Saturday, August 15, 2009

Why I'm Sporting a Shiner...And Alla answers

The Porch...before the glider!

This is a story about clumsy. Clumsy is as clumsy does. And it's also a story about Good Sister. You all remember my wonderful Good Sister, my sister of the heart, not sister of the blood? She of Quincey fame (a lady Medical Examiner) and morgue intrigue? Well, I am happy to say that she is back on the dating scene and seems completely over the lying miserable cad who captured her heart then stomped all over it with his big hobnail boots...no wait, he wore Harris Tweed jackets and blue jeans, so perhaps they were just boots, no hobnails...the lying dog (sorry to dogdom) who claimed to be single but was NOT. Makes me grit my teeth and ball my fists just to think of it. (And go in search of my gun for crying out loud!) Cad was not my word of choice, but my granddaughter reads this blog...have to use some decorum.

So anyway, once I convinced Good Sister to stand on her back porch and scream "NEXT" and many nights on the phone listening while she cried, suddenly one day she didn't cry. She talked about going out. And gave me the gentleman's name and car description and tag number. Okay, you gotta know that women who have anything to do with law enforcement know what type of world we live in and that we trust few...so if I don't hear from her I know whose car she left in complete with tag and color and car body condition...and we have a picture of said date in my data base...it's the way we roll. So anyway, just as I keep up with Good Sister's social life, she keeps up with my physical one.

So she calls me on Thursday night to tell me that she is going out, who with, and where...I ask about the two kittens she got from me (named Tweedledee and Tweedledum) and she says they are doing fine and she is making introductions to Shadow and Butch (her two dogs). She asks me what I have been up to. Since I am a mass of bruises and pain, I hesitate. She hears the hesitation in my voice.

"What have you done?" she asks. "I don't want to tell you, you'll fuss, " say I. I can see her eyes narrowing, through the phone. "Don't make me come over there, because I will, you know!" Yes, I know. I laugh nervously. "Well, I sort of...okay okay...I fell. I fell really hard."
"You FELL? Where? Did you go to the hospital?" So I began to explain...

I can't leave anything alone. I am never happy with the arrangement of a room or a porch or even a yard. I rearrange furniture and plants and decorations. Mac says it's a good thing he's not blind, he'd never know where to find his chair. He pities Mindy Lou (the blind dog) although she adapts quite well to my madness. The glider that was under the big Sweet Gum tree with several chairs had caught my eye. Mac was cutting grass and I took it in my head to move the glider onto the front porch. It would be much more convenient for sitting. So I went down and took the big thing apart and moved it piece by heavy piece to the front porch. I took the small table and two yard chairs down to replace the glider. Mac wasn't amazed that I had managed to do this while he was cutting grass. He wasn't even surprised. He just wondered what had taken me so long to get a wild *ss idea about the accoutrement's of the front porch.

So Wednesday morning he tells me that he wants to go to Bethune (a small town in Kershaw County near us) to get a replacement bowl for the birdbath. I'm chattering away, grabbing my purse and happy to be going to the huge concrete yard where I can browse and buy, walk out the front door when suddenly I feel myself falling and sliding and head bouncing off wood. Mac is suddenly next to me, helping me to turn over and I see his face and it is white. He is looking at my head. "Oh my GOD," he says, " are you alright? Your head has a goose egg the size of Cleveland on it!" I begin to tick off the signs of concussion as he helps me to my feet...I didn't lose consciousness, I am not nauseous...I rush into the guest bath and look into the mirror...pupils are normal...but MY GOD! The bulge on my head gives me pause. And terror. I quick like a bunny (been waiting a long time to use that term) hurry to the kitchen and grab my ankle wrap from the freezer...and apply it to my head! Mac is behind me as though he is going to catch me in case I fall. Where was he ten minutes ago I want to ask...testily! But I don't. He's worried enough as it is.

"So, " I am telling GS, "I tripped on the footing of the glider...I had just earlier decided I needed to move it down further away from the front door but hadn't done it yet. I caught my foot and the only thing that saved me from sliding on down the steps was the gate at the end of the porch. My head broke the slide." I laughed. She didn't. "Did you go to the hospital?" I heard her demanding to hear a yes to her answer, but she didn't get it. "The darnedest thing, " I began and she interrupted..."DID YOU GO TO THE HOSPITAL?"

