A funny thing happened on the way to a wedding . . .

So, if you read the last post, you know that my dad was in a pretty scary motorcycle accident on Saturday. He is pretty banged up and will be mending for many weeks to come. On the whole it could have been much worse. Had he been speeding, or even going more than the 30 mph he was going, he may not have been here today.

As it is he had a traumatic head injury (though not a serious one), lost a lot of blood, broke his collarbone and possibly his hip and also is littered with road rash and other bruises.

He was less than 1/2 mile from home.

So, I'm going to give you lessons from this accident, bear with me:

1. Please wear a helmet. As a first responder, I can tell you that we call motorcycles "donorcycles" and for obvious reasons we call helmets "brain buckets." I love bikes, I'm not campaigning here.

2. Be aware of your surroundings. Motorcycles are everywhere and you cannot always see them clearly. Be sure you are aware if one is near you.

3. Don't joke about not wanting to go to a wedding (which was what my dad had done . . . he got out of it, that is for sure.)

4. When riding in a helicopter to a trauma center - they won't let you look out the window, so don't ask repeatedly! (smile).

I cannot tell you how friendly and efficient they were at the trauma center. Aside from the fact that no one cleaned up my bloodied father, but rather sent him home covered with dirt and caked on blood - they were great.

The only problem was: my mom, or rather, her poor language skills. She doesn't speak English very well. Consequently, she asks many questions. Add to that the fact she was freaking out cause it was my dad, oh, and let's throw in the fact that my sister was two cars back when it happened and was still freaking out at the hospital. Essentially? pandemonium. As it is, Healthcare workers tend to get a little annoyed with the number of questions she asks.

So, my mom asks me questions to ask the staff, and they try to answer her questions while I try to ask it in plain English. It was a cluster. I think they sorta rushed us out of the hospital early so as not to have to deal with further questions. They didn't even have him stay overnight, though he probably should have. All in all, it was an interesting Saturday.

My observations of the hospital - besides their friendliness and efficiency? The surgeon was a bit flighty, sorta Izzy on Grey's Anatomy. The nurse was a cute 23 year old who was thinking of getting a bike - my dad told her that her face was too pretty to mess up on a bike. The PA was a pain junkie . . .

Anyway, they say all's well that ends well. He is alive. That counts for a lot.

Thanks for the good wishes and prayers they are very much appreciated.