Musical Doctors

Not really, but it felt like it.  A call to the primary doc who had diagnosed #2 Son's bronchitis ended up being phone tag until we got an appointment with an orthopedic doc for Tuesday afternoon.

Why are the appointments always at 4pm?  Just in time for the worst traffic.

The news for #2 Son was not what he wanted.  He is left handed, so that hand hit harder and got most of the damage.

The right hand is splinted, and will be just fine in a few weeks.

The left hand is having surgery today to put in a plate and screws.  It seems that even though the mini-ER doc did a great job with the reduction, these types of fractures usually don't stay, no matter how tight you splint it.  So if he wants full use of that hand with no lingering hitches in the form of lumps that make it hard to grasp things, we do surgery.  It would be no good for him to have trouble picking up heavy pans off of the stove with his dominant hand because of a lump of bone that healed funny, not if he's going to be a chef.

If all goes well, physical therapy starts Monday, and he can go back to work, on light duty, after that.

He is not happy, he's going to be missing out on a week's pay, but that's what happens when you hit a metal door.

The plan for today then is to take Sweetie to work, take my van in to have the brakes checked -- oh, did i mention the brake light came on while we were going to the doctor on Tuesday afternoon?  It doesn't rain, it monsoons around here.

While the brakes are being checked by Kevin and Lenny and the crew, one of those nice people will give me a ride back to the house so i can take #2 Son in for surgery, then when he is done, i'll run him home and then pick up Sweetie.

The van we will get when we can, but that is the tentative plan.  As we all know, though, the best laid plans...

Lots of prayers and good thoughts would be appreciated, mostly praying that i don't strangle a certain child or lose what little is left of my mind.  And that said child heals up, too.



Today is

Birthday of Emperor Haili Selassi I -- Rastafari

Bregenzer Festspiele (Bregenz Festival) -- Bregenz, Austria (an amazing performing arts festival, through August 25)

Flag Day -- Abkhazia

Gorgeous Grandma Day -- a day to celebrate those who age, date, and mate in style!

Hot Enough For Ya Day -- sponsored by Wellcat Holidays as the only day on which you may utter these words; any other day, and you will get high fived on the back of the head!;)

Lailat al Kadr (Lailat al Qadr) -- Islam (Night of Destiny; began at sundown yesterday, through sundown tonight, although local observances may vary and governmental days off vary from country to country)

Mayan Sun Festival -- honoring Ahau Kin, the sun god, date approximate

National Vanilla Ice Cream Day

Neptunalia and Salcia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (god and goddess of the ocean and wide seas, celebrates Neptune in his role as god of irrigation)

Oregon Brewers Festival -- Portland, OR, US (81 microbreweries from across the nation showcase their best, including rare, hard-to-find, and exotic beers; through Sunday)

Private Eye Day -- internet generated

Remembrance Day -- Papua New Guinea

Renaissance Day -- Oman (celebrates the accession of Qaboos bin Said Al Said, 14th Sultan of Oman)

Revolution Day -- Egypt

St. Apollinaris' Day (Patron against epilepsy, gout; of Aachen, Germany; Burtscheid, Germany; Düsseldorf, Germany; Ravenna, Italy; Remagen, Germany)

St. Bridget of Sweden's Day (Patron of widows; Europe; Sweden)

St. Phocas the Gardener's Day (Patron of agricultural workers, boatmen, farm workers, farmers, field hands, gardeners, husbandmen, mariners, market-gardeners,sailors, watermen)

Sumarauki -- Iceland (their calendar's extra days added to take into account the "drift" of the calendar from the moon phases)

Warei Shrine Summer Festival -- Warei Shrine, Uwajima City, Japan (through tomorrow, includes "bull-sumo", a non fatal type of bull fighting, where the bulls try to push each other out of the ring)


Anniversaries Today

Prince Andrew, Duke of York marries Sarah Ferguson, 1986
Coronation of King Mohammed VI of Morocco, 1999


Birthdays Today

Daniel Radcliffe, 1989
Michelle Williams, 1980
Omar Epps, 1975
Nomar Garciapara, 1973
Marlon Wayans, 1972
Charisma Carpenter, 1970
Philip Seymour Hoffman, 1967
Eriq La Salle, 1962
Woody Harrelson, 1961
Lamont "ShowBoat" Robinson, 1961
Edie McClurg, 1951
Belinda Montgomery, 1950
Don Imus, 1940
Nicholas Gage, 1939
Ronny Cox, 1938
Anthony M. Kennedy, 1936
Don Drysdale, 1936
Bert Convy, 1933
Arata Isozaki, 1931
Gloria DeHaven, 1925
Amalia Rodrigues, 1920
Harold "Pee Wee" Reese, 1918
Arthur Treacher, 1894
Haile Selassie I, 1892
Raymond Chandler, 1888
Samuel Augustus Maverick, 1803


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha! Ha!"(Single release), 1966
"The Gene Autry Show"(TV), 1950


Today in History

William Austin Burt patents the Typographer, a precursor to the typewriter, 1829
The Province of Canada is created by the Act of Union, 1840
The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, the world's oldest international sport federation, is founded, 1881
The Ford Motor Company sells its first car, 1903
Fox Film buys the patents of the Movietone sound system for recording sound onto film, 1926
Telstar  relays the first publicly transmitted, live trans-Atlantic television program, featuring Walter Cronkite, 1962
The International Whaling Commission decides to end commercial whaling within 4 years, 1982 *
Air Canada Flight 143 runs out of fuel and makes a deadstick landing at Gimli, Manitoba, 1983
Comet Hale-Bopp is discovered, 1995
Cape Verde becomes the 153rd member of the World Trade Organization, 2008
Patent law disputes between Samsung and Apple deadlock as the dispute addresses valuation of each other's patents, 2012


*Don't I wish that had worked!