Slip and Smack
My quest for becoming the queen of clumsiness continues. In a move that would easily put Michael Jackson to shame, I lived up to that infamous line spoken by that adorable little old lady, murmuring the words we'd really just as soon forget, "I've fallen and I can't get up."
I don't recommend wearing wool socks while walking around on wood floors. Nah, not a good idea. Some of my friends have suggested socks with rubber bottoms (reminding me of those one-piece pajama thingies my mom used to make me wear as a child.) You're just ITCHING to know what I did this time, aren't you. WELL ...
There I was, attempting to get ready for work, and my bathroom (for those of you who haven't been here and therefore don't know this) is on a different level then the rest of my home. A mere two steps up is all it takes to get there. So as I said, I was on my way to the bathroom, and realized when I reached the door that I forgot something. When I turned to go back down the stairs, my wool-encased foot slipped on the wood and I went up in the air and my upper back landed SMACK right into the corner of the step.
Ouch.
The pain was immediate. I managed to roll over onto my knees (thereby praying to the god of back injuries) and began coughing (I was having trouble breathing.) At least I could breathe again, but the pain in my back was still there. Damn, I thought. Who do I call, and how the hell am I going to reach the telephone? This is one of those instances where you realize that when/if you throw yourself into situations such as this that having forethought becomes an afterthought. Duh. Since I had no choice but to attempt to stand, I managed to slowly get up off the floor and stand.
Ouch.
After my last brush with clumsiness (remember when I walked into the steel support of the building?) friend Marcus had sent along his advice, which I cut and paste below. Perhaps he'll have more advice now that he knows I'm not safe in my own home:
"I guess I need to send you a NASCAR approved crash helmet for your head, a kevlar vest in case you decide to walk into moving vehicles, catchers knee and ankle protectors for your journeys in cabs. Oh well, might as well put a football facemask on the helmet too.
I vote you keep wearing high heels, nice dresses and just be a trooper and play with pain. Some of the class 4 narcotics you get are really cool for bruises.
On a serious note, concussions are fun until later in life. go see a doctor if you start blanking out or getting screaming headaches. Usually they don't want you to sleep when you smack your head even though that is all your body wants to do (advice for when you ever run into something like this again) go see a doctor. I believe all a concussion is is the shifting of the brain inside the skull if you are really curious.
You remembered what happened and you were stunned, so it could very well be a mild concussion. You would know if you had a serious one because you wouldn't remember anything and when a guy sticks ammonia tabs in your nose and it doesn't phase you and you tell him he has four fingers up when he only has two. That is a good sign you have one.
So that is the good news from Doctor Bugs. If you should get a splitting headache or whatever, see a doctor. Also do try to stay awake as much as you can. Hope you feel better.
Don and I will start wearing surgical garb in case you fall again and we get to rescue you. I bet that will keep you from running into buildings, or will it cause you to always run into things all the time?
Don can drive, I just want to play with the horns and the lights."
I should add that the pain in my back has sinced expanded to include my neck. Tossing and turning while sleeping woke me up, a reminder of my clumsiness. Perhaps I have a neurological disorder, perhaps my equilibrium is off, perhaps I'm just a klutz. Perhaps, while in the middle of a softball game as a Fourth Grader, I should have moved out of the way. Maybe it would have been a good idea if I didn't head for third base. There was a girl covering third who was much taller/bigger than I was, and she was in my way. Guess who won? She slammed into me so hard that I went up into the air and came down, landing on my face. Perhaps this is a delayed reaction to that. And I'll provide one more Cindy-as-a-child story that should suffice for now. I was crossing the busy street in front of my parents' house. I had patent leather shoes on. As I went down the driveway toward the street, the heel of my shoe caught the grease-covered concrete, and I went flying -- landing, of course, on my back.
As I said, perhaps I'm just a klutz. *grin*