Christmas Shenanigans
Dec. 26th, 2018 10:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kerravonsenSo.
Today was Boxing Day. This year my family had decided to spread the Christmas celebration over two days, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Christmas Day was purely for food and talk. Boxing Day was for presents and games. And quite a few of the presents turned out to be games. Ah, my family. My eldest brother is so enamoured of Terraforming Mars that he keeps on buying me extensions for it.
And my slightly-improved-recipe Christmas Pudding Ice Cream (must update the recipe on the website) was a hit, yay.
So the new game I played was Azul, which was rather different from any other game I'd played. In a way, it's like a puzzle game where you try to maximize your points, but you're also playing with other people, and that can affect what resources you can use, because someone else may have picked them up first. So I played two games of that, then I went out to the veranda/deck (this was my eldest brother's place, they usually host family gatherings) to see what the other groups of people were doing. There were four groups of games going at once, two inside, and two outside on the veranda (it's a big deck kind of veranda, with room for a barbeque and a couple of tables... and a hammock). One group were playing Munchkin, and the other were playing Terraforming Mars. I sat down looking at the Terraforming Mars folks for a bit, but then I noticed the hammock and thought it would be nice to relax in.
Bad move. Very very very bad move. I was used to the kind of hammock which had stiff rods at the ends which spread out the hammock so that it was easier to get into. This was the other sort. So when I attempted to sit in it, I went flying backwards into the balustrade!
Sprawled down, ow ow ow, hand to the back of my head, hand comes away covered with blood. Gee, it actually is true that head wounds bleed profusely. Almost instantly, about half a dozen people fussing over me. Sitting up gingerly. Paper towel at the back of my head, someone else sponging the blood off my hands, the almost-paramedic looking into my eyes for concussion (and then admitting that he's a bit tipsy and can't really tell). Someone offering to call an ambulance. Other people saying no, one isn't needed, but she probably needs stitches. Discussion about what to do for me, local clinic or should we try Knox or Box Hill? Asking me if I feel dizzy. Four people helping me to my feet. Keeping pressure on the wadded up paper towel at the back of my head. Brother-in-law driving me and sister-in-law down to local clinic after someone had rung up to check if they were open and could they see me. Getting my details and then taking me to the nurse straight away. All the usual questions (dizzy? nauseated? headache? allergies?). First examination, maybe it could be glued and not need stitches. Then moved to different room with brighter light, more cleaning of wound, no definitely will need stitches. Doctor is called, and sister-and-law and I wait. Then doctor comes in and asks all the questions all over again. Plus whether I am on medications, so I listed those. Turned out the blood pressure medication was relevant, because it means that Neurofen/Iboprufin is contra-indicated as a pain killer, as it can raise blood pressure. Good to know. Local anaesthetic. Wait for it to take effect, then wait a little longer as the doctor had to tend to another emergency. Then back, testing "Does this hurt? Does that?" and there was an OW in the midst of that, so another shot of local anaesthetic and another wait.
Then the stitches. Five, apparently. I don't know, I can't see the back of my head. She was kind and did not shave my hair off. But that means that a bandage won't stick to it, though I could have gotten one of those bandages they wrap around your whole head. Or I could put a towel on my pillow. I shall try the towel. Of course I shall be sleeping on my side, but I doubt I will stay on my side when I actually fall asleep. And I will need pain-killers tomorrow.
So then we went briefly back to brother's house to pick people up, then drove me back home, where Youngest Niece had already been dropped, then second brother and other sister-in-law dropped in to see how I was and to fuss over me, and then they went back to report to my father (they were staying with him) and youngest niece was really really helpful in getting some of the blood out of my hair (it wouldn't have mattered to me, except that my hair was sticking together and I couldn't brush it, which I needed to do in order to put it in plaits before bed).
While the whole accident was my own silly fault, I feel that God's providence was at work. I could have done this silly thing on some other occasion when I was visiting my eldest brother, and there might have been nobody out on the veranda to see me fall, there might have been only a few people around, and instead there were lots of people who could figure things out and take care of me while I was in shock. Not only that, but my youngest niece is staying with me, so she will be able to check up on me (in case I do develop symptoms of concussion). Not only that, but when the doctor said I could have the stitches out in 8-10 days, that I could come back there or have my regular doctor do it, I checked my calendar and guess when my next appointment with my regular doctor is? In exactly nine days time. Wow.
