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Update on Big Red

12-26-10
Windy, windy, windy. That pretty much describes the day. Gusts reached nearly 40 miles an hour in the harbor. Since the extreme winds exaggerated the cold temperature, we decided to stay aboard all day.
 
White Swan is secure on her anchor, and we’ve no concern regarding the rocky ride we are having today. All the boats in the anchorage are bobbing about; and presumably, their occupants are as enthralled as we are with the ride going nowhere.
 
The infection on my leg is no better, but we’re going to wait until tomorrow to go to the hospital, hoping the weather will be more conducive to a dinghy ride to shore.

 

12-27-10

Gary and I layered our clothing and donned our foul weather gear to help block the cold wind as we dinghied to shore. Previously, I had checked out the hospitals using one of my iPhone apps. Wishing that we had an opinion from a local resident regarding which hospital to use, we made our uninformed choice. After a painful walk to the Publix grocery store, I waited outside while Gary went in to ask someone at the Customer Service desk which taxi service we should use. They called a cab for him and he returned to await the cab with me. It seemed like forever for the cab to come, and one still had not arrived, when a gentleman stopped his car where we were and said he overheard Gary’s conversation with the person at the service desk, and he would gladly take us to the hospital. Of course, I eagerly agreed to the kind offer.

We told him we wanted to go to the Columbia Hospital and after driving a short distance toward it, he mentioned he liked to use the Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center. We told him if that facility is his preference, we’d prefer to go there if it wasn’t far away. He promptly turned the car around and in a short time had us at a hospital recommended by a “local resident”. “God watches over idiots and children” via nice people like David, our angel for the day. David said he could tell we were boaters (sail boaters especially, all have “that look”) and since he had a passion for the water, and his brother was a professional captain with whom he accompanied on some of his excursions, he was as unafraid to ask us to ride in his car, as we were unafraid in accepting the offer. He would not accept compensation for his generosity. His reward seemed to be twofold: the satisfaction of conversing with people who love the water as much as he, and, doing a good deed in the Christmas spirit. He was a godsend.

Most of the day was spent in the Emergency Room. The doctor lanced, drained and packed my one inch deep wound. Gary stood beside me and took the brunt of the pain as I squeezed his hands during the procedure. After an IV antibiotic finished it’s last drop, I was released with orders to return in two days for the packing to be removed. The best part of the whole day was getting back to White Swan with a prescription of pain pills.

Obviously, we are going to hang out at Lake Worth until my leg heals. Our friends Pat and Tom, and, Ed and Cheryl offered to drive down here to take me back home to recuperate, but I’d really rather stay on the water. You know you’re a sailor when… you have a serious infection of MRSA but would rather ride it out on your boat than at your house offering more comfortable amenities. It’s “healing” to be on the water.

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