Grandma’s Stories

Jul 13th “To The Hospital – NOW!”

I’m holding this towel on top of my head – filled with ice –and am feeling kind of “Woozy!” My car was handy – a 1979 Coupe Deville and brand new – and the hospital my son was taking me to – we had to get on the highway for a short stint and back on regular roads going through narrow streets and lots of slow traffic – which seem to be unusual for this time of day?

My son is driving entirely too fast – weaving in and out and around the traffic. He is going through the “RED LIGHT” and so fast – I do not know if I am going to get to the hospital alive – or die in an accident on the way to the hospital? The car is swerving this way and that and I can hardly hold on and also hold the towel full of ice on the top of my head. The towel is getting full of blood and some is dripping down on me – and now I am concerned that my “NEW” car is going to get blood all over and more of a mess for me to clean up – and after it will have sat too long and unable to be removed?

My mind is on too many crazy things all at once and I am afraid to say anything to upset my son – because I don’t want him to be thinking about anything but getting me to the hospital! Finally, we are pulling in to the emergency room entrance area – we get out of the car and  are getting near the admittance desk – and someone is grabbing me and putting me in a wheel-chair and rushing me to an area to be seen by  a  doctor and nurses – asking me what happened – and someone is getting my personal information from my son – he has my purse with my hospital insurance cards – (without hospital insurance – you hear stories about not getting any care) – where they have me, now – they have a radio on real loud with some crazy music to distract me – they have taken the towel I had and now have me in some plastic covering and are pouring some strong solution of peroxide on my head and a bucket to catch the extra!

After they have all the information about the tree limb that I pulled down on the top of my head – they are advising me that they have to deaden the area on top of my head – so that they can stitch it back together,and one area where there is a pumper vein – I will feel but  – that they are doing their best to relieve the pain! When they stuck me where the blood was pumping out – “with each heart beat” – I let out a scream – like they never heard before!  And when they were stitching me up – even with the pain shots – when they got near the “PUMPER” there was no pain relief – I felt  each  and every stitch!

When the nurses were done with me – they had some kind of a “wrap –a-round” on the top of my head – with the top of my head exposed – with orders not to touch – not to shower – not to do any kind of washing of my head for 10 days. Also, Call my doctor and make an appointment to have 13 stitches taken out.  Do – “Not” do anything with my head – no water – do not try to comb – nothing for 10 days!

Jul 12th “Thirteen- Stitch – Day!”

Early, on a Saturday morning – I am collecting any and all dirty clothes that my sons have accumulated for the week and taking them to the basement – sorting out the colors and what can be washed with what – and the wash machine is singing its song. Several trips are made up and down the steps with my arms full – but the idea is to be sure each load to be wash – the machine will be full.

Since there are seven (7) long lines of wire from one tree to another – I can hang out one load of clean wash just as fast as the wash machine can wash a load! This is not really a chore for me to hang the wash out on the line – it is exercise and the smell of the freshly hung out wash – is something I enjoy doing – as the real reward is in getting into a bed that has just been made with sheets and pillow-cases that have been hanging in the wonderful “SUNSHINE” – almost feel as if you are sleeping in the great out-doors!

The last load of wash has been hung on the line – which includes having stripped my bed, so the next chore planned for the day to go out front with my sons and direct the tree-trimming job of the tree that is just twelve feet from the “BAY WINDOW” – and the limb holding the “BIRDS’s Tupperware House” hanging and occupied with a bird-family – and – “I do not want moved!” If the “Bird-House” is moved – the birds may not know – and I do not want an upset “Bird-Family?”

So, my son is up in the tree – tying ropes to different limbs – my other son and I are pulling these limbs as they are being cut away from the house and into areas to be cut further into small fire-place size logs. As we are moving down the tree in cutting off limbs there is a limb that is going to cause the “Bird-House” limb to be hit in such a way as to damage the “Bird-House” or even knock it down? I am calling out bossy orders – as to how I want this done – and in the pulling of this limb down – “I am pulling this limb down in such a way – hoping to avoid the bird-house, but other branches are tangled with this limb in such a way that – no matter how I pull now – this tree-limb is hitting me right on the top of my head!” I go down on my knees – can hardly move – need help to get up to my feet. Said, “I feel like I need to lay down a minute!” I grab a towel and throw “ICE-CUBES” in and hold on the top of my head. My bed is stripped – pull a pillow – and sits on the very edge – as I do so – blood in dropping from my head onto the pillow. I scream, my son runs to my room – he grabs me – saying he is taking me to the hospital! The blood is coming out faster than we know – the towel and ice are not stopping what is happening on the top of my head – we have to go! NOW!

Jul 11th “To Save ‘BIRD-HOUSE’ – get 13 stitches”

If you could see straight through the bush – just left of the tall tree in front of this side of the house – you would see the “BAY-window” – and inside the house is our dining room. When I am sitting at the dining room table and looking out the bay-window – I have the joy of watching some birds , who have moved into the brand new “Tupperware Bird-house” that I bought from the lady that makes the rounds in our area – and always have company with me enjoying the best purchase, one could make – a house for the birds , that is guaranteed to last forever – and  me  – forever getting to watch the birds, having fun  –  probably watching me?

This house is 45 years old and as you can see the “TREES” and everything that can grow over the years has done an excellent job of growing – since we also had horses on this  three  (3) acre farmette – which butts up against the Golf Course along the rear of the property. That’s  “HOLE #3” – and the golfers have hit enough balls onto the rear of our property to keep our boys in spending money – since my boys would collect the balls, clean them up and go over to the Golf  Course and sell the balls back to  “GOLFERS” making their spending money –  just one advantage of living next to a “GOLF COURSE.”

So,  with horses that are making heaps of fertilizer to keep everything growing , at least as fast as  is possible  – and has  found out that the trees,  you see in the front yard  are the perfect home for the “Carpenter Ants” – a nice big ole ant  – that just loves wood  – and the branches of these trees are so tall and leaning over the house and dropping ants on the roof of the house.

Tomorrow;   Mary Ellen is going to tell all about the solution to this problem   and getting thirteen (13) stitches???