We departed Oklahoma City after one night and made our way towards Tennessee. We were ready for an easy day of driving until we forgot that Arkansas stood in our way. So that added an unexpected 3 hours of driving time. Leave it to Arkansas....
Here we are at the Arkansas state border. Kate is yawning because Arkansas is boring. I am giving the "Bill Clinton Talking Thumb".
This was the only time we set foot in Arkansas.
Following Arkansas, crossing the Mississippi River you immediately enter Memphis. Home of Elivs and the ancient Greeks.
Graceland. Elvis' shrine, home, and final resting place. You walk through it using the self guided audio tour which is very well produced and tells alot of interesting information using interviews of Elvis and his family members. All of his Grammys, gold records, military uniforms, jump suits and personal affects can be found there as well as the dozens of rooms that he would entertain people in, including a TV room with three running TVs, a billiard room and a jungle themed room.
The tour rounds out at Elvis' gravesite. He's buried alongside his parents, grandmother and a memorial marker for his twin brother who died at childbirth.
After the Graceland tour we did what any other cross country tripper would do while in Memphis. Eat ribs. Greatest ribs I've ever eaten. Hands down. Interstate Bar-B-Que has been touted as the greatest of Memphis barbecue joints. And we agree.
After that we drove another 2 1/2 hours to Nashville for the night.
The next day our plan was to drive all the way to Washington, D.C. That's a long hike indeed, but if you're going to do it, you just have to put your head down and gun for it; which is what we did. We arrived in Arlington, VA at around 12:00 midnight.
Now, ever since Vegas Kate had been feeling like a sinus infection was coming on, but she also had these sharp headache pains on the right side of her head. As we approached D.C. the pains became more and more intense. She decided to sleep it off that night but the next day it was unbearable. So off to the Emergency Room we went. They gave her a CAT scan and found no major problems, although they did find a small benign pocket of space in her cranium which classifies her as a medically diagnosed air head.
So they released her with a prescription for Zithromax and Afrin for the siunusitis and Oxycodone for the headaches. Even before she had time to take these medications she was overtaken by dizzy spells and sweating, or what we'll call a vertigo attack. We returned to the hotel room and Kate went back to bed, occasionally experiencing these dizzy spells again a few more times. Not wanting me to be cooped up at her expense she urged me to go out and find something to do. Turns out the U.S. Marine Band was playing at the west steps of the Capitol Building, so I took that in. Great band, great performance. I have the performance bug again.
When I returned to the hotel, her vertigo attacks hadn't subsided despite her nap. So we thought maybe some dinner would help but on the way to a restaurant she experienced a very intense attack. So we decided to rush her to the Emergency Room once more.
By this time it was around 11:00 at night and we were taken in around 12:30. The ER was jumpin' that night. The doctor eventually came in and gave Kate some basic neurological tests to make sure her motor skills weren't affected. It was suggested then that they give her a lumbar puncture, better known as a spinal tap. This was suggested earlier in the day for her first ER visit, but she opted out of it. This time it seemed necessary.
WARNING For the squeamish : skip this next paragraph.
A spinal tap procedure is probably the coolest thing I have ever seen done to someone. First off, may I say that I could never endure this procedure personally and I have the utmost respect for my wife and I now truly see how strong of a woman she is. The doctor marked a spot on her lower back using a pen and then inserted a needle to inject lidocane or some sort of numbing agent. Then the spinal tap needle is placed in and cerebospinal fluid begins pouring out. The doctor collects it in vials for testing.
Kate's fluid came out very clear which is a good sign. Any discoloration would suggest cerebral hemmoraging or infection in the brain. So that could be ruled out immediately. The doctor also said that the symptoms sounded like meningitis, but had it been bacterial meningitis she probably wouldn't have made it to the hospital alive by that point. So he ruled that out as well. His best guess would have been what he called a "benign positional vertigo" which means she can experience vertigo in any position; standing, lying down, on her head, whatever. So for this they gave her something called alavert. But I thought that was an over the counter seasonal allergy deterrent. But I'm not a doctor. I just play one on TV.
Initial test results came back to the surprise of the attending ER doctor: viral meningitis. So this meant that they had to keep the sample and have it cultured for certain attributes. This would take, at the very leas,t 24 hours. We were in the comfort and care of the Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington VA for 60 hours. Two nights, three days, 8 bags of intravenous antibiotics later and all test results came back negative. The only thing Kate can now do is wait it out. No cure for viral meningitis, but she's not contageous. Plus she's had so much antibiotics running through her body that I'll be surprised if she ever gets a sinus infection again.
While we were in Arlington I took advantage of being near the Arlington National Cemetery. Here I made sure to check out the Arlington House, home of General Robert E. Lee, the Kennedy gravesite and the tomb of the unknown soldier including the changing of the guard.
1 comment:
Fitz here. Nothing like a bit of excitement! Sounds scary. I drove by your house yesterday to look for signs of life. Soon, I hope!
Hope all is well now!
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