"Ummm...well, no...not really. You see when I kept peeping under the ice wrap I could see the bulge going down and then Marty Horton showed up out of the blue!" (Marty is a Paramedic I had once worked with , one I hadn't seen in two years...now go figure that one out!) "So I say to Marty, boy am I glad to see you! I told Marty what had happened and he looked at the knot on my head, the bruises on my shoulder, the scrape on my knee shined a light in my eyes and pronounced me capable of going and sitting down without fear of dying right away. But he told me if anything changed, head ache or nausea , loss of consciousness...get to the ER immediately...okay?"

She allowed as to how since it had happened the day before and I was still as sassy as ever, she supposed it was okay. "But, there is this...today I have a black eye, " I told her.
You know, I could hear her pulling keys out of her purse, walking down steps, car door opening...and I knew she had to see this one for herself! God may have sent me Marty, but nothing takes the place of a sister.

Me...sporting my shiner...sans makeup!














And an addendum to this post, from my new dear friend Alla, I just wanted to share it with you all!


Dear Sandi,when I saw "Hello, Alla" in your blog, I was amazed ,and this page appeared the whole week ago,the time flies, I`ve just listened to the music in your blog. And I was reading this story in tears, I remember your mother and her kindness to me, I was so sorry when she fell ill and when Toni informed me of her death on 28.06.01.I can`t stop crying even now.
Yes, I am reading your book every evening, I am finding a lot of interesting and wise thoughts and ideas about life in them.Oh, I am saying Thank you very much for the dedication of this page to me!
And the story about school room desks seems unreal but the idea is great, and the teacher is a genius .The WW2 in my country is called The Great Patriotic War, 20 million people were killed, and children must know who paid their young lives for the possibility for the children of future generations to take their seats at the school desks.You did the right thing of passing this story on.
Yes, blog is a good idea when you have what to say to other people.I`ll think about it.
I am still very awkward at the computer. I hope I`ll learn soon.
By the way, it was Tony who we began to communicate with, then she shared my letters she found funny with your mother, I called her Grace. She had such an ideal, beautiful handwriting.
I`ll tell you why the title "the crazy cat lady" appeals to me so much, that`s because I had a cat, his name was Kuzma( the stress on the last letter) and he lived 19 years with us then he died in my hands, it was a real grief. I said I would never ever keep any animals in my home, but my son brought two rats ,bought them in a pet-shop. Now feeding them.They would be absolutely nice if not their ugly tails.
Love
Alla

70 comments:

Shrinky said...

Oh my, that was quite a tumble you took, wasn't it? (Ouch, I can almost feel it!) Thank goodness no lasting damage seems to have been done - and yes, isn't it wonderful to know how loved you are by those you care about? Smile.

The Retired One said...

Your sister is right..watch for subtle symptoms...balance changes, eyesight changes, headaches, etc.
I am a retired R.N. and closed head injuries are some of the sneakiest and can do permanent damage.
And have your HUBBY move the dang porch swing!
Take care!

Kathy's Klothesline said...

Glad you are okay! Next time look before you step! Like you, I am constantly playing with the furniture arrangements and forgetting where I have placed "trippable" items. I now walk with my hands out in case I might need to catch myself.

Carol Murdock said...

It's amzing how one moment your on your feet and the next your on the floor in a pain filled stupor asking yourself what happened? I didn't get an egg or black eye, I got a broke hip! You are lucky girl! Great to have someone like " sis" to see after each other! :)

i beati said...

what no picture??Isn;t it nutty the things that happen as we age, strange feet slipping things?//

Donna said...

OMGGGGGGG!!!!! You could have "bought" it Right there on that front porch Goober!!!!! OMGGGGG!!!! Don't make ME come up there!! It Would Not Be Fun!!
omgomgomg....
Go lay down somewhere and DO NOT MOVE!!!hahahaa....GADS!!!(((HUG)))

i beati said...

omg just think all the lovely artistic colors it will become in the coming weeks. your deputy friends think you probably tangled with something more ominous than a glider.

We are all such creatures of habit hahah hahah

SandyCarlson said...

That's a doozy! Take care of yourself. You have a good egg of a sister, to be sure!

tiarastantrums said...

this post had me giggling from the beginning!!

www.retiredandcrazy.com said...

You will have to take more water with it next time Sandi! Seriously though, I had a fall a few months ago and busted up my ribs. It was so silly and a few years ago would have been no trouble, but I somehow don't have the same reflexes to save myself any more. You be careful now.

Maggie May said...

Sorry to see that shiner. You really have to be careful.
As I have also looked like that after various accidents, you will probably get fed up with people suggesting your husband beat you up, like they did with me! Not so funny after a while!
Glad your *sister* is gathering up her life again after that bad experience.

Akelamalu said...

