Mortality and Surprises

A Taste of Things to Come?

Being in a hospital, for any reason, is not fun. “But!” said a pal in high-school, “You get free meals!”

Yes, the Queens General Hospital delivers a breakfast like no other.

Tuesday afternoon I was at the gym, with my trainer Neil. Both of us tend towards “push it harder!” Admittedly I push slightly less hard than Neil does, but that’s why I pay him the big bucks.

And honestly thanks to him I’m in better physical shape than I have ever been. I look healthy, I feel healthy - it’s all fantastic.

Well, until Tuesday when this beast reared it’s ugly head:

In simple terms, lean into it, push with your legs, and the harder you push, the harder it pushes back. The picture is a TANK M4, but the one at the gym may be another brand. This thing makes you work.

It was followed by the ropes:

And man, those are even harder.

By the end of this my chest felt like it was being squeezed in a vice, I was short of breath, and just generally felt like garbage. Not knowing what I had done, I chose to drive home for the night, rather than traveling 45 minutes to the closest emergency room that was open. (This is Nova Scotia, where it’s common for hospital Emergency Rooms to be closed from one day to the next.)

So, in a nutshell, after two ER docs and a consult with the traveling cardiologist, I’m stuck in the ER until early next week when I’ll travel by ambulance up to Halifax for a catheter dye test and possibly a stent.

In the words of the Emergency doctor, when asked why I couldn’t wait at home til next week, “Because you might keel over dead.”

So, how’s your week going?