the OAF took a little trip this afternoon.Over by the market she was walking next to me (mistake one - walk single file in the narrow streets of the market).
I grabbed her shoulder and pulled her in front of me (mistake two, because)
She stepped onto the wood planked deck and it was unevenly cut (mistake three, I guess)
So she tripped forward and put out a straight-arm that would please any football coach (mistake four) but the ground is not that flexible.
Pow... she messed her right arm up but good and let out an enormous holler. She sat there for about 20 minutes trying to will the pain away. I got her a chocolate ice-cream cone, because all
women know that helps everything, somehow.Finally we decided to come back home and enlist the fluent Korean speakers. As we tried to get her up, the nearest people came rushing over to help.. a couple of students, probably. As we were trying to navigate the language barrier, an ajeoshi who had pretty good English came up and told us there was a hospital nearby. They ran down the alley and flagged down a cab and told him where to take us. We got there and some kids (they seemed to be there because an entire family had been involved in a minor car crash) saw the OAF and I limping slowly towards the door. They ran and got a wheelchair and wheeled her in.
OAF was in substantial pain, but man was that hospital efficient and friendly. We were in and out, with her dislocated elbow back in place, in less than three hours and for about 500 dollars including the pain-killers that I will steal from her ("once again" she notes). And with an appointment for next week.
In comparison to OAF's last trip to the US county hospital, for her crash, this was brilliant. OAF also has a small fracture of the elbow, but they're giving it a rest until next week, when it may need minor surgery.
A health care system that seems to work. Being from the US, I can't figure it out! ;-)
7 comments:
In a dead-pan-British voice, the Mail-Order-Daughter upon seeing the OAF sitting in the picture all busted up..."was she driving again?"
Pot/kettle/black in play.
HYS
After the past two car accidents, life realized I was immune to death in that fashion, so it is trying a different tactic...having an elbow out of place gets up there with a fractured hip in pain but getting it shoved back in place won first place...OWWWWWW!!! Poetic justice for whatever horrible thing I did in my previous life...sigh...what kind of ax wielding, knife frenzied maniac WAS I?!!!! Further posts on the next traumatic thing in my life as needed...;-)
Jae says "one leg and one arm...and what's next?"
I say, you should have made time for me before your departure to get the Norco...
Kale says... "Da da da..."
We all say, "We hope you get well sooner than soon!"
BKF
Now why you gots to slam on the very US hospital where I am starting my internship tomorrow monring? That just makes me, well.. angry!
-AF
PS Are ya'll SURE there were no cars involved in this incident?
Lucky for OAF that Koreans know you don't treat a dislocated limb with chocolate ice cream ... unless per chance you were applying the ice cream to the elbow to keep down the swelling!
-Dr. Sunshine
Me thinks perhaps you tripped OAF in a broad leap to get past her to the beer at the marketplace.
BIM!!!!!
always nice to see you around. Thank god the Korean police are pretty incompetent (c.f. Michael Kapoun) and I got away with it...
But it wasn't the beer - heck you can carry an open beer in public in Korea. Just another way Korea is more civilized than the T.H.E.M. (snotty bastards call themselves "U.S." like we'd all like to be members!).
just.. you know.. moodiness. ;-)
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