What a ridiculously crappy Fourth of July I had! Well, my weekend wasn't as bad as my relatives had, but it wasn't exactly a hootenanny supreme. In short, I spent a lot of time in hospitals. My mom was in the ICU with something very scary, as was my aunt. The good news is that my mom is okay; my aunt isn't yet, but maybe that will change sometime soon.
In case you're wondering, ICU waiting rooms are really, really depressing. We were at my mom's hospital on Sunday and I noticed that some people had made up some beds in the corner. "Wow, something bad must've happened last night," I thought.
While making polite conversation with these folks, they mentioned they'd actually been sleeping in the waiting room for three weeks now. Three weeks! I wouldn't even want to go on vacation for three weeks; I'd miss the Q-tips and sock selection I have at home. Prison might even be better, since you get a real bed. There are lots of white supremacists in prison though, so that comparison may be a wash.
Anyway, what's even worse is that the relative they were waiting on had been in a coma all of that time. What can you say to something like that? Equally impressive is how friendly they were to us and everyone else in there. If anyone deserves some good karma, it's those folks. I'm rooting for you, ICU buddies.
Since I've been thinking about it, let me just make this clear: if I'm in a coma, I don't expect any of you to wait for three weeks in the waiting room. In fact, don't even wait three days, just pop by a couple of times a week. First of all, I'd have no idea how to repay that kind of devotion. Imagine you wait for three weeks, I wake up, and then a week later, you need a ride to the airport. However, I have a doctor's appointment. I really don't think I could allow myself not to take you to the airport, but at the same time, a man who just awakened from a coma shouldn't be skipping doctor's appointments.
Second, there's a good chance I'd be faking my coma just to get a nice vacation. No point in sticking around for that.
Posted by Cody at July 7, 2008 9:38 PM