Today was Boxing Day. This year my family had decided to spread the Christmas celebration over two days, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Christmas Day was purely for food and talk. Boxing Day was for presents and games. And quite a few of the presents turned out to be games. Ah, my family. My eldest brother is so enamoured of Terraforming Mars that he keeps on buying me extensions for it.
And my slightly-improved-recipe Christmas Pudding Ice Cream (must update the recipe on the website) was a hit, yay.
So the new game I played was Azul, which was rather different from any other game I'd played. In a way, it's like a puzzle game where you try to maximize your points, but you're also playing with other people, and that can affect what resources you can use, because someone else may have picked them up first. So I played two games of that, then I went out to the veranda/deck (this was my eldest brother's place, they usually host family gatherings) to see what the other groups of people were doing. There were four groups of games going at once, two inside, and two outside on the veranda (it's a big deck kind of veranda, with room for a barbeque and a couple of tables... and a hammock). One group were playing Munchkin, and the other were playing Terraforming Mars. I sat down looking at the Terraforming Mars folks for a bit, but then I noticed the hammock and thought it would be nice to relax in.
Bad move. Very very very bad move. I was used to the kind of hammock which had stiff rods at the ends which spread out the hammock so that it was easier to get into. This was the other sort. So when I attempted to sit in it, I went flying backwards into the balustrade!
Sprawled down, ow ow ow, hand to the back of my head, hand comes away covered with blood. Gee, it actually is true that head wounds bleed profusely. Almost instantly, about half a dozen people fussing over me. Sitting up gingerly. Paper towel at the back of my head, someone else sponging the blood off my hands, the almost-paramedic looking into my eyes for concussion (and then admitting that he's a bit tipsy and can't really tell). Someone offering to call an ambulance. Other people saying no, one isn't needed, but she probably needs stitches. Discussion about what to do for me, local clinic or should we try Knox or Box Hill? Asking me if I feel dizzy. Four people helping me to my feet. Keeping pressure on the wadded up paper towel at the back of my head. Brother-in-law driving me and sister-in-law down to local clinic after someone had rung up to check if they were open and could they see me. Getting my details and then taking me to the nurse straight away. All the usual questions (dizzy? nauseated? headache? allergies?). First examination, maybe it could be glued and not need stitches. Then moved to different room with brighter light, more cleaning of wound, no definitely will need stitches. Doctor is called, and sister-and-law and I wait. Then doctor comes in and asks all the questions all over again. Plus whether I am on medications, so I listed those. Turned out the blood pressure medication was relevant, because it means that Neurofen/Iboprufin is contra-indicated as a pain killer, as it can raise blood pressure. Good to know. Local anaesthetic. Wait for it to take effect, then wait a little longer as the doctor had to tend to another emergency. Then back, testing "Does this hurt? Does that?" and there was an OW in the midst of that, so another shot of local anaesthetic and another wait.
Then the stitches. Five, apparently. I don't know, I can't see the back of my head. She was kind and did not shave my hair off. But that means that a bandage won't stick to it, though I could have gotten one of those bandages they wrap around your whole head. Or I could put a towel on my pillow. I shall try the towel. Of course I shall be sleeping on my side, but I doubt I will stay on my side when I actually fall asleep. And I will need pain-killers tomorrow.
So then we went briefly back to brother's house to pick people up, then drove me back home, where Youngest Niece had already been dropped, then second brother and other sister-in-law dropped in to see how I was and to fuss over me, and then they went back to report to my father (they were staying with him) and youngest niece was really really helpful in getting some of the blood out of my hair (it wouldn't have mattered to me, except that my hair was sticking together and I couldn't brush it, which I needed to do in order to put it in plaits before bed).
While the whole accident was my own silly fault, I feel that God's providence was at work. I could have done this silly thing on some other occasion when I was visiting my eldest brother, and there might have been nobody out on the veranda to see me fall, there might have been only a few people around, and instead there were lots of people who could figure things out and take care of me while I was in shock. Not only that, but my youngest niece is staying with me, so she will be able to check up on me (in case I do develop symptoms of concussion). Not only that, but when the doctor said I could have the stitches out in 8-10 days, that I could come back there or have my regular doctor do it, I checked my calendar and guess when my next appointment with my regular doctor is? In exactly nine days time. Wow.
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Date: 2018-12-27 10:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-12-27 10:25 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-12-27 11:40 am (UTC)