It all started out so wonderful. Ten days in North Carolina staying at a lovely cabin.
The views are amazing and it gives me peace, while renewing my spirit.
We started out staying a day with my elderly mom, it's always tough because she cannot get over losing my father and this time in addition we got some bad family news about my youngest brother.
Well we did the best we could to cheer my mom and headed up to Ela, North Carolina. The mountain cabin is located on the same mountain as my quarter acre of dreams. I intend to live there and spend my life with nature instead of noxious. But that's another story.
I see the mountains!!!!!
This kind of thrill comes over me and I start to feel like I am coming home.
My husband Chris and my dog Junior are both ready to have some fun. We got there, stopped at a grocery store, picked up what we needed for a few days and arrived at the cabin. It's a rustic place, old sleds, sickles, washboards and such decorate the walls. A big three D map hangs on the wall, one lone stick pin points out where we are. So first the wireless card we decided to get for a month was useless. No matter what Verizon says, it ain't gonna happen. I hope to get my money back.
We then realized that the owner had not turned on their dish for TV either! Oh my God, Chris freaked. And it was freezing, I mean 37 degrees. So Chris tried to start a fire using paper towels he found left in the wood burning stove. He of course forgot to open the damper. The guy in the next house over heard me yelling at him and came over with some firesticks and helped to clear the smoke. I decided not to hit Chris with the frying pan.
The only thing that would save us from complete boredom with no internet, was that we could watch rental movies on his laptop. Bad thing is Ingles doesn't have any good tapes to rent. So we ate, did what we usually do and got into bed. We were exhausted, and me in bed at 9:30pm. Not normal for me for sure. But I was exhausted and seven hours in a car with Chris. Well let's just say, people who know us both had sympathy for me already. He is a jokester, I will show you what I mean later on.
At about 4:00am I woke up feeling really weird. Like I couldn't breathe. Then I started to get nauseous, more and more as time progressed. Ding, ding, ding, that's the warning I got before my whole stomach area started to hurt, I mean really hurt. So I'm puking and groaning and it's getting really bad, so bad that by the time Chris got up, I wasn't sure I could make it to the ER,
Now if this tells you anything, the guy slept next to me while all this was happening. Junior was there licking my face, while bonzo snored away. Truthfully I could have woken him, but...
So when he realizes how sick I am he starts dancin' around. You know like, holy shit, what do I do, dancing around. I really was scaring him, I musta looked bad, he don't scare easy. No shower, no clothes and still in my night gown, luckily I remembered shoes, he rushed me into the car and to the emergency room at the hotel Bryson City, NC.
It was a new hospital, I got lucky, coulda been the Bates Motel with my luck.
So Chris helps me into the place and they had me a kidney basin so that while I am walking and puking I wouldn't mess up those clean floors. Hey I thought, what is wrong with these people, where's the wheelchair, I'm puking lady, I have no clue where my ID card is!
Chris does his best, but he had no clue what medication I take, let alone when I last had a pap smear. He was starting to get green with some of the questions.
Meanwhile I feel so bad I could scream. I never realized a stomach could hurt so bad and that throwing up made it worse. I was moaning as I panted to stand the pain. Nurse Kratchet say's, "stop hyperventilating, you'll pass out." Now she tells me. I slump and Chris catches me, Wow, I didn't know he had it in him!
Medicines, aahhh, I hand my weekly pill container to the nurse, take that I think, you figure it
out.
Hours go by and the stomach is not better, they try Phenergan and some other thing and it's USELESS. Then the compazine, ah a tad better, at least I know I will not scream. Then the IV ouchhhhh! I always have good veins and here they took a half hour to find one. My arms looked like I have a serious drug problem. But they get one into vein. Pain medication flows into the tubing, thank God for pain medication. My pain lowers by 40%, still there, but I can lie down for a few minutes and not have to throw up. This is the weirdest stomachache I have ever had. Damn.
Hey, look at the air and bubbles in my IV, I remember thinking before I closed my eyes to rest, is that good? I really didn't care, but hey, I thought that could kill you...

14 comments

  1. Emma Lai // November 2, 2009 at 3:09 PM  

    Wow! And not in a good way. Glad you're better and home. I hate hospitals. Doesn't matter what kind of treatment I get in there...still hate 'em.

  2. Patrice Wilton // November 2, 2009 at 3:18 PM  

    Oh Mary,
    What a terrible trip. The cabin stuff was bad enough, but you poor thing, being so ghastly sick. How scary for you and your husband! So glad you're up and kicking!
    All best.

  3. Beth Trissel // November 2, 2009 at 3:21 PM  

    You poor pitiful thing. This is just awful. What on earth did they decide you had?

  4. Mary Ricksen // November 2, 2009 at 3:29 PM  

    Stay tuned for part two. That's just the start!
    Actually I find it comical now that it's over! And I am glad it's over!!

    Blogger messed up my pictures, darn. If I try to fix it I lose comments.

  5. Judith Keim // November 2, 2009 at 4:02 PM  

    Oh, oh... not a good trip so far! Can't wait to read Part Two...

  6. Mary Marvella // November 2, 2009 at 4:07 PM  

    Mary, please forgive me for laughing at your misery! The way you told that story was perfect.

    You sounded like you needed to get better to die. The cabin experience sounds awful.

    Men can be clueless and nearly useless sometimes.

  7. Linda Swift // November 2, 2009 at 4:24 PM  

    Mary, you left us hanging and I'm eager to read Part 2. I hope it is already on the loop. I'll be looking. Sounds like the best thing about this vacation was when it was over.
    Linda

  8. Mary Ricksen // November 2, 2009 at 6:17 PM  

    I really hope that you can see the humor in it, cause these things could happen to you!!
    A good laugh gets you through it. Part#2 gets even better on Wednesday!

  9. Josie // November 2, 2009 at 8:12 PM  

    Mary,
    What a trip. So sorry to hear you were sick. Did they say what it was? Some day you'll laugh about the experience. We've all had "those" type of vacations.

  10. Scarlet Pumpernickel // November 2, 2009 at 8:13 PM  

    Mary, poor baby! How horrible to have your vacation ruined! Now you just have to finish the story, so we can be sure not to follow in your footsteps.

  11. Barbara Monajem // November 2, 2009 at 10:30 PM  

    OMG, and that's just part one!!

  12. Samantha Gentry // November 3, 2009 at 8:00 AM  

    Mary: Good grief! Talk about the vacation from hell...

    Hope you're feeling better now.

  13. Autumn Jordon // November 3, 2009 at 8:50 AM  

    OMG! You're vacation started off a lot like one of mine, but the end. OMG, again. Thank goodness for the pretty puppy and that you're home and well.

  14. Pamela Varnado // November 3, 2009 at 10:45 AM  

    Mary, laughter works mircles. Sometimes laughing is all we can do when things go wrong. I can't wait to have a chuckle over part two of your vacation trip.