“I feel pretty” – in Salt Springs Island 10.13.11

I tried coming up with funny titles for this blog post – like “Canadian Skin Peel”, “Checking out the Canadian Health Care System”, “Drama Queen”, etc….but couldn’t come up with the perfect title for our 5 days here in Salt Springs.

We ferried over from Tsawwassen to Long Harbor with no issues at all on the Ferry. It was smooth sailing and we even saw whales on the passage! The BC Ferry system is so easy and convenient. We arrived at the check-in and had some firewood on top of the van, which put us over the limit. No problem, they said, we’ll just put you in the over-limit section, no charge. Sweet! :-)



We traveled the road to Fulford Marina where Joe & Deb were waiting for us.



Ahhh….it’s been so great visiting with them! We will miss them terribly this winter. We caught up a bit, had a wonderful dinner, a glass of wine, and fantastic conversation. We wandered the grounds and were out on the porch admiring the stars in the sky when I lost my balance and hit the ground.

Face first….

I was rushed to the Emergency Room as I had cuts on my face and hands and had knocked out my front tooth. I ended up with a broken nose, 7 stitches in 3 spots of my face, a re-inserted tooth, and lots of cuts & scrapes.



This picture was taken on day 2. Ewww…



The past 5 days have FLOWN by with lots of naps, being escorted everywhere I go, a series of Doctor appointments – the next day was the dentist, who came in on his day off (it’s Thanksgiving weekend here!) to take a look at me, then another dentist appointment for x-rays, then getting the stitches out (OUCH!!!), etc. Everyone has been so incredibly kind and I can’t thank Joe & Deb enough for being our chauffeur all over the island. And you should see Michael! He has been such a trooper throughout this whole ordeal – he was with me the whole time we were in the ER, except for when the needles started coming out, which there were lots of, when he would step out of the room for a bit. I'll tell you, he's been forced to dress me, check on me every hour like a baby, and escort me to bathroom breaks. Poor guy, I'm so lucky to have him!

I began to feel better by Thursday and we went exploring and venturing out of my little hidey hole. My favorite trip was the goat cheese farm we checked out, complete with lots of samples, our favorites being the “Whats its” that we look forward to eating on the road. Yum…





I can’t say enough about the excellent medical care I received. The doctor in the E.R. was amazing as were the doctors, dentists, nurses, & technicians who took care of me this week. I have never had such a ‘nice’ doctor. And it was amazing how many times we were told ‘I’m sorry this happened to you’re here!’ by everyone as well.

And where in the world does ‘I feel pretty’ come from? Well, the song of course. Every time we went out I would put on a pair of earrings and sing the song – I feel pretty, Oh, so pretty, I feel pretty and witty and bright! – and somehow it made me feel much better. Haha… I’m recovering fast and still have pain and we’re still hoping the tooth reattaches, doesn