OMG that's a shiner you've got there Sandi! It's gonna be beautifully technicoloured very soon. :)

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Wow! Now that is a shiner!! I am sorry to hear that you fell, but glad to know that it looks worse than it is...goodness!!
Hugs,
Penny

Anya said...

I had also such a bleu/black eye when I was falling in my bathroom
:(
Take care ....

Vee said...

Now this is a fine kettle of fish! Here I am on a borrowed laptop...my daughter called to ask if I'd like to have her set it up for me this afternoon...is she kidding? I was beside myself with joy and after serving lunch told both John and Nan not to expect to hear from me until midnight or such time as darling girl retrieves her possession. Anyway, I was making my way through Blogland slowly until I reached you and find that I must comment.(That's right, I'm not commenting elsewhere unless somone else has a shiner of these proportions.) Oh my heavens, Sandi, you must take care. That looks so painful. Hope that all sense was knocked in and not out. Thanks for the nice email...the message is "disk failure." We are currently waiting on a grandson-in-law computer geek for further information. He fixed his grandmother's computer for four jars of jam. This leaves me wondering if I should go into jam production stat.

Hugs to you and much love... So glad that Arianna is safely over that hurdle and that you found Ally after all these years!

ancient one said...

Oh Sandi, so sorry you hurt yourself... that black eye looks like it really hurt.. Try to be careful.. I can't say too much... I've been known to trip over my own flipflops...Ha ha

ancient one said...

Oh Sandi, so sorry you hurt yourself... that black eye looks like it really hurt.. Try to be careful.. I can't say too much... I've been known to trip over my own flipflops...Ha ha

Strawberry Jam Anne said...

Sandi - do take more care. Good job Mac was there with you and fortunate that your friend called by. Hope you are feeling OK now. Glad to hear that GS is getting her life back on track and wonderful news that you have heard from Alla. A x

Dr.John said...

What hurts worse when you do something like that is how dumb you feel.

Lee said...

Sandi,

That is a doozy of a black eye! Please, get yourself to the healthfood & herbs place, or whatever serves as a pharmacy in your neck of the woods, and pick up some cream with arnica in it. Rub it in at least twice a day and that will help the bruise go away faster. Can't have you looking like that!

So glad Alma is writing back and I hope you two work up a team blog. Might help by showing her the way. Nothing teaches like experience.

Hugs,
Lee

Rosaria Williams said...

I agree with the nurse. Get yourself checked out.

Mary Isabella and Kiley too! said...

Praying for complete healing. I am so glad you are up and about. Please take care of yourself...m.

Mary said...

Sandi
Please take more care!! Hope the eye gets better soon. Mary

Jeni said...

OMG, Sandi! Looks like you are a bit like me and we should both change our names to "Grace" -of which I have none when it comes to finding things to bang into or trip over.
And how great that is to see that you heard from Alla. Who knows, maybe she will get brave and try blogging some day. It really is quite easy once one takes the plunge. Keep giving her a bit of an edge in the confidence area there.
Peace -and please -no more falls!

CatHerder said...

omg....hope u r better soon!

Anonymous said...

My goodness girl...you really do have a shiner. Take care of yourself but I had to laugh, because, like you, I have a penchant for moving things and furniture around. Bobby G. was always amazed at how I could move furniture around without his help. I once got a huge black eye. I was playing tennis and went to pick up a ball next to the turnstile and whacked my head good. What a black eye I got from that. Of course I was teased relentlessly with people saying Bobby G. did it. NOT! xo Lynn

Love Bears All Things said...

Sounds like something I would do. I did, actually fall this week. Wish you could have seen me in the Master trying to hang the valance while a straddle the chair back that is by that window. When I had finished, I stepped down on the edge of this little bitty footstool which flipped and I ended up flat on my back. Thank God for carpet and nothing in the way to hit my head on.
Loved hearing your account after knowing you're alright. Has anyone asked if MAC hit you?
What a blessing to hear from your Mom's friend!
Mama Bear

Justabeachkat said...

Well girlfriend, when you do something, you do it good, don't you?! I'm surprised I haven't done the same thing. I'm forever moving things, climbing on things, and moving way way way too fast. Hope it heals quickly.

Hugs!
Kat

myonlyphoto said...

Oh dear Sandi, please be careful. That was a ride, hope you get better soon. Thanks for sharing your story... Anna :)

Anonymous said...

I was holding my breath reading this, I just knew you were going to trip over the glider. Oh dear! But thank heavens for the Paramedic arriving bang on cue. Do hope you are feeling better and hubby doesn't get too many funny looks.

