How do you get me to shut up, on FB? An ice pack. I had the work done on my eyelid, and have to ice 30 min on, 30 off. And as the dogs well know - its hard to type one handed. They gave me a sling for the ice bag, but its not practical. And every bag develops a leak! Ive got a 4 U-shaped cut, with stitches less than 1/16th apart. And the jokes - I told Jan I had a higher thread count than our sheets. Ba-da, dum! Ive told others that I look like the prize fighter who didnt win the prize. Even the upper lid is discolored. Its gone from black to red. And I got an eye lift on one side, and will still have the baggy lid on the other side. Great! Two different procedures (one doc cut, another stitched). From 8a to 3p. And there wasnt that much dead time. After each cut, there was a 45 min wait, while they checked for can cer. It took a 2nd try. And in between, I waited, laid out on a very comfortable reclining chair. Jan excused herself with each cut, and was off doing other things. So I laid in the room, by myself. I was bored, on the verge of sleep, but the staff was constantly going in and out of the various rooms. It almost sounded comical, like the slamming doors on Laugh In, without Goldie Hawns laughter. So I never fell asleep. I had been telling Jan about out of body experiences, in the OR. Specifically when the patient was under a medically-induced death. And some hear the doctors, can describe tools that they had never seen before. And theyve done tests, hiding numbers or objects on top of cabinets, out of sight to anyone who isnt floating above. These controlled tests have never worked. No one has ever described the objects. But on my own, fantasizing, I was thinking of leaving my body. In my haze, Im willing myself to travel. I wondered what was on top of that cabinet? Surprise - nothing happened. But it felt like it would work. And I thought about death. Is this what it felt like? I was ready to start floating. Would this be the same? I felt ready for the next adventure. BUT – this was fantasy. Dying would NOT be academic. While daydreaming, the lights timed out, and the room went dark. Did I just die??? Odd timing. With a 4x4 over the eye, we drove to the other building. NOW I understood why I needed a buddy! Id had nothing more than local numbing, and I felt disoriented. We waited ~30, and I was taken back right on time. The nurse was putting a rather large needle in my hand for the IV drip. She put my hand on her leg, and asked if I was comfortable. I feel like were on our first date, I chimed. She was Indian, and wasnt the laughing type at work. But she smiled at this. Im a big fan of going under. I was looking forward to it! I mentioned the best sleep feeling to the anesthesiologist. She said no wonder Michael Jackson liked it so much. So they were giving me propofol. But this time was different. They didnt tell me the drip was starting, and I was out. I think for other times, I got something different. Then, suddenly, I was awake, and not feeling that rested, as usual. And the first word I heard was the doctor saying Topolobampo. As always, I fell right into the conversation, uninvited. I guess theyre used to people talking, or trying to move while slightly under. They said patients are sometimes asked questions, and will clearly answer. But it was such an odd word to hear, out of the blue. I said I had been there, on the way to Copper Canyon, in Mexico. But the place he was talking about was a restaurant in Chicago. (in 88, after whale watching, we took a cab from LaPaz to wherever the ferry left. I remember a long ride. Overnight? The Gulf was 100 miles wide, with Topolobampo on the other side. Jan thought we should keep our room for another day, so we didnt have to take our luggage with us during the day. A wise move. When we got to the ferry, all was dark. It was going nowhere. So the cab took us back to town, and our room was waiting. We were told the ferry was erratic, so we flew across the gulf the next morning). Next stop – the train to Copper Canyon! Somehow, the name of that town stuck with me. And if I was into gross photos, this would have been the time. At some point, they tucked a black disk over my eyeball, for protection while they cut. I could have gotten a great photo, like laying on the slab, both eyes open – but one blacked out! The 3/4x1/2” divot would have added to the photo. Ive also not taken a photo of the stitching, swelling, and discoloring. Happy Halloween.
Posted on: Sun, 26 Oct 2014 04:49:40 +0000