Adventure 438: The Story of George, 15

February 5, 2018

Real time took another dip down the roller coaster for George. For reasons yet unknown, he was unable to relieve himself last night. He said, "I was wearing the sheets out getting out of bed". The urge to go and the panic of not being able to forced him to push the "Button of Life" all Harvard Park residents wear around their necks. It was 2 A.M. In less than ten minutes a fire truck, an ambulance, and a pair of paramedics arrived on the scene. In a whisker, he was transported to Deaconess Hospital. Shortly, after the incident, I received a call, but since I was sleep and my phone was on silent, I didn't get the message until I woke up this morning around seven. Judy and I went to Harvard Park to confirm that he wasn't there. We then went to Sacred Heart because that's where they normally take him, and the person at the other end of the message I received didn't know which hospital he'd been taken to. We found him at Deaconess asleep. He'd been put on antibiotics, a new Foley Catheter had been inserted, and he had visible blood in his urine (They call that acute). Judy and I have stayed with him most of the day. He's eaten, he's in good spirits, and he's even remembered some more details about some old stories. My Holiday Inn degree and vast experience tells me that he tried to tug on his catheter which caused bleeding which caused a clot which caused blockage which caused an ambulance ride and a hospital stay. He's appears strong and healthy aside from his urinary problems. It will be interesting to see what the lab tests show. Right now they are giving him an ultrasound of his kidneys to see if any of the blood has backed up or originated from them. There is a whole list of causes for blood in the urine. None sound tempting.

George was able to add more detail about his summer at Gertrude Maxwell's ranch in Grangeville, Idaho. It turns out that Ms. Maxwell grew up there, and over time her family turned their sixty acres into a "Dude" ranch for city slickers to experience the West. George, probably because he was a pretty straight arrow and a good worker extended his two weeks into three months. He had many chores. Besides caring for the livestock, he also helped greenhorns learn to ride and any other "need" to make the dude experience authentic. One of his chores was to take Gertrude's mother a dozen eggs every day. She lived a mile down the road, so George rode down. On the way there, he said the horse walked calmly, almost as if it knew George was carrying eggs, but on the way back, watch out! The horse galloped for  the barn like it was a Kentucky Derby contender. George said all he could do was hold on. He remembered several "dude" stories, but one stood out. A lady from New York came out. She was terrified of horse, but they got her up on the gentlest mare they had. Still, this lady managed to get the horse high centered on a pine tree. The horse couldn't go forward, and wouldn't go backward. George and another hand named Elroy had to rescue the lady. It was all they could do to not embarrass her with their laughter. They knew that Gertrude wouldn't approve, and both boys were wise enough to know to not test her. For awhile I could see George's mind take him back to that summer. His grin was warm to see.