Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Sunday, February 22, 2009
An Ambulance Braves the Ice in Seattle
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Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Bitter cold hit me first as we left the hospital. Two men quickly loaded the gurney into their ambulance. I got my first glance at the mounds of snow, something I hadn’t seen moving to Seattle from Indiana. All the tests and final diagnosis was the first my MD told me---a viral infection. Or as his fill-in put it, "When we can't find anything wrong then we say it was a viral infection." The bill would come to almost $53,000.00 How quickly a young family's life savings could have been wiped out without insurance.
As we proceeded along, the sights out the small window were shocking. There were many parked, well, parked is not the best word, more like abandoned cars everywhere I looked. Cars were rolling out of control through red lights and sliding without any bracing, or braking, down side streets. My ambulance drivers were constantly discussing their possible maneuvers as we raced at 2 mph towards my home.
Finally we found my side-street and holy rocky road, it felt like we were driving over a rock garden. Ice had taken over the smooth pavement. My apt. building entrance was in the middle of the block and the drivers were able to get very close to the entrance. Were my eyes deceiving me? What ho!? The front stairs had been completely cleared of all snow and ice! (I had no doubt that a caring resident had done that, as our management company never would have.) My amazement ended when I realized that ONLY the steps had been cleared---the wheelchair ramp was covered in a foot of snow over a foot of ice.
The two young ambulance drivers were pissed off too. They shoved, pulled, with so much might that I feared one would have a heart attack. (Why they didn’t just carry me up the steps, well, a mystery even to them.) The one guy was slight of build, the other was short but husky. Husky basically dragged me one yank at a time up the winding ramp, while Slight was bent over puffing on the cold air. At least I was moving, even though my cover had slipped off and I was freezing, soon I would be HOME. Then Husky shouted, “NO!” And Slight added, “Oh my God.”
Just a few feet from the end of the Himalayan ramp was a tree branch which had fallen from the shrubbery above. It rested straight across out exit. Husky plunged his manly self right into the middle of the branch and began pushing it up (Slight tried to help but he just was too weak), up, and out of our way. Finally I had made it to my apt. building door.
My partner was anxiously waiting with our front door wide open. It would be the last time I would ever enter that apt., which we had lived in for 16 years, again.
TO BE CONTINUED...
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