Night Blindness

 We walked out of the hospital and into the night. Did I mention my night-blindness? Under normal circumstances, I would never attempt to drive at night. History has taught me that the ordinary is not noteworthy.

Stress never brings out the best in me. Some things make me want to curl into a ball and cry, and while that would be a great release, it would not help me navigate dark roads. Instead, I broke out in a cold sweat. I could feel rivulets of sweat cascading down my back and underarms and scalp. By the time I had backed the truck out of the parking space, my hair was wet and my clothes were stuck to my skin. The air-conditioning felt like ice, and I was shivering (not in anticipation).

The road from Blairsville to Hiawassee is being changed to 4 lanes. Safety cones line both sides of the route approved for traffic. You would think that would be a help for someone with my vision. Instead, the headlights sent out a beam that seemed to strike the reflective part of the cone and bounce straight into my eyes. I am familiar with the route and that helped, but I doubt the vehicles behind me were happy about traveling so slow. I white knuckled it all the way home and was never so happy to drive down my steep drive.

I settled the patient into bed and then took care of the canines needs, checked on the feline community, and fed Dora, the turtle. I had no idea how long we had been gone and was surprised to not that it was after 10 pm when I finally crawled into bed. The patient was asleep, having been dosed at the hospital. I had contacted our children and my sister-in-law via text from the hospital and had nothing else that needed my attention.

I was tired and sleepy, but my old buddy, Insomnia, had other plans. I tried to make my mind blank. Why I thought I has suddenly been gifted with that ability, I don't know. Melatonin and a cup of herbal tea and I was finally able to sleep. Last time I looked at the clock, it was 1:30. Toni Louise has no compassion for my sleeplessness and I was up at 6:00 preparing her food, then the boy dog's food, while Kevin wound his body round my legs until his turn arrived.

I was sleep-walking my way through familiar tasks and despite the coffee I drank, I was so sleepy that I crept back under the covers and slept until 8:30. I drank more coffee and talked to my sister-in-law. I was putting off the chore that awaited my attention. I needed to go have his prescription filled. Why was this weighing heavy on my mind? 

In order to go anywhere, I was facing the task of backing the truck up the driveway. Uphill and I am not a good backer upper. My sweat glands went into overdrive, and I am ever thankful that The Man was still in bed and can't hear with no hearing aids in place. When I had my car, it was easy to turn around in the driveway and go out with no problem. The Man loves to drive in reverse and always backs the truck in, so that it is easy to drive out. You might recall that darkness had engulfed my world last night and backing down the drive was not an option. Not that I would have attempted to do so in broad daylight.

I had given this a great deal of thought and was hoping to turn the truck around. I knew it would involve a lot of reversing and then forward before I could drive up. Did I mention the drop-off on one side of my drive? I tried so hard, but the length of the truck prevented me from achieving my goal. I ran over a pallet and that is when I accepted the fact that I would have to reverse the vehicle up that drive. It took some time and pulling forward when the drop-off got too close to my wheels.

I finally made it and got his pills and drove home. I parked at the top of the drive and walked down. The patient was awake and wanting another pain pill. I obliged him and then he started asking questions. Did you call the bone doctor? The bone doctor? We are not hillbillies, I thought as I told him I had not, but would take care of it. When, he wanted to know. "When I do," I said as I left the room to refresh his drink to take his daily medications. Did you feed the cats? Did I get 'those papers' from the ER with the bone doctor's number? "You betcha," said I. Then I suggested that he close his eyes and let the pain pills work. Having already fed the feline population on the mountain, I called the orthopedic surgeon's office and left a message for a call back. Then I straightened up the house and sat down to hold my Eddie for a while. Kevin soon joined Eddie and I in a lovefest of ear scratching and head kisses.

The patient refused food all day and I ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich along with a dose of melatonin. I was in bed by 8, asleep shortly after and slept all night.

Morning came with more challenges .....