# Spent 3 hours and a bit in ER Friday.



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

John got a call Thursday from a farmer who we were refured to. He said he had a big whistle pig, wood chuck, ground hog problem. Did we do that or just coyotes. John says we will do that let him call some of us and see if we can set a day and time.
Was decided we would do it Friday late morning agreeing to meet at the farm since it was out of their way to pick me up. We meet just after 9:30 at the farm and met Mister Biglow in person, He has us get in his jitney a old van with no side just a floor and seats. Takes us around the farm pointing out wood chuck mounts in his soy bean fields and hay fields and property lines. Gets us back to the trucks just after 10:00 AM and we load up rifle, shooting sticks, binocs, shooting sheet and a couple bottles of water.
So back down the lane we walk, I & Dean are splitting off going along a bean field to a set up spot over looking a mound down hill from where we are going to set up . I had just hit the deep grass of a fence row and got my feet tangled in the grass and went down hard. Mostly landed on my left side trying to protect the rifle I think which was slung on the right side. I hit and bounced once with instant pain from my left leg and knee. I lay there and finally remove the rifle and lay it aside. Work my left knee and it is still working although a lot of pain then I look down and see a 3 corner rip in my jeans happy they are a well worn pair and blood, lots of blood. I clamp down on the shin part of the leg trying to stop the flow, Managed to slow it down a bit so get up off the ground and see what in the *ell I had landed on. A broken tree branch about 4 inches in diameter was hidden in the grass with a stub of a branch about 3 inches long all pointy sticking up. 
I Have Dean keep asking if I am OK even though I say I will live I believe. Say I need to get back to the truck and get this bleeding stopped So off we go at a normal gait. At the truck I grab my roll of blue towels I carry, rip one off and soak it with cold water. Lay it on the bleeding area and slow it down again. Look to see that stub had hit the outside part of my calf slid along it till it hit the incision from the knee surgery ripping open the bottom 1 1/2. I wad up another towel and duct tape it to hold it in place while I drive home. I had not intended to go any place where people were plus I wanted the surgeon who did my knee look at it since I was in some pain.
I get home Kare called and found out the doctor was not in and they told her to take me to ER. Got there just before noon, ended up getting 5 different angles of EX Rays and knee was fine just bruised on the out side. Got a good clean up and 6 stiches From a real good doctor along with anti bodies for the day and a script. Also the great Nurse gave me a tetunis shot. 
A script for Pain pills and antibodies.
I walked out just after 3:00PM.

I will tell you I walked into ER filled up a few forms and went right to an exam room. When I walked out the ER waiting room was full of coughing bleeding and moaning people. If you need to go to ER make it early in the day.

Of course the guys called to see how I was doing had left about a dozen messages on the machine. I think every one Of them said some thing like clumsy, or uncoordinated, cluts and similar. They all came to get me for Saturday morning breakfast where I was again insulted to no end, suggestions I start working out so I can carry a back pack full of medical supply's, maybe even a litter so they can carry the uncoordinated ofa out of the field.

They got 7 Whistle pigs and missed a couple more because Brent is blind in one eye and can't see with the other.

Be careful people.

 Al


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

iI am just 60 and am having problems with equilibrium. Ankle fusion, cataracts, bifocals and general unsteadiness. I think part of my problem is being a lefty, converted to a righty, my brain still instinctively is lefty. The left side over rides my converted right brain function. The hesitation gets me in trouble. All my injuries are on the left side. Hope you heal quickly and can get back to it....James


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Stuff happens. All the best. Glass for ERs. Health fast.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Dang! 

Glad your knee is allright.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

Guess you are just going to have to take it easy for a few weeks. I prescribe a lawn chair, a fishing rod, and a tackle box. Assemble the lawn chair on the shore of a lake, insert butt, and fish all day. Take once daily after a meal. Warning, this may make you sleepy. Don't operate heavy equipment.


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## MichaelZ (May 21, 2013)

I am suffering, two years later, from a fall in the woods (at ground level) similar to yours, landing on my side on a pointed stump. You don't have to be 25 feet up to get plenty hurt.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I walked the pup thru the woods Sunday and some to equal a mile. Hoping to be back up at it with the rifle by the week end. The pigs were donated to a family having a difficult time right now that one of the guys knew about.

 Al


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Bret said:


> Stuff happens. All the best. Glass for ERs. Health fast.


I mean to say "Glad" instead of Glass. I must have fallen.


