Every day brings new surprises, does it not? The ice on the driveway surprised Capt. Cook this morning. He said he slipped and slid but kept his balance and did not tumble to the ground. I drove a new route into a neighboring city this morning and discovered that it was about five minutes shorter than the route I had previously taken. Good news - even during morning drive time! Later, I had routine blood work done in preparation for a fun procedure done every ten years and the phlebotomist drawing the blood was so skilled that I never felt the needle prick my skin. After that I had my first EKG, only to find that it takes just minutes - barely over two. The need for the EKG had something to do with a shortage of an anesthetic that does not require an anesthesiologist and the possibility that an agent might have to be administered to moi that requires an anesthesiologist - hence the need for a pre-fun-procedure-that-is-done-every-ten-years EKG. All quite complicated to moi so I just followed instructions. After the instant EKG I sought a place to eat breakfast and had a great, inexpensive meal at the hospital's cafeteria. I got to enjoy steaming hot coffee, a magazine and a delicious made-just-for-moi omelet. Another pleasant surprise.
My big surprise for the day was the hospital's usage of beepers. Heretofore, my only experience with beepers was with restaurant beepers. Restaurant beepers seem to be predictable. Your beeper beeps, you find the host or hostess, give the person your beeper and you get seated. I had never heard a hospital beeper beep before. The difficult part is that hospitals are filled with things that go "beep" so it is difficult, at first, to determine if your beeper is beeping. While I was in the restroom I thought my beeper beeped and when I went past the registration desk, I asked the woman who first gave me my beeper if my beeper had, indeed, beeped. She had this plastic smile plastered on her face (see yesterday's posting), displaying a countenance of patience, looked at my beeper and informed me, quite pleasantly, that my beeper had not beeped. She gestured towards this vast waiting area, told me to take a seat and that someone would come to get me when my beeper beeped. I did as I was told, opened my magazine and settled in with my crossword puzzle and my cell phone. There were maybe twenty or so people spread out over the atrium waiting area, all of us with beepers. Suddenly my beeper went nuts except I had no idea where to go. Shortly thereafter a woman emerged from a doorway and muttered someone's name but I could not understand her. She repeated the name more loudly, I recognized it as my name and looked towards her. She motioned to me to follow her and I did. Once seated in her registration office, I asked her how she and the other registrars knew who they were looking for and she replied that they all just looked for startled people. Now that is what I call a procedure. After the registration process, I was directed to keep my beeper and move to a different waiting area within the atrium. Doing as I was told, I found a seat in the new area and settled in, once again, with my magazine and my cell phone. I had just become comfortable when my beeper went nuts. I looked around at a multi-plex of doors and saw no one. Suddenly a woman dressed in a medical-type uniform appeared in a doorway and magically motioned towards me. How she knew my beeper had beeped is beyond me. It must have been my startled look.
I now understand what prompts what is called the "startle reflex" in babies. They must have an internal beeper. I was happy to leave mine behind this morning.
Ancora imparo
