05 January 2009

First Monday of the year

Epic insomnia last night. There was no cause. No worries. Just no sleep. Wide awake from 1 to 4 a.m. and none of my usual tricks - like trying to remember all the dog breeds in alphabetical order - worked.

So I formulated a plan to sleep as late as possible, 6:25 am, and skip showering and skip eating and just drop Goldie at Mom and Dad's, drop my car at the shop so they could fix the still-ghetto plastic window and take their shuttle back home to work all day in my glorious grubbiness.

When I got to Mom & Dad's, the front door was locked, which made me cranky. Dang, I get there at the same bat time every bat day and they can't even remember to unlock the door? I gave the handle a good bashing about, rattling the door hard and through the blinds I could see Dad still lying there in the recliner.

Oh, great, I thought. He's gotten so deaf he can't even hear me at the door. I pounded on the window and he kept ignoring me, so I pounded even louder, more irritated.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" my mom yelled, and suddenly I knew something was up. Mom doesn't get around so good and door duty is all Dad, all the time.

I walked in and Dad was sprawled in his chair, pale, clammy, no dentures, breathing rapidly. I asked him what was wrong and he could barely answer. He looked scary. Skinny and old and sick with his cheeks caved in.

Mom explained that he had been throwing up and was feverish and in pain. Classic food poisoning symptoms, which is never good, but when you are weak and 90, even worse.

What made it all even finer was that I probably caused it. I had brought some handmade sausages from Farmer's Market that didn't have any preservatives in them. The woman had told me to cook or freeze them within 8 days, and it took me 4 to bring them over, then a few more days for Dad to start eating them and then he took his time before finishing them...Mom didn't eat them and she was fine.

I was petrified that he was going to die. He LOOKED like death. But as usual, he didn't want to go to the hospital.

I brought in my laptop from the car, sat down in the spare room and waited for whatever chips to fall where they might, greasy hair, no breakfast, white-trash car and all. First things first.

But that Dad is a wiley one. By the time I was buried in the morning's conference calls, he was sitting up and feeling better, his voice strong, the fever gone. I went back home at noon, crisis averted.

Last time I got food poisoning I was about 35 and really healthy. I threw up for two days, couldn't work for four and didn't eat for a week. Mom just called, saying he wants a vanilla shake delivered. They made them tough back in 1918.

20 comments:

Count Mockula said...

Glad to hear his appetite's back. I was on rice pudding and Vitamin Water for about three days after my last bout of food poisoning.

Suzanne said...

Whew. I am so glad that he is OK.

Green-Eyed Momster said...

Oh my, I'm so glad that your dad is feeling better!! Good thing he's tough!!

Hugs!!

Kizz said...

They did make them tough back then, eh? Last time I had food poisoning was a year ago Christmas and it took me a couple of days to recover and many more to care at all about eating. How do they do it?

Mrs. G. said...

What a good daughter you are. Not counting the sausage.

Ericka said...

good grief. between the sausage and the chocolate, i'm starting to wonder about you.

food poison. uck! do NOT ever get a hamburger at that famous seafood place in seattle where the sea gulls can swoop into the restaurant through the rafters. among the worst 2 days of my life.

mar said...

i am *so* glad he's a tough one!
because of my digestive issues, i seem to get food poisoning or a touch of it on a fairly regularly basis. not among my favourite activities.

Glennis said...

Damn. I am so glad it ended up OK. I also remember getting food sickness in my 30s, and am in total awe of your Dad.

flutter said...

I am so glad he's ok!

Project Christopher said...

Glad he's better! I got food poisoning the first day of managing a 6 day conference. There IS no one else... I ran that conference knowing where every single bathroom was (whether it was public or back of the house hotel staff)

now the obvious question..... you don't have a key to your parent's place but go there daily to help out?

just a thought in case one day neither can perform door duty for some reason.

Anonymous said...

Goodness! Never a dull moment, huh? I'm glad your dad's okay.

super des said...

Glad he's ok. Yeah, food poisoning is my least favorite way to get sick because like everyone else, I am completely worthless for a few days. Good old tough Dad.

Gwen said...

Ack! What a scary way to find your father. So glad to hear he's such a tough old coot.

LittlePea said...

So true. That generation of men are made of steel!

Major Bedhead said...

Wow, scary stuff.

I've been lax in blog reading and just caught up on your last 15 posts. Your year-end recap was great.

Now where are the pictures of the chilluns?

claire said...

Damn. I have a stomach ache today and want to get into bed right now and sleep until tomorrow afternoon. I don't think i could handle a vanilla shake. Blergh.

Glad your dad's ok. Food poisoning is the WORST.

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear your dad is feeling better. He sounds a lot like my dad, although mine was only born in 1941. I'm laughing about the sausage though because my dad thinks he's infallible and would probably have eaten sausage that was passed its prime all the while insisting that nothing would happen. Fathers are a breed all their own, aren't they?

flutter said...

OMG! good lord

Julie said...

SO glad he is ok.

Anonymous said...

Sorry I'm late to this, but I'm glad he's OK!

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