Snowing.. yes, it is snowing here today, SHE walked through a blizzard to go to the hairdressers and it took HER back to 1975, yes, Dear Readers, SHE is that old.
Why does it remind HER of 1975?
Because it was on this very day, thirty eight years ago, that SHE was a patient in the old St.George's Hospital at Hyde Park Corner.
It is no longer there, in its' place is a very swish hotel, the name, of which, escapes HER.
SHE was due for an operation in a couple of hours and was sitting on another patient's bed chatting, when SHE saw you could not see Hyde Park because of a snow storm. SHE called out "it's snowing" and all of those who could, leapt out of their beds and rushed to the windows.
A ward sister (that's how long ago it was) came in and saw, to her astonishment, most of her patients out of bed and peering out of the windows!
"What are you doing?" she cried and got the respond "It's snowing Sister, come and look", bless her, she did and roared with laughter.. "look at you.. you sound like children in a dormitory".
That made them laugh for SHE was the youngest by easily thirty years, the bed SHE had been sitting on was occupied by the eldest, an enchanting woman, her name was Zitette Withers, she was the mother of a famous actress 'Googie' Withers and the grandmother of another fine actress, Joanna McCullum.
They were a very mixed bunch in that ward but all so very kind.. SHE had been admitted, four days previously, with acute renal failure, with a temperature SO high, that HER beloved GP had spent that night sitting in a chair.. such a lovely man, Dr. Arthur Unwin.
It was he that suggested the slab of ice which did the trick!
They called Billingsgate Fish Market who delivered a HUGE slab of ice to the hospital, it arrived on a gurney, they wrapped her up and slid HER on to it.. just like a mermaid!
Slowly it broke, HER temperature slid down and stayed down, then surgery was scheduled for the next day with HER equally lovely surgeon, Mr. Guy Williams and HER lovely GP.. who was going to be all scrubbed and gowned up and allowed to watch!
He cut right from the left kidney to the front, a BIG, seriously BIG incision! (It faded but the silver scar is still there, like a zip, from back to front).
He found a gi-normous stone in HER kidney and in the canal, there were three others of a very decent size and lots of pieces of gravel as he later described it! (He gave HER the big ones in a bottle).
He cleaned everything up, said to Arthur " now we pray" and he put in a tiny little tube the down side of HER kidney, stitched HER up, and he experimented with a new drug, called Y2B by Wellcome.
YOU'd know this drug as Septrim. SHE was taken to a recovery ward, where a young nurse was given a chair and told "you watch that drain like a hawk and press this bell the MOMENT you see any fluid".
SHE slept off the anaesthetic and awoke to find both HER surgeon and HER doctor with HER.. Arthur, her lovely doctor, had tears in his eyes but was smiling a huge smile.. Guy, 'old magic fingers' as Matron called him, was also smiling.. SHE smiled at both of them.
"Well" SHE croaked.. "what did you find, anything interesting and
why are you crying Arthur?", they laughed, Guy told HER what he had done and that the reason Arthur was tearful, was that only a few minutes previously.. the drain had released fluid.
HER kidney was working.
Thirty eight years ago today, that miracle happened, don't YOU just LOVE the good girls and guys who save OUR lives? SHE does.
GeeGee Parrot.
April 4th, 2013.
Why does it remind HER of 1975?
Because it was on this very day, thirty eight years ago, that SHE was a patient in the old St.George's Hospital at Hyde Park Corner.
It is no longer there, in its' place is a very swish hotel, the name, of which, escapes HER.
SHE was due for an operation in a couple of hours and was sitting on another patient's bed chatting, when SHE saw you could not see Hyde Park because of a snow storm. SHE called out "it's snowing" and all of those who could, leapt out of their beds and rushed to the windows.
A ward sister (that's how long ago it was) came in and saw, to her astonishment, most of her patients out of bed and peering out of the windows!
"What are you doing?" she cried and got the respond "It's snowing Sister, come and look", bless her, she did and roared with laughter.. "look at you.. you sound like children in a dormitory".
That made them laugh for SHE was the youngest by easily thirty years, the bed SHE had been sitting on was occupied by the eldest, an enchanting woman, her name was Zitette Withers, she was the mother of a famous actress 'Googie' Withers and the grandmother of another fine actress, Joanna McCullum.
They were a very mixed bunch in that ward but all so very kind.. SHE had been admitted, four days previously, with acute renal failure, with a temperature SO high, that HER beloved GP had spent that night sitting in a chair.. such a lovely man, Dr. Arthur Unwin.
It was he that suggested the slab of ice which did the trick!
They called Billingsgate Fish Market who delivered a HUGE slab of ice to the hospital, it arrived on a gurney, they wrapped her up and slid HER on to it.. just like a mermaid!
Slowly it broke, HER temperature slid down and stayed down, then surgery was scheduled for the next day with HER equally lovely surgeon, Mr. Guy Williams and HER lovely GP.. who was going to be all scrubbed and gowned up and allowed to watch!
He cut right from the left kidney to the front, a BIG, seriously BIG incision! (It faded but the silver scar is still there, like a zip, from back to front).
He found a gi-normous stone in HER kidney and in the canal, there were three others of a very decent size and lots of pieces of gravel as he later described it! (He gave HER the big ones in a bottle).
He cleaned everything up, said to Arthur " now we pray" and he put in a tiny little tube the down side of HER kidney, stitched HER up, and he experimented with a new drug, called Y2B by Wellcome.
YOU'd know this drug as Septrim. SHE was taken to a recovery ward, where a young nurse was given a chair and told "you watch that drain like a hawk and press this bell the MOMENT you see any fluid".
SHE slept off the anaesthetic and awoke to find both HER surgeon and HER doctor with HER.. Arthur, her lovely doctor, had tears in his eyes but was smiling a huge smile.. Guy, 'old magic fingers' as Matron called him, was also smiling.. SHE smiled at both of them.
"Well" SHE croaked.. "what did you find, anything interesting and
why are you crying Arthur?", they laughed, Guy told HER what he had done and that the reason Arthur was tearful, was that only a few minutes previously.. the drain had released fluid.
HER kidney was working.
Thirty eight years ago today, that miracle happened, don't YOU just LOVE the good girls and guys who save OUR lives? SHE does.
GeeGee Parrot.
April 4th, 2013.
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