Late last night (Wednesday) I received a phone call of my mother. Dad’s in a bit of a pickle, his knee has seized up completely and as they are staying at mum’s sisters house in Blackpool for the week they cannot get home. Twice that day, he’s collapsed onto the floor in the bathroom not being able to get up. That day he lay in a cold bathroom for three hours, although it was one and half hours at a time, before regaining enough strength to get onto a bed/chair. Don’t ask me about my parents mentality because I don’t understand it. 999 would have been my first thoughts.

I suggested hubby comes up to fetch them the next day, in the evening (Thursday) but it was too late for them in the day, they refuse the offer, mum is confused and emotional and ends the phone call, but she has decided they will take their chances on the coach. They need to get home as they had an appointment at the hospital about Dad’s Knee, and if they don’t make it, he could end back up at square one re; the waiting list. Mum’s mobile is playing up and I can’t reach her again and I don’t have aunties phone number, who after a net surf is exdirectory, as I then find out all of the family that I can remember are..

Bugger, (I must put that on my ravelry most favourite swear word list)

Next day,

Dad collapses very early, lays on bathroom floor for an hour and a half, (their seems to be a pattern in this) a relative is called who is male and 6ft 4″ and gets him up again, then, for some reason (I’ve not got to the bottom of this yet) he collapses again, this time an ambulance is called and he ends up in a hospital in Blackpool, they look at his situation and because he is so close to having a knee replacement operation they suggest he goes home, they give him huge painkillers and a walky about thing almost square shaped with wheels (I’m sure there is a technical term) and he manages to get back to a car.

I know none of this, at 2.30 p.m. I ring mum at home, no answer, because by this time I think they might be home, I then ring her mobile again, in the vain hope that she will answer, and she does… (a very kind ambulance driver sorted her phone out and stopped it diverting to voice mail, which she has no idea how to operate, and I’m proud of her as well, because she asked someone, anyone to help her, and they did)

They are still in Blackpool, they have just got home from the hospital. She explains what has happened, we talk, I tell her to hang on for an hour, as hubby is in a meeting that I cannot disturb him in, (only on death and it would probably have to be mine) and then I learn, that Mum, bless her, has cancelled tomorrows hospital appointment. Why, do they have to jump so fast?

Hubby rings me late afternoon, soon after we are motoring toward Blackpool, we get there only to find my Dad on the floor again. Guess what? He’s been there for an hour and a half…

I walk into find a sweaty, beads rolling down the forehead kind of sweaty, sunken eyed, frail Dad, I made some sort of quip to him, which he responded to. We called reinforcements until there were three males to get him into the car. It was a bit touch and go, I was hovering at the rear end with a kitchen chair so that he could collapse back onto that rather than the floor, he needed it twice.

Fortunately the road was clear on the way back, Mum manages to raise a brother to assist.. But then there are only two men and two high steps. A chair was brought out, which Dad needed several times, his knees just buckle, those boys, hubby and my brother, they sweated gettting him in, there was a point, I really didn’t think they were going to make it.

His knee’s buckled just at the top of the steps, and there really would have been nothing any of us could have done, if he had fell backwards… But hubby, an engineer through and through, blocked his knee against dads leg in such a way that dad could rest and then my brother did the same, which gave dad a few minutes resting time, before he carried on..

They got him in, well just into the hall, it took two more rests before getting him onto the sofa.

I gave him a hug and a kiss, I have no idea what is going to happen tomorrow.

😦