Some tests

     Evening.  Pleasant here tonight, had a nice dinner, got my bottle of seltzer and figured I'd get back to this thing.
     I took the coallce; mixed the mixture with 2 bottles of Gatorade and checked into the hospital.  This was going to be fun.  Tests were tomorrow.  Not a huge Gatorade lover, and I was allowed apple juice, of which I'm not a huge fan.
     Towards the beginning of my decline I decided I needed to drink something a little different so I chose apple juice.  Then one day in the case I noticed apple juice light.  Said I to myself..."What the Hell!"  The ingredients were the same.  Seemed they just added water and called it light.  Ripoff.  Anyway.
     I had an older dude for a roommate.  Older gentleman, not sure about his age, had to be over six feet.  Notable mainly because even I thought the toilets were a little low, thought how he must hate them.  Would find out that he'd had some sort of heart surgery.  He was also a life long smoker.  Oh and he was cranky as all heck, some of the time.
     He was also a C/O patient.  Which stood for constant observation.  So basically had a nurse in the room at all times.  Not a bad thing.  Became somewhat acquainted on my NUMEROUS trips to the bathroom.  Couldn't help but eventually realize to my great horror, he wasn't much of a hand washer after his trips.  Oh joy oh rapture.
     Most notably he was rude and wanted out of the hospital.  He also had some breathing medications to take quite often.  He'd yell at many times "I CAN'T BREATH"  and someone would have to call pulmonary.  Caused a minor fracas with one of the dudes.  Oh and he also brought his own meds from his home which were confiscated.  Sorry I like details and since I got no visitors on my visits I studied my roomies.
     He'd let the night watch nurses watch what they wanted and complain about it the next day.  Saw his family once or twice, they wanted him moved closer.  I felt badly for him.  One time he started to do some walking and then they told him it was to much because they wouldn't let him get into rehab.  What a racket.  What the Hell is rehab for then.  Well if you can walk 7 feet you can get in....but walk 8 and you obviously are healthy enough.  We'll get to my own soon enough or maybe the next post.  Think I'll do 2 tonight.
     They'd doubled up my water pills and that was also helping, so I made the rounds, after the procedure.  Anyway the worst part was the constant shitting.  Night passed easily enough.  They came for me the next morning.  Had to leave glasses and such, did as I was bade.  Down some corridors and into the area.  Must say it had a nice feel to it.  Even though it was probably as much as factory as the ICD test area.  Met Dr.s, had defibrillator turned off.  Into the room I went.
     Cozy and warm.  Some people wearing what I would call welder masks, made me laugh.  The anesthesiologist asked if I'd had some sort of, preventative thing and was surprised when I said not to my knowledge.  So through the I.V. line it went.
     I became extremely itchy, at one moment laughed and said excuse me.
"I realize you're about to do the dirty to my arse but I need to scratch."  Lifted the gown and did so.  Told them I was getting itchier.  Basically they tried to put in the 'fluid' to fast and that was the reaction.  They slowed it and I felt better.  They put me out for both procedures. 
     I awoke in recovery, asked if I wanted a newspaper I said yes please.  Was told they'd discovered a couple of abrasions and a polyp in my stomach and they wanted to remove it, so day after tomorrow would have to be the day.  I discussed medication and no one seemed alarmed by it.  Long story shortened, it was nothing.  Seems the potassium pills I was taking, one needs to when on water pills of high dosages, need to be had with a full stomach.  That was my error.
     My roommate James thought he was leaving, this was after the second procedure.  Alas something was direly wrong with his breathing, the nurse basically saved his life by having someone look at him.  Back to critical care unit for him.  Another oddity was my phone would ring and people would ask for a Dr. somebody.  I informed them he was not in my bed.  Never got that figured out either.
     Spent much of the week walking and talking with some nurses I'd become friendly with, kind of glad for the private room now.  Problem with coumadin is when they take you off you go on heparin that takes forever for me and getting my blood stabilized. 
     New roommate.  Some kid, never got his name.  Came in with a urinary infection of some sort.  And I got to share a bathroom with him.  Wasn't there but a day or 2.  He left and I still remained.  Somewhere in the night, a nurse came in.  They needed the room, there was a bed in another room, the man was leaving in a day and refused to be moved.  So I obliged.  Nice guy, we talked a little.  He also had plenty of visitors.  Never got to see him leave to say goodbye, I was asleep.
     Point of interest.  On one of my numerous rounds of the ward I'd noticed 2 things.  My room was now vacated and being cleaned furiously, never did asked what had happened.  There were 2 people there the previous night and day.  Most notably, everyone on the ward was now sporting these new orange socks.  And I mean everyone found that most curious.  Had made myself nice and cozy in my once again solitary room when a nurse came in with a pair of....yes....you got it....orange socks.
     Seeing her eye me curiously I  inquired, what they were.  "They're compression socks.  For people who don't get up and move.  But you are always walking I don't know why the house Dr. ordered them for you."
Astonished I inquired "And when did he see me?  Not a sole here all day unless he say my impression when walking.  Seems he ordered them for the whole floor."
We both agreed I didn't need them.
     I was released, the rest actually did me some good.  Had some of my old energy back, fluids more back in control.  They did give me something called lovinox to inject myself with to help with the blood thinning.  And that was a wrap.