What a Day!
I took a few days off around the 4th — partly to spend some time with Jim, and partly to de-junk the house. The de-junking is going great…. I got the bedroom (including the closet), the hall closet, the laundry room, and the kitchen all done. The junk I got rid of is unbelievable! Next is the bathroom and then I’m done! YEE HAA!
Jim planned for us to go out on the boat today with a friend and his wife from work. Mark and Amber met us this morning around 10:30 and off we went. We were all ready for a day of fun in the sun — skiing, swimming, and kneeboarding. I had never met Mark and Amber, and they seemed very nice… the kind of people I would like to hang around with. Mark skiied first and did very well. He hadn’t skiied, much less slalommed, in several years and he popped right up on the ski. I was very impressed. He skiied for a bit and then it was my turn. I kneeboarded — I’m not much of a skier — and had a great time. We stayed close to the marina because we were waiting on another of Jim’s co-workers to show up in his boat.
While we were waiting, Mark seemed uneasy. His wife asked him if he was ok, and he said that he wasn’t sure. He said he was trying to figure out if he was having a heart attack or not. We weren’t sure if he was kidding or not, but upon further questioning, he said that he had a heaviness in his chest and kneck and tingling in his hands and forearms. He wanted to just rest for a bit and see if he felt better. After a few minutes, he asked us to take him back to the marina because he was not feeling well. When we got to the mouth of the marina, he asked if we thought the paramedics would come out to which I replied “of course”. I dialed 911 on the cell phone and spoke with a dispatcher who connected me to the ambulance service. We made it to the fuel dock and the fire department arrived first (they were closer) and then the ambulance. Mark left in the ambulance.
Not wanting to go back out in the boat after this, Jim and I loaded the boat on the trailer and went home. I got news that the little girl from next door would be discharged from Children’s Hospital today and her parents wanted me to come and get her. They don’t have air conditioning in their car and since she almost drowned and had lung problems, they preferred her to ride home in air conditioning. I was more than happy to go and pick her up. It has been a true miracle for my little neighbor. In the beginning, they didn’t think she would make it, but she surprised everyone. Not only did she survive, but she survived apparently unscathed either physically or mentally. A true answer to many blessings!
Jim tried to call Mark a couple of times this afternoon and received no answer. I called the hospital around 5:30 to find that Mark was still in the ER. Amber called us later to tell us that they are keeping Mark until at least Wednesday. The cardiologist is 99% sure that he has some kind of heart disease (blockage) and they are going to run an echocardiogram Wednesday. They said they could run a stress test, but it would only reproduce the same results Mark received while skiiing. Apparently we had run a stress test on him and not realized it! We are hoping and praying for the best for Mark.
What a day……….
Update: Mark is fine! The doctors could find nothing wrong with him!