Wow! I wasn’t even thinking of rhyming when I chose the title for this piece. I was thinking of the late and lamented Yogi Berra and his famous or infamous line, “It’s like de ja vu all over again.”

For those who didn’t know or haven’t heard, I managed to end up in the hospital a week and a half ago. It happened quickly and with a lot of confusion about how serious my condition was, how long I might be there, and what have you. So, few people knew. Even fewer knew details.

The good news is that things went well, despite the confusion on my medical team. Okay, things didn’t go swimmingly at one point. Due to “potential” complications, my primary care doctor insisted I go to ICU to be closely monitored.

Thankfully, he was just being overly cautious. It could have been problematic if I had been in worse shape than the others thought. ICU was full of cases much more serious than mine. I spent most of the night listening to the hustle and bustle outside my room and waiting for someone to come in and silence the alarms on my monitors when something got their attention.

Don’t get me wrong. I was not ignored. The nurses and technicians monitored me remotely, but they had much more serious cases to deal with. I only suffered from a lack of sleep and the blaring horn in my right ear.

Okay, enough, poor pitiful me. Here is the gallows humor aspect of this little trip. This was my third January to end up in the hospital. I knew it was my second, but I’d completely forgotten it was my third.

Yes, I ended up going to the ER and spending some time in the hospital in January 2021, 2022, and 2023. If you’re interested in some of the details and my attempts at making light of things, check out Seriously Doc and Dates With Destiny.

In closing, let me clarify one point. If you’re a close friend and this is the first time you hear of this, I hope you understand the medical response started with an ambulance ride at 4:30 in the morning. Once I was stabilized, it was hard enough to stay in touch with family and concerned neighbors. Plus, every few hours, it seemed things changed as the doctors involved put their heads together.

Finally, I’ve been my usual sarcastic self when talking about this incident. Since the previous two Januarys also involved events leading to a stay in the hospital, I’ve told friends I might try to hibernate next January. Since I realized this was my third January, I’ve decided I’ll try to make a deal with the hospital. If they turn the room I’ve occupied at least twice into a reasonably priced VRBO for next January, I can save the ambulance service a run.

It’s a nice little suite with a great view of the southern horizon.

© oneoldcop.com 2023

@jacksonseric