...and friends...

Well on this very busy weekend for me, I took a bike ride, planning for a short 2 hour, 18 mile ride. Lots of hills. Afterwards was to be the Town and Gown Concert; tomorrow, the usual Sunday services and a solo on the psalm. Then back to the church for a First Communion Class photo and then off to a choir member's 20th anniversary party. Just about everything is out, but the class photo. Coming down one of those hills at a modest 20mph, with a very slight curve, something happened to the front tire--I think it got pinched and popped. The bike went down on my right side, the rear wheels heading for the front. I watched the side of the paved trail whiz by and the ground get closer. Ugh!! Then I noticed the "guardrail" a telephone pole sized chunk of rough wood, horizontal and my face heading towards it. I did what I could to arch my back out of the way. I can't say I exactly remember impact, or too much pain. The adrenalin had probably already been released by my panicked brain.

I got up and gathered my bike to get off the trail. I saw plenty of blood and thought, not too big a deal, head wounds always bleed a lot. Dab it. I was at one of many entrance/exits to this trail so I headed to the nearby houses and rang the bell on the first pleasant looking home. I saw someone inside, so thought it the best place to go to rinse off the blood on my knee and chin. (Outside, of course.) Ray was friendly and helpful. He looked in his cars for his first aid kit. No luck. Boy did the knee wound burn as I rinsed all that sweat off! Ray offered to take me over to the hospital only a few miles away. My knee felt a little funny, maybe just swelling, so I decided it was a good idea. And the wound looked rather deep. Then I got faint. The thought that this might be more serious than just some scrapes and abrasions was to blame, I think. I recovered after directing my attention to the probably pointless task of locking my bike up on his porch.

He dropped me off, parked, came in and gave me his name, number and address so I could call him to pick me up afterwards. !! I very much appreciated his help. He was calm, polite and reassuring. (I was calm, I think, though a bit dizzy, I suppose.) Thank you Ray, very much. It's nice to be able to count on people you don't even know.

At the ER they checked me out. And let me know that my chin was the big issue. Apparently I had a good-sized divit (sp?) out of it. The doctor was a bit concerned, for the chin and for possible internal injuries. "Get his clothes off!! All of them." No internal injuries. After the physician's assistant (nurse?) had cleaned the wounds the doctor was pleased to see the divit was hanging on, by a chad? :) Seventeen very fine stitches later she was very pleased with her work. They couldn't stitch up the knee, nothing to stitch. It will be a pretty scar. No broken bones.

I don't have anyone in the city's number memorized nor do I have a cell phone. Fortunately before leaving for the ride I had called Sonia, one of the choir directors about the class photo, and I remembered her number. She gave me another choir member's number and I called her to explain that I would probably miss the concert. Both offered to pick me up. Lynn, was singing though and so Sonia made it out. We picked up my bike from Ray, she took me home. She also made some chocolate pudding which was great since I hadn't eaten in about 7 hours. Then we made a trip to the supermarket for some first aid materials. The prescription will have to wait, as I can't find the new card!! Thank you Sonia for hauling me around and waiting while I looked through piles of junk for the card.

Now Sonia and Lynn have offered me a ride over to the church for tomorrow afternoon's photo. I wonder how well I'll be walking. I won't be singing. I asked the doctor if I would be able to sing tonight's concert and she asked: "Could you sing before this?" Oh so funny in the middle of suturing me. And I couldn't laugh! She said singing shouldn't be a problem, but a doctor in the choir, who knows what's involved in singing, said no. Let the sutures sit. So I have tomorrow morning off.

Now to take an awfully painful shower and rinse all the dried perspiration off, past all the abrasions, etc. Chin has to stay pretty dry. The doc was telling me that someone will have to wash my hair like so...There isn't anyone! (Is this too much detail?)

I wish I could post a better photo illustrating the help I received today. But I didn't bring my camera for once. What pictures I might have had!! I kept saying I wish I had my camera.

Thank you all.