Yesterday........up early, Fr Roast coffee and whole grain ciabatta bun with butter and blueberry preserves for breakfast....love those buns!!!!! Then by 9am, I was on my way out of town, heading north to STL and then west out to the Washington-New Haven area. Yep.....time to get my permanent crown on that blasted tooth which almost ruined my/our trip to Canada a couple of months ago.
I grabbed a quick lunch in Washington at the St Louis Bread Company....also known as Panera Bread, depending on the area where you live.....as both names are the same place, the same menu, the same very good food and coffees AND pastries!! I had arrived in town about 11:15, ate, and then went to Lowe's to check out bathroom vanities. By 12:15, I was at Dr. Jeni's dental offices and was warmly welcomed by some of her staff in the reception area.......always soooo pleasant!!
Soon, I was taken back into one of the cubicles.....and very quickly they began to work on my tooth, working at removing the temporary, cleaning out the "cement", flossing around the tooth.....and then Dr. Jeni began to slip the permanent one onto my tooth. The procedure went smoothly, but it did take some "work" to get it on there good and tight.....as well as adjusting it for my "bite" to keep it correct!! By 1:10, I was done, say my "good-byes" and was headed back into St Louis. No charge over what the insurance will pay........pays to have a great dentist in the family!!!!
As I got into the city, I went straight to Barnes-Jewish Hospital....one of the best in the city and one of the top hospitals in the country. Hmmmm.......wonder if the parking garage plays a part in that reputation???? Why??? Because after turned into the short drive to go down underground into the parking garage.....there was no way to back out or turn around.....and I thought it might be necessary as the little PVC tube that hung down over the entrance said: 6'6" height was all that was allowed inside. Well, by the time my roof on the truck it that, it was lifted an inch or two.....I had no choice but to continue going forward!!!! WHAT THE HELL???!!!! No way to back out, just crawl forward at a snail's pace. I rolled down my window on the door to keep twisting my head out to look up at the concrete "studs" I-beams I'm sure....to make certain not to scrape them. I got to the little ticket booth...and asked a guy working there if there were any beams that were lower than where I was right then......and he told me to go on, that I could make it. Hmmmmm..........how trustworthy was his info???
Sooo, slowly...oh sooo slowly...I crawled forward, had to make turn to the left and go down another level. Watching the beams above and concrete floor, I could tell that the floor was not totally flat....as it would rise and fall every 15 feet or so....however, I did make it to a parking spot and wedged myself into it....the high blue ass-end of the truck sticking out a bit too far for me!!!
However, off I went to the hospital and after inquiring about my neighbor's (Earl) room number, I found myself up on the 14th floor rather quickly. What did I find??? Things were not good....he was being transferred into ICU.....and in talking with his two daughters from Oklahoma, and then with one of his Dr's talking to the three of us......we were told that he was in very serious condition. Not to get into details....let me just say that when they wheeled his bed out of the room to go to ICU, I could tell that things were not as they should have been for him.....he was just "out of it" to say the least.
As his daughters were told they should spend the night in the hospital close by to ICU, I made my way out, and soon was back in the parking garage trying to get the truck out of this tight and low ceilinged garage. But...by going slowly, I did make it without a scratch or dent in the roof of my truck!!
On to the Galleria area of the city....and a stop at Crate and Barrel where I looked at some of the furniture and some art work which they had. Made some notes, took some pictures, and then left for F'town.
Arriving back here about 7pm, after waiting for the rush hour traffic to get ahead of me, I spent the evening doing some reading and watching "Top Chef" on the tv.
Today.....no word from anyone at the hospital, I cleaned the house, did some laundry, and got things ready for the 1st Lady to return from northeastern MO. About 3:30 or so, I received a call from a local friend...who told me that Earl had passed away about 25 minutes prior to her calling me. Soooooo sudden.....only a week ago he was driving he and his wife to Cape G when he had that car accident.....and things just went downhill from that time forward. He was 84 years old....a WWII veteran who had been injured in the war, a MO state representative, Manager of the US Postal Office here in F'town, and on and on and on.......an active man until the past couple of months, as he was fighting prostate cancer with chemo treatments. But.....most of all, he was an amazing neighbor and a fabulous friend!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There is no way I can write about just how very, very much I will miss him..........
This evening, after the 1st Lady returned, we went out to the Hanner House to visit with Sue and Dave. Of course, our topic of conversation was......Earl! Soooo difficult to see someone slip and go downward with his health sooooooo fast....whew!!!! It IS scary!!!!
As always, but tonight with many reservations.........
LIFE IS GREAT!.....and I hope it is for all of you, also!!!! And.......please enjoy Life to the fullest each and every day.....take advantage of every minute of each day......because one minute you are living Life and enjoying it....and in the next minute you can be gone from us! And.....Earl Bollinger, you will be missed by this entire community!!!!!
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