I spent Friday night in the ER. I got this weird, ugly V-shaped cut on my wrist at work, and I decided I should get it cleaned and stitched up, since it was given to me by the jagged corner of a metal shelf, above an area where meat is often cleaned. And besides, it kinda sounded like fun.
I got there about 2am, and the waiting area didn't appear to be too full. I filled out some workers' comp paperwork, and hunkered down with my Atlantic Monthly. The lady said I would probably be waiting for about an hour - it turned out to be about three.
When I was finally admitted, I got my own room complete with a bed and "Rorschach inkblot test"-themed curtains. I saw an overweight mermaid in them. Then, out of nowhere, THE HOTTEST ER DOCTOR IN THE LAND came in to bandage me up. I had to get a Tetanus shot, and later Ash asked me if the doctor had given it to me in my ass. I can't say the thought hadn't crossed my mind...
Ultimately, I ended up being there until about 6am. It seems like a lot of stupid/sad people come into the ER on friday nights. Here are a few...
- Middle-aged, weathered woman, barely able to walk, who was beat up by her boyfriend. She refused to fill out a police report because she claimed the arguement was her fault.
- Token 15-yr-old gangsta with numerous stab wounds and blood soaked into his white wife-beater tank. Family members running amok.
- Frenzied hypochondriac, mumbling about heart palpitations and exaggerating the amount of time he has been waiting.
- And the sad one: a girl my age, hit by a car. The doctor told her unsuspecting friends that she wouldn't make it probably, and they crumbled right in front of me.
I suppose there's nothing like other people's pain to put your own in perspective.
Posted by robyn at octobre 6, 2003 01:50 AM