Sometimes, Life Takes A Sharp Left Turn

1. If you missed all the excitement on FB or email on Tuesday, my husband was in a single-car accident about 11 am which totaled the car and sent him to the hospital with a broken left clavicle. The roads were wet, he was coming around a corner on an exit ramp he's used a thousand times and this time, it was probably a little too fast and he lost control of the car and swung around into a lamp post. My father was meeting him at the shopping center where he exited so was on scene almost immediately. Seeing the Marshall was seriously injured, my father helped my husband out of the smashed car and into my father's Rav and took him straight to the hospital.

I have since discovered that this is not the way things are supposed to happen in NJ. If you are in any kind of accident, you are supposed to call the police first, be cared for in an ambulance, etc. By not doing things in the proper order, we have had some other problems (no police report, difficulty finding someone to take the totaled car, etc.), but I cannot fault my father for thinking of Marshall's health and well-being first. It's just so wonderful to live in New Jersey, where bureaucracy follows you everywhere with a proper procedure to follow in all emergencies!

2. Marshall had x-rays and a head CT scan at the ER in the brand new Virtua Voorhees hospital (where you can get lost in the parking lot, the new campus is so big) and the result is a left clavicle in 4 or more pieces. Apparently, the hospital doesn't deal with things as minor as this and sends you off to an orthopedic specialist for a consult and, perhaps, an out-patient repair surgery, which we anticipate having on Tuesday, November 29.

3. My mother-in-law, who I've raved about before here, is a CMA and very calm and helpful in medical environments, so she's the one I requested take me to the hospital to see my poor husband on Tuesday and who I plan to take with us for his surgery next Tuesday.

4. We do have good insurance. There's a lot of paper work and claim numbers and names and phone numbers I have scribbled down on scraps of paper in my voluminous purse (that still has 2 screw drivers and a wrench in it to make sure I could get the license plates off of the totaled car before I signed it over to the man from the salvage yard) that I keep referring to when I need to, but so far, all we've had to shell out for is our $30.00 co-pay for the orthopedist. I'm sure we will have other costs when they remind me what our deductibles might be, but I am grateful to set those worries aside as Marshall is frantically trying to find another car for him to drive himself to work, in several weeks, when he is able to go back to work.

5. Speaking of his job, please be praying that all the details concerning that will work out. He will have to go onto temporary disability and miss a yet undecided number of weeks of work, which means he will still get a paycheck, but this causes other problems. Not to mention they fact that he's not there to help with the overwhelming amount of work his group already has to do every day. It is my prayer that his co-workers will have compassion for him instead of complaining about his absence because that absence causes more work for them. Mercy for all, Lord Jesus.

6. Yes, Thanksgiving was yesterday and we hosted my parents, Marshall's parents and our good friends, the Olson's and everyone had a lovely time and the food was excellent. Marshall was able to sit with us at the table and eat and enjoy the company, before retiring back to bed to rest his shoulder. But I am sure my thankful spirit was muted by concerns for my husband.

7. The next few weeks will take us into uncharted territory. Miranda seems to have a grasp of what happened to Daddy but Alex keeps having to be reminded about why Daddy can't sit with him or put him to bed. I am functioning, kind of, as a single parent, although I have my parents and Marshall's to help, as well as many other friends.

When Marshall asked me yesterday what kind of car I wanted him to replace his daily driver with, my answer was something along the lines of an urban assault vehicle, which would protect him on all sides from all kinds of danger, supposedly. It's not practical, because we need something with good gas mileage, but that's what sounds good to me. I'm sure I'll get over it, eventually.

And here's Jen.