1 Year Ago - part 2

Sometimes things seem funny in retrospect that hold no humor whatsoever at the time they happen. Our trip home from the hospital was that way. Mr. H was released about 10 p.m. The doctor had given us a Rx for pain medication, but what pharmacy is open that late? I knew the answer for George County: none. I was told at the hospital that the Walgreen’s on Schillenger Road in Mobile had a 24 hour pharmacy. I had to pass it on the way home. When I got there they were locking the door! They did tell me how to get to another Walgreen’s that was definitely open 24 hours. It was several miles in the opposite direction in a part of town that I didn’t like in the daytime. But sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do!

I left Mr. H in the car while I took the prescriptions in: he wasn’t going anywhere! The pharmacist told me it would take about an hour. I came very close to loosing my cool for the first time since this ordeal started. There was no one in the store! What could take so long? I took a deep breath and went back out to the car to wait with my injured husband. He took the long view, too. Where else were we going at now 10:40 p.m. and him immobile?

We were parked right in the front door of this store. Remember that I said it was in a less than desirable part of town? We had been sitting there waiting for about 10 or 15 minutes when we saw several police cars, coming from different directions, pull into the parking lot. They jumped out with their hands on their guns and headed for the door, which was about 4 feet from our front bumper. I looked at my sweetie and realized that if shooting started, he was a sitting duck. With broken ribs and whatever had happened to his hip, he couldn’t even lean down in the seat.

As we were watching, we saw the manager walk toward the policemen. We could see that he was smiling. He spoke a few words to the officers, who relaxed and headed back out the door. They got back in their cars and left. I sighed for both of us (no sighing allowed with broken ribs.)

I waited a bit then went back inside to check on the progress of the Rx. The guy behind the counter said he was surprised I came back in after the excitement. I told him I had no choice and he told me that the silent alarm was set off accidentally by the manager slamming the door to the safe too hard. I finally made it back to the car with Mr. H’s drugs and ice packs for shoulder and wrist.

The trip from Mobile to our house can usually be made in about 45 minutes. That night Mr. H told me to drive gingerly. So I did. We pulled up to our front door about midnight.

This sounds like the end to a long day, doesn't it. I wish our day had ended there, but we had one more adventure to go. Wait for part 3.