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## light rain (Jan 14, 2013)

Sounds like your friends are good people. The blind in one eye ... would cause me to pause though...


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## Declan (Jan 18, 2015)

Our ER doesn't paperwork you until you have been in a room and seen by a doctor. You check in when they just find you in the system and find out your complaints; you move to the triage nurse who assesses you; and the rest is handled after you have been seen.

I was in there Saturday and agree that early morning is the best time. The waiting room was empty but I did have to wait for a room to be cleared and cleaned....maybe 10 minutes. I wasn't out quick though because getting me to drink that nasty, pee warm CT dye when I already was vomiting took awhile. 

Anyway, the admissions lady came after they had hooked up the first IV and done the blood draws and the doctor had been in. I didn't have my insurance card but she was able to track the info down via Blue Cross because I knew the first 3 digits of my member #. Even got a 30% discount for paying the day of visit....of course that was before the CT so I am sure I will have plenty of bills still coming for procedures, doctors, etc.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I think they breath better here once they know you have some insurance. My big wait was for X rays. waited first for the area to clear enough to put me in the hallway stack up.
Didn't take long to get mine done though.

 Al


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

Maybe you can borrow that van with no doors and just be the door gunner for a while


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

The van had no sides just floor and seats. Front fenders and hood.
Nope won't borrow it Rule is we walk to sets making as little noise as possible. If I can't walk I don't go.

 Al


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## RonM (Jan 6, 2008)

Best of luck to you for a quick heal..


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Thanks for the well wishes.

 Al


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Got my stiches removed yesterday. Think I will wear some shin guards for a while till I heal more.

Guys say the tree stands are not working so well. Still best to try to call them into low growing crop fields like soy which are not very tall yet and may not get any taller if we don't get some rain soon.

I want to try again this week end.

 Al


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Good luck.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Thanks!!!!

 Al


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## oldtruckbbq (Aug 8, 2016)

MichaelZ said:


> I am suffering, two years later, from a fall in the woods (at ground level) similar to yours, landing on my side on a pointed stump. You don't have to be 25 feet up to get plenty hurt.


I was informed by a trauma nurse that if a 6 foot tall person falls and hits their head on the ground, the speed it hits is about 35 mph. Never thought about a "simple" fall having that much force behind it.

Back in basic training we were doing a night exercise on how to respond to aerial flares. We were told to immediately drop to the ground. When we did, one of the recruits screamed in agony and wouldn't stop. The drill sergeants were all over him telling him to shut up and get up. He couldn't do either. They hauled him off in an ambulance. Seems he landed on a stump and cracked his pubic bone and ruptured a testicle.

Be careful out there!


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Now I have been laid up a week. Had the right knee replaced Tuesday the 23d. Nurse comes today and removes half the staples and the PT lady comes also to start working me.
Should be ready for fire arm deer season.


 Al


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Meeting Dean at 12:30 to go and see if we can clean up a mess of whistle pigs from a farmers alfalfa fields. He said he counter 20 some in 60 acres of field.

Dean is rather worried as he was with me when I fell and all the blood I was loosing unnerved him. Asked if I had my back pack handy with all the stuff I needed to do self surgery in the field. CLOWN I think, no I know.

 Al


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## MoBookworm1957 (Aug 24, 2015)

Glad you're better sir.
Good hunting!


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Oh we had fun, Met Dean at his place and loaded his gear in my PU and drove to the farm and met John and Mikie. Got his side by side unloaded and the clowns brought out my emergency kit. Box of band aids from the little ones for a scratch to the 4 inch wide ones. A 50 foot roll of gauze and tape, 2 maxi pads and a ace bandage roll. Dean said that if I got to bleeding like last time to use one of the maxi pads and the ace bandage to hold it in place. A bottle of peroxide and another of alcohol, some mucurcomb, Small bottle of aspirin.

Once the funny stuff was over with we set out to put a dent in the whistle pigs. Mikie did good with a 222 mag getting 5 of the furry buggers, Dean had his New Ruger 204 and did his fair share of reducing the population. All total we got 16 of them. went to Johns when we finished and cleaned them. We donated 10 of them to a family in need and the remaining 6 we divided up between our selves.

 Al


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## big rockpile (Feb 24, 2003)

Glad your ok.

Wish we had more Groundhogs around here they are sure good eating.

Would be nice if the Government would let us hunt Regular Feral Hogs.

big rockpile


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I like them better than **** and possum for eating.
Being vegan you also know they aren't eating dead critters.

 Al


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