007
I had some high hopes of playing over the weekend but sometimes LIFE just gets in the way.
On Saturday, my son went to prom (It is a High School formal dance for those who don’t know). So, I did the “Dad” thing and helped him with his tux and took pictures of him and his date before the dance. Everything went well and he had a good time.
On Sunday, I went to the League forum and found that the VIP freeroll was scheduled. That tourny starts at 12:00 noon my time so I usually don’t get to play because I need to finish my “Sunday stuff” before I play. But, since I didn’t play at all on Sat. I thought I would give it a shot.
I finished 3rd in the Tourny. I played fairly well, only made a few mistakes none of which cost me the Tourny which sometimes they do.
So, I decided to take a break for a while and maybe come back later for some more fun.
Well, at about 5:00p.m. our time we recieved a phone call that my wifes brother and his wife were in a motorcycle accident.
My wifes brother (Mike) and his wife (Jolene) are pretty die hard Harley riders. Anyone who knows Harley riders (especially in Wisconsin where Harley was born) know that about 80% of them don’t wear helmets (it is kind of a freedom thing to them).
Anyway, the initial phone calls were pretty confusing. They crashed about 40 min. from my house. Jolene (Jo) was flown by Flight for Life (helicopter) to one hospital and Mike was taken to another Hospital that was closer.
It took me a while but I found out that Jo was taken to a Hospital about 15 min. from my house. Mike was at a Hospital closer to the accident site and was accompanied by the other riders that were with them.
My wife and I went to the Hospital by our house because no one was Jo. We got to the Emergency Room and were told that she was alert and talking (whew!). Until that point, no one knew how she was. Apparently, at the accident site, she had some pretty bad head trauma and lost a lot of blood.
We still couldn’t go see her because they were doing Cat scans, tests, etc. So, we waited, and waited, and waited……
Finally, Jo’s parents show up (It is a 2 hour drive for them to get to the Hospital so that should give you an indication as to how long we had to wait). Right when Jo’s parents show up, they come out and say that she can be seen. Of course, since her Mom and Dad were there, they went back to see her. The wife and I waited (we were getting good at it).
Jo’s parents saw her for a while then came out and said she was being moved to ICU (Intensive Care Unit). So, we waited again for her to get moved.
The wife and I finally got to see her at 11:30 p.m. (about 6 hours from first getting there).
I was expecting something pretty bad but I was pleasantly suprised (She was still very hurt but not as bad as I initially thought). She has cuts and abrasions (we call it road rash here). She has some small fractures in her cheekbones and her left eye is swollen shut. the only broken bone is her elbow which will be operated on tomorrow. The main concern is her eye so they are monitoring that closely. We talked to her a little, but she was pretty uncomfortable so we left her with her Mom and Dad and the nursing staff. We got home at about 1:00 a.m.
That took care of Jo but my wife was still very worried about her brother Mike because the information wasn’t to accurate ( to many cell phone chain calls. Someone tells someone, who tells someone and by the time you get the story it could be totally wrong).
So, first thing this morning we headed down to the Hospital to see Mike. Mike has his own road rash too. Mikes major injuries are 27 stitches in his head from a big cut and 7 broken ribs (2 of which are broken in 2 places). He was alert and talking but broken ribs can be quite painful.
So, it looks like they will both be ok after some time. Mike’s ribs will proably take the longest to heal. They are still at different Hospitals but maybe they can change that after Jo’s operation tomorrow.
It may be a long couple of weeks for us shuttling back and forth until they get released. Our house is about half way between the 2 hospitals and everyone else lives farther away.
I will try to pop in once and a while (I may need a break) and play a little or just talk a little.
I am kind of wore out right now so I am going to watch a little TV, have a cocktail or two, and zone out.
See ya all soon. If ya read through this whole thing God Bless ya…lol
Comments
6 Responses to “A challenging last couple of days”
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Gald to hear ya Hog lovers will be ok, I worry about my 62 year old bro in Arkansas. He has a Dyna Glide and no helmets.
I understand the freedom of riding and all that but helmets save lives just like seat belts and every state has seat belt laws.
Hang Tough for ya friends and family Bro, hope to type @ ya soon.
Dog
Family first my friend. I’m sure you will be quite busy for some time yet because of your proximity to it all. What with guests and all.
Head high and be patient till it’s all over and we’ll see ya as soon as everything has re-bounded to normal.
Sorry to hear of your troubles mate.. It sounds like it was no small blessing that both of them survived.
As the guys say, do what you have to do.. The poker and (unfortunately) us lot will be here when yah return..
Thanks Guys.
As of today, everyone will be ok. Jo is out of ICU and Mike is working through the broken rib pain but will be ok.
Everything has settled down some now so maybe I can play a little. I did play some on Tues. night. I got home late from work so I missed the hospital visits.
I lost at a couple of $2 sng’s by Monkeys sucking out so I went to a $6 sng and won. A small profit and a little confidence boost.
Hopefully, I will see (or talk rather) ya all soon.
Thanks!
Glad to hear they are going to be OK. But they will still need support during their recovery. Take your time coming back mate. We will be around (somewhere)… but in my case, probably not playing poker. I seen your reply to my blog, so you know what I’m talking about!
Hey hon! Sorry haven’t been able to be around the past couple of weeks but I’m real happy to hear they’re going to be OK. Boy it must have been a real scare to get a phonecall like that. Big Hugs!