i've been thrown out of MUCH nicer places....
so far, i think i've spent more than my fair share of time in emergency rooms in my lifetime. tonight is no exception.
i am sitting in a charmingly decorated mauve Kaiser ER with my partner, who has descended into feverish delirium and displays all the signs of having contracted pneumonia, or better yet, some rare tropical disease. it's rolling up on 3 a.m. and i'm oddly glad of all my past visits because i am PREPARED, yo. i have a lengthy Heinlein novel, i have layered garments and warm socks, i have no fear of using my phone to surf despite all the forbidding signs, and most importantly i have nearly infinite patience with watching the human casualties of a sunday night in ghetto-ass richmond file by.
i've been listening almost scornfully as these ER noobs rail against the slowness of the triage system. yes, yes, it IS ridiculous how that multiple gunshot case just crawled right in and received immediate attention while your potentially fatal case of scraped knee has been out here for six hours. i'd love to stay and sympathize, but our rare tropical whooping cough's number just came up. but, hold the phone...we're being seen after a mere two-hour wait? SCANDALOUS.
5 a.m. edit: the final diagnosis after 4 hours? walking pneumonia. the best part of which is "walking", as in "walking towards the car so i can soon go to sleep."
i am sitting in a charmingly decorated mauve Kaiser ER with my partner, who has descended into feverish delirium and displays all the signs of having contracted pneumonia, or better yet, some rare tropical disease. it's rolling up on 3 a.m. and i'm oddly glad of all my past visits because i am PREPARED, yo. i have a lengthy Heinlein novel, i have layered garments and warm socks, i have no fear of using my phone to surf despite all the forbidding signs, and most importantly i have nearly infinite patience with watching the human casualties of a sunday night in ghetto-ass richmond file by.
i've been listening almost scornfully as these ER noobs rail against the slowness of the triage system. yes, yes, it IS ridiculous how that multiple gunshot case just crawled right in and received immediate attention while your potentially fatal case of scraped knee has been out here for six hours. i'd love to stay and sympathize, but our rare tropical whooping cough's number just came up. but, hold the phone...we're being seen after a mere two-hour wait? SCANDALOUS.
5 a.m. edit: the final diagnosis after 4 hours? walking pneumonia. the best part of which is "walking", as in "walking towards the car so i can soon go to sleep."