What a busy day

Yesterday was a full day! I am certainly glad it is over too!

It was G's routine colonoscopy appointment. He gets to go every two years. I’m lucky In that my next one is 2011 which is rather funny in light of the good old breast cancer thingy. But that’s another story isn’t it?

I always over prepare for the waiting room. I had my book as well as my cross stitch projects. One isn’t enough, I had to have all three! After loading myself down like a pack mule, we set off for the hospital giving ourselves only thirty minutes to get there.

This is Swampland people. Our "freeways" look like a fire ant bed that has been stirred with a stick at 7:30 in the morning. G’s preferred way of getting to that hospital is to take the "freeway." I have to use that term in quotes because they more resemble parking lots. I just settled into my seat and quietly looked out the window. No sense giving my advice.

We got to the hospital parking lot at the appointed minute. It was 8 am on the dot. Of course we were not in the building. Details. I’m such a stickler for details.

The waiting room nearest the desk was completely full, so we went to the overflow area. Between the swish of the doors opening and the music at 400 decibels, we both were concerned we would never hear his name being called. But we did, and that worked out fine.

We were escorted upstairs to the Ambulatory Care Unit. We found his name was misspelled. Do you know what that means in these days of heath care? Everything had to be redone. Great!
All the paper work was redone, and the appointed hour was approaching. Our gastro guy is usually prompt. Not today. Of course not. I had something to do at 1 pm. I was going to meet K to see her 3D sonogram. Hmmm. It is after 10 when G is supposed to be in la la land, and he is still here, wide awake.

When I got up and turned on the news, all I got about the traffic was that there was some kind of problem up the freeway from where we got on. It caused the traffic from the Netherlands to be backed up taking about 3 times as long to get in. Guess who was in that traffic. Yes none other than Dr Gastro. His medication nurse was even further back in the mess. So the procedure got started LATE.

When G was taken back into the lab, I was shown to the waiting room. Those are interesting places. When I was first up, I thought I would just wait until I got him into surgery, then go have breakfast in the hospital. Well folks, we are getting too close to lunch, so I made the executive decision to dine a la machine.

After piling all my worldly goods into a chair in the corner, away from everyone else, I put my dollar into the drink machine only to realize that is was going to cost me another twenty five cents. Since the dollar wasn’t going to be spit out, I ponied up the quarter. I pushed the button, heard the bottle fall, but it wasn’t to be seen. A nice man even felt all around. No drink.. Nothing for $1.25, Highway robbery. After some thought, I decided to pony up another $1.25. Yes you are correct. Two bottles fell into the opening!

I took my two bottles and settled into one of the chairs, That was when my eyes fell on the woman at the opposite end of the waiting room. She is on her cell phone. When I shift my eyes to the left, there is a sign stating "no cell phone area, " and this woman is sitting there with her cell phone plugged into the wall, chatting away. She continues this behavior for at least 15 minutes straight. She is making business calls. One after another after another.

After a bit, she decides to move from under the tv into a bank of chairs that faces the tv. Without asking anyone, she takes it upon herself to change to channel. She is with the other people in the waiting room! That lasts a few moments until her still plugged in cell phone rings, and she returns to the first seat. When a nice young man asks if she is watching the tv, she responds in good old East Texas "I was fixin’ to!"

By this time, I am working on the new baby’s cross stitch wall hanging, and other people are beginning to filter into the waiting room. My people magnet has now switched on. Where do these people sit? Yep, right around me. Me who should avoid crowds.

After a few minutes, the volunteer calls me to go back to see Dr Gastro. G is fine. He will be sent back to the room, and I should go back there to wait. OK

On the way back to his room, I get to thinking about what he would ask for as far as a beverage. I was right. Coffee. It will take him 30 minutes to drink that coffee. We are getting close to noon. The sonogram is at 1 .

After several anxious moments, harsh words between K and me, driving like a race car driver, I do get G home, throw down lunch, drive like a mad woman again, I arrive at the place for the sonogram. I got a good look at my second granddaughter. She is beautiful. I can’t wait for her to get here, but first she needs to get that head down in position.