Unknown said...

Sounds like you took quite a tumble! Ouch! But your sister-friend is one of the best! May she find a non-cad!

Carol said...

Blimey, I guess you are lucky that nothing got broken! what a shiner, poor you. Get the dark glasses out! My Mum was always changing where the bed was. One night Dad got up lost his bearings and took a bad tumble, didn't stop her though, she just carried on with the re-arranging till her heart was content. Bless her, she doesn't care about anything now, apart from shall she go out and buy lamb chops, and can she stay with me for dinner!
Cx
Guy got a posh hair cut on sunday, by me! he looks real grown up now.

Candy said...

I better watch out...I change things around just like you and as we age, the bounce back ability just isn't there. Glad to hear all is well in the end. And wasn't it nice how all your angels came running. Guess I am going to have to order your book, am curious about he school desk story. Have you blogged about it?

Cheffie-Mom said...

Oh my Sandi! I'm glad you are ok! Definitely sounds like something I would do!

Sally said...

Goodness gracious, Sandi! So glad you weren't hurt worse although it certainly sounds bad enough!! Please be careful with your sweet self!

That was such a lovely email from your friend, Alla. Ain't life grand sometimes? :)

Hilary said...

Oh geesh, Sandi. Please take care of yourself. I hope you're continuing to mend and will feel better soon.

♥ Braja said...

I thought you were praying to Allah which I thought most impressive for someone with a shiner.....

Suldog said...

Geez, Sandi, hell of a black eye there. Most impressive :-)

Brian Miller said...

ouch. your shiner is a shining...hope it feels better soon.

Jay said...

Good grief! You did give yourself a shiner, didn't you? PLEASE be more careful! I think you should move that chair a little! Yikes!

Thumbelina said...

Sandi you really will have to take more care and SLOW DOWN!!!
That is some shiner you have there. And your connection with Alla is amazing.
Just popped by to say hi because I am not getting to post like I used to and just got my last one up now. I'll be by from time to time but apart from that, quitting the blogging for now.

Diva's Thoughts said...

Gosh that looks like it hurt!

Elizabeth Bradley said...

I used to move the furniture (and whatever else struck my fancy) around a lot. Maybe it's a good thing I've stopped. Glad you're okay.

Carver said...

I'm so sorry about your fall. That's so scary. Hope you will heal fast.

SandyCarlson said...

I hope your eye is healing well!

Mickle in NZ said...

Oh Sandi - as my family say "you did it properly".

Full understanding as I had a similar fall back in '92, landing with my cheekbone hitting the edge of a concrete step . Looked nasty but only damage was to my ego! Dear cousin Christabelle wanted to take a photo - I refused.

Wonderful to read Alla's response (Dear Alla - you will find many friends here should you start a blog).

much care and love to Sandi and Alla,

Michelle (mickle) and Zebbycat

Nessa said...

Wow, that sure is a major shiner.

You are so lucky to have such a dedicated sista.

Nancy said...

Glad everything turned out okay. I remember a time when my youngest got a terrible goose egg and my father in law said it was okay as long as the bump came out not in - ? (He was a Dr.)

Deb said...

Yikes! That is one nasty looking shiner - so glad you are healing. I love reading about your sister friendship! And so glad that you have reconnected with Alla - your mom would be happy and I am sure she is smiling down at you. Take care of yourself!

Anonymous said...

Dear Sandi, I feel a great pity for the collision between you and that unlucky rocking chair (fortunately it was not "a small, light aeroplane which has no engine"
as my dictionary explains the meaning of the word to me. Sorry for trying to make a joke of that accident , I don`t want to believe the consequences might be serious, I hope they won`t.Thank you for the All My Faves link, I see there is everything for those who understands.
I hope you get rid of all those bruises and pain I hope you have seen a doctor,and got all professional aid I suspect you need. There is always something.
Here in Russia August is considered to be the month of great accidents , and it proved on 17th,when a great catastrophe at the biggest Siberian hydro power station happened, as if the Yenisey river revenged itself on the people for blocking its free current.
Hope you are much better now.
It was amazing to find my letter in your blog for friendly readers to see.
Love,
Alla

Judy said...

I can so identify with the 'clumsy is as clumsy does' line! I've been there...a few too many times. Broken nose & shiners included. The good news is...those black eyes fade quite quickly...and in one week you'll be good as new.

Neat story about Alla!

Cynthia Pittmann said...

Oh my! What an energetic tale...too bad it ends with a black eye! I hope it doesn't hurt too much. I think you're the kind of person who takes care of others...maybe your friend on the phone wanted to take care of you? Heal quickly. <3

King of New York Hacks said...

