The Nose!

February 27, 2002-After Effects

I caught a quick glimpse of myself in the mirror this morning. I’d hoped to have that Hannibal Lector look, but now I can report I look more like Emmett Kelly, the clown, after he was on the losing end of a run-in with a barbed wire fence. The stitches are stunning. I’m usually not into silver. Gold is more my look, but I may have to change my ensembles until the stitches are removed on Monday.

There’s no dressing or bandage, so it’s all hanging out there. I really don’t think I’ll be going out of the house for the week. I wouldn’t want to subject anyone to that sight. I’m using a topical ointment three times/day, which adds a luster to it all. The ointment is Chlorsig (chloramphenicol, 10mg), for those of you to whom it may mean something. It’s actually for use in the eye, but they’re using it topically here. I think I’m part of a study. They don’t have any informed consent or disclosure forms here, but I have a questionnaire for the doctor to fill out after the stitches are removed. They also are a bit more casual about patient release. I’ve had outpatient procedures done at home & they don’t let your feet touch the ground until you’re out of their care. Here, the sister (nurse) walked me to the door of the building as David pulled the car around. Then she turned me loose to make my own way through the doors & into the car. David didn’t even have time to get out & help before I was on my way. A thought did occur to me. Can a male nurse be a sister too?

The one custom I fell in love with had the British touch. Since I had to fast for six hours & surgery was at 1PM, I hadn’t eaten since the night before. I was ravenous! As I was rolled into the recovery area, the sister asked, “Would you like a cuppa?” How civilized! Not only was I offered tea, but I also had juice & sandwiches. I must be the only one whose appetite increases in the hospital. When Wendy was born, I had a spinal bloc & wasn’t allowed to sit up for twenty-four hours afterwards. The threat for breaking that rule was a relentless headache. I was starving after the delivery. When they brought my dinner of soup & spaghetti, it didn’t take me long to come up with a strategy. I turned on my side & slurped the soup through a straw. Then I tackled the spaghetti. I just lay there &, strand-by-strand, I sucked it in. Yum! Yesterday, I didn’t disappoint. I downed 1-½ sandwiches.

They use a pain relief medicine here called Panadol. The generic is Paracetamol. It’s a non-aspirin tablet like Tylenol. I asked if Tylenol would be ok to use & was told that it’s stronger than Panadol. I wondered what use a weak Tylenol-type drug would be good for. I found out. The discomfort I had was like the very beginning of a sinus headache. My nose bones & upper front teeth were achy. I imagine that Bugs Bunny would feel like that if he tried to chomp down on a decorative wooden carrot. So, I tried just one tablet. You can take up to two every four hours. It worked.

David just went to the doctor’s office to get more ointment. The doctor told him that the ointment is for lubrication. It’s basically a fancy Vaseline. He said I could cover my nose when I go out so I may be able to walk the streets again without fear of being arrested for child endangering or celebrating Halloween out of season.

We called to wish Daniel a happy birthday this morning. It was last night in Akron at the time & was the evening of his birthday. We checked the weather with them & I’m happy to report that the record holds. It has been 32 years that the weekend closest to Feb. 26th, & that date itself, had weather that was decent, if not balmy. By decent, I mean that we’ve never had to cancel his birthday celebration due to bad weather. Having a February birthday can be unfortunate if you’re a young child & worrying about whether or not the kiddies will be able to make it for cake & ice cream. More importantly, could they make it to the party with the presents? Well, as you recall, the weekend was in the 50’s & yesterday was “decent” if cold.

Alex was on her way to dance class. We got to speak to her a bit & I asked if she was talking to the baby yet. She said she sort of was. The example she used was that if Vikki said, ”I ate a whole banana,” Alex would say,” No, you only had half.”

We got our photos back from the New Zealand trip. I think I’ll work on putting them into the album this afternoon. I will work very slowly. If I’m going to be cooped up all week, I’ll need things to do. Either that, or the apartment will be cleaner than it ever has been. I’ll end up doing the public areas. If I run out of ways to keep busy, I might need more than Panadol. Valium might start to look good.

It’s 6PM & I couldn’t stand it any longer. I called the Bruces to see if they were going for Thai food. They are & we are. I’ll put a band-aid on & hope for the best.

Toby