ICU hospital gownI know everyone has missed me terribly the last couple days. Right?

Ha! You wouldn’t even know I’d been gone except for my sister telling everybody. I’ve been gotten on to by pretty much everybody for not telling anyone. My sister only found out because she happened to be in town that day. Plus, my Beloved Curmudgeon insisted on calling my Mother.

All the same, I’m fine and just have to follow up with my doc to figure out what the problem is.

I have been having chest pain for about a week and a couple of times thought I might should go to the E.R. I had a doctors appointment scheduled and figured I’d just wait till then. The pain got very bad the other night. My Beloved Curmudgeon had already gone to bed but I couldn’t sleep. So I was sitting in my den trying to decide if I should just go to the ER or wait till the next day when I had an appointment already scheduled. I finally decided I needed to go ahead to the ER.

The problem was that I hadn’t shaved my legs. It’s winter and I’ve been a little negligent about that - k!?!? I couldn’t go to the emergency with unshaved legs. I realize that sounds really stupid now, but it seemed important at the time. One of my Cotillion sisters suggested that it might have something to do with being raised to always have clean underwear, just in case. That made a lot of sense to me. In fact, I think that’s it.

So at one in the morning, while I’m perspiring (I’m a Southern female so by nature I can’t say I was sweating), flushed, pulse racing and having some pretty serious chest pain I went to take a shower and shave my legs. I don’t remember getting into the shower, but I do remember at some point while I was shaving my legs, thinking to myself that this was really not my smartest moment. I laughed at myself and thought if they find me in the bottom of the shower in the morning at least I’ll have smooth shaved legs. But then I thought if I’m dead it won’t really matter.

Apparently, in all my fumbling around I had woken up my Beloved Curmudgeon. When I came out he was sitting in ‘his’ chair in the den. He was dozing in the chair with the remote control firmly in his hand. I sat down and to put on trouser socks and shoes.

Before I had gotten into the shower I was thinking about what I would wear to the ER. Seriously! By the time I got out of the shower I just grabbed the first thing I could get to wear. But I still wore trouser socks and heels. Again, stupid!

My Beloved Curmudgeon was still dozing and I was still hurting. I hated to wake him but did decide that I probably shouldn’t go without telling him. I went over to him and told him I was going to the ER and would call him when they figured out what was wrong. He roused and looked confused and then cussed at me. I can’t repeat what he said here - but he basically told me I wasn’t going to drive myself to the ER. He dressed quickly and drove me to the ER.

Of course, it didn’t matter what I wore because I was taken right back to the little room and had to put on one of those hospital gowns. I spent the rest of the night and next day flashing everyone who came near me. But my legs were shaved!!!

I got admitted and they ran every test known to man on my heart and lungs and they are just fine. For those of you who like to leave hateful little comments here, you might be pleased to find out that I DO indeed HAVE a heart!!

Bottom line - I’m fine. I’ll follow up with my doctor to figure out why I’m having the pain. There are a couple of reasons it might be, but I know it’s not my heart or lungs. They said they just had to figure out I wasn’t about to drop dead. It was much ado about nothing.

@>-
Thanks to everyone who has expressed concern and been so very kind!