Steak on it ..then eat it. you'll feel a whole lot better !

��Radio Mihalis Thalassis - Athens Greece said...

Morning .Michael

Anya said...

I hope you feel better now :)
Take care ....

tlchang said...

Oh! I'm glad you are alright and not too worse for wear after that kind of fall (you look very lovely in purple :-). I am doubly glad that you have such caring people in your life to make sure you are appropriately taking care of yourself! No more tripping please.

Anonymous said...

DANG Sandi!!! That's bad , but I'm glad it's not any worse. Quite a tumble. Sending healing thoughts your way.

Our house gets rearranged often, but it's always the middle of the night when it catches me unawares. "B" moved Gryphon's bed the other night and he pouted so much she was forced to put it back - LOL! I've never won like that - hurumph!

Merisi said...

Sandi, Sandi, Sandi - what on earth?
Is your husband going out of the house with you these days? (I can just hear him say "Yes, my beloved tripped over .... blablaba" and people nodding and thinking, "Sure!").

Congratulations on David's Post of the Day Award mention - must have been one of the hardest earned awards ever!

Get well fast! Hugs xxx

Cheffie-Mom said...

Sandi, I'm back to congratulate you on the Post of the Day Mention! enJOY your day!

Wanda said...

Sandi, that sounds exactly like something that would happen to me. Always the freaky things. Glad you're not hurt any worse.

But there's a huge coincidence going on here. My great great grandparents were from Hanging Rock in Lancaster County, next to Kershaw County, as you know. And their last name was Horton. He was. She was a Reeves. Which county are you in?

Shrinky said...

OMG, you were not joking about that shiner, were you?? What a nasty tumble, Sandy, it must have hurt like hell. Hope it's now mending well, but goodness me, girl - please be more CAREFUL with yourself, eh? (Hugs)

Sandy McTier Designs said...

Hi Sandi,
Oh my what a shiner!Hope you are feeling better.
Blessings,
Sandy

Unknown said...

Hi Sandi,

Been out the blogging loop but just stopped by to say hi and hope you are doing better.

Trubes said...

Hi Sandi, I hope you are alright now, you certainly have been in the wars lately.
As you know that I hail from Liverpool UK and I have just written a post about my teens and The Beatles in the sixties, I hope you enjoy it!

Di.x

Mockingbird Hill said...

Yikes!! Guess the only way to look at this is "coulda been worse!" Glad you are doing okay even if that eye tells a different story...

Be careful out there...never know where a renegade glider might be hidin'!!

Cassie

COUNT SNEAKY said...

Hi Sandi,
Wow! What a shiner. I do hope it has gotten better by now. I really don't know where you find all of this energy...all that yard and garden work and then so much blogging and writing.
This amount of time alone that is involved staggers the Count's old mind.
I spend most of my days now nursing a bad back and blogging. My heart retired me four years ago from advertiing illustration and design. My wife of 52 yearsis also retired and we help each other around. I wanted to tell you as one of my valued followers that I shut down Count Sneaky's Electric Noteook a few weeks ago and opened Count Sneaky's Journal at countsneakysjournal.blogspot.com.
Stay well.My best. Count Sneaky

Maria said...

What a horrible injury, I do hope you are feeling better now! I love reading about your story of Alla, there are so many people I lost touch with when I took my big step of moving to India. Your story gives me hope that I'll be able to connect up with some of them again!

Daryl said...

Congrats on POTD!

And I knew I felt connected you .. my dear sister in klutzdom .. gah I have so been there, done that and have the black/blues and occasional fading scars to show for it.

Pinkerbell said...

Sandi - I was entrhalled by this post from beginning to end. YOu've visited me quite often but I've not read much here so far so I'm sorry about that. I love the way you write, you have a gentle wit and you write as if you are right here in front of me telling me the story.

That black eye looks nasty! I managed to get a black eye once walking into the door frame in the pitch black, thought I was walking through the doorway so I was going quite fast and *thunk*. The trouble was that we were going to a family party the next day (my family) and I'd only just moved into my new house with my fiance and they looked at him suspiciously all the way through after I'd quite innocently told them I'd "walked into a door", which is the usual excuse for domestic violence. The poor love, I didn't realise I was giving everyone the wrong impression!

Susie Q said...

So gla dyou are alright sweetie. Poor baby! I am sure it is all healed up by now! Hope so!
I am always tripping over something, someone, something!
I have the bruises to prove it!

Visiting you is such a joy...a pure joy!

Love,
Sue