Where the Vampires Roam

Last Sunday, immediately following the departure of the folks from our Thanksgiving holiday, I began to feel a bit under the weather. Mind you, I have not missed a day of work due to illness in more than five years, so i figured that I would just rest on Sunday and be ready for work on Monday. Most of the day Sunday was spent sleeping, driving the porcelain bus, and drinking vast quantities of water. I finally heaved the last of my stomach contents at about 4pm and went to sleep for the night. Unfortunately my sleep was interrupted at about 6am with a bout of dry heaves. Wendy decided I was not going to work. I didn't decide anything, I just slept.

Wendy returned home for lunch and, despite my protestation, took me into the ER. Surprisingly the let me right in. I was immediately plugged into drips, poked with stickers and needles, and generally abused. The doctor said my body had sustained a major insult -- so what else is new. They moved me into an ICU room and began the week long process of waking me back up.

As a bit of back story here, my insulin pump apparently sustained damage while I was running back an interception during our Thanksgiving day football game. For several days, unbeknownst to me, insulin had been delivered into my pants but not my body. By the time I caught on, my blood sugar was in the stratosphere and the insults began.

But that is not the story. This story is about the vampires who roam the corridors of the ICU late at night. These creatures in their flowing white lab coats and porcelain faces keep a close eye on anyone in ICU lest they miss an opportunity to feed. They will float into your room with their tool kit at their side to extract a morsel every two to three hours. After a couple of days you barely awaken as they take their little snack. "Big stick" some will say before they jab you with their equipment. The kinder ones will attempt to use an existing hole from previous feedings. I returned from the ICU on Thursday last with the telltale bite marks and bruises that evidence a short stay.