In the hospital

So, I ended up spending a total of four days and three nights in a hospital, in order to have my leg operated on. I had a titanium plate installed onto my broken fibula bone, on my left leg; just above the ankle.

My friend Bill picked me up and drove me to the hospital at around 11am on Monday morning (the 16th). Upon arriving, I told him that I'd be fine and that he could probably leave. So, he left. I went to the reception desk, and the guy there gave me a form to fill out (in Korean of course), and told me that I needed a friend to act as a beneficiary, in case I left without paying. Naturally, I had no idea why I needed someone until later. The reception guy didn't know any English, so I had to rely on my pitiful Korean skills to figure things out. I ended up using the guy's cell phone to call Bill and get him to bring his Korean wife in to help me out.

It took about half an hour for them to arrive. When they got there, the form was filled out, and I was led into a room for x-rays and blood testing. I was also to supply a urine test, but, as I had already done my business earlier, I couldn't fill the ol' cup.

Following that ordeal, I was laid down on a bed and had an I.V. jabbed into my right arm. I can't say that I enjoy those things very much. Bill's two boys were there as well, and were pretty interested in what I was going through. Maybe they'll learn to be careful, after watching me!

Next, I was led away into the pre-operating area. It was a large room with a bunch of other beds with people on them; some of them groaning. It was a very strange scene indeed. It was not comforting at all. All it needed was some blood on the wall and a few body parts thrown about, and it would've been a true horror scene.

After maybe 15 minutes or so, my doctor came in (who can speak English), and rolled me into the operating room. One of the nurses that was around said "fighting!" to me, in a sweet voice. I guess she didn't want me to die. That was sure nice of her.

The operating room was your standard operating room I guess. It was filled with doctors wearing doctor suits and surgical masks. There were tools around, a large light above me, sinks, etc. Before long, the doctor, surrounded by surgeons, nurses, etc., told me "chogum apaiyo", which means "this will hurt a bit". At that point, I had to sit up while I was injected via three spinal taps. It took about 15 minutes for my legs (about the belly button down) to become completely paralysed. In other words, the most beautiful woman could've walked into the room and started caressing me, and I'd wouldn't have done a thing for me. Next, I was given a mask to breath into. That's the last thing I remember.

I woke up a few hours later in this hospital room:
















There were five beds. One guy, Seong-youn, was about 20 years old and knew some English, so I was able to talk to him some. Here's Seong-youn:

















Two of the other guys were middle-aged. One of them knew some English, but wasn't too interested in conversation. The other didn't know a word. The last guy was a grumpy old guy. That's him sleeping in the picture. They all seemed to have leg injuries. Seong-youn wrecked his knee playing soccer, and got to spend a month in the hospital as a result. The middle-aged guy who didn't know any English had some heavy planks or something like that fall on him at an industrial job. He broke a leg, some ribs, his left hand, and some other things. He was in the hospital for a while too. The other guy who knew some English had a broken leg. The old guy in the corner had something wrong with his leg as well, although I'm not sure what.

Anyway, when I woke up, Bill and his family were hanging around. Here's Bill:

















Bill was such a great guy to me. Everyday, well on Monday though Wednesday, he was keeping me company. He brought be McDonald's, juice, soup, etc. He brought me a book to read too. He really took care of me. His wife even got the cooks to bring me western food. They did alright with it. Eggs, sandwiches, bacon, rice and Coca-cola(???) for breakfast. Rice, seaweed strips, pork cuts, veggies, soup, Coca-cola for lunch and dinner. Apparently they've got the impression that we like Coca-cola in the west. I wonder where they got that from???

One of the evenings, I forget which one, Dennis, Mr. Lee (my boss), and four of my wonderful students came to visit me. That made me pretty happy. Mr. Lee gave me a sympathy 50,000 won, and one of my student's fathers works at the hospital, so I got an additional 50% off my bill.

















Here's Soul, Olivia, Rachel and Catherine.

















They're so sweet! They're seniors in high school this year. They're a pleasure to teach. They're all funny and speak good English, so we have a lot of fun in class.
















Here's Dennis. He's been absolutely great to me as well. He's been helping me go grocery shopping, helps me with my laundry, splits cabs with me, keeps me company when everyone else is out partying, etc. I really owe this guy a few beers. Well, I lend him my Bible and took him to church at least.

On Wednesday night, the nurse came and took out my I.V. Koreans do not have arm here. Blake goes hve arm hair. Having the tape holding the I.V. on your arm ripped off HURTS! I now have a one inch square bold spot on my right arm. I finally got to leave on Thursday morning. My friend Mary, who's also been very kind to me, gave me a ride home.

I've since had the stitches removed, but I'll still be on crutches until at least the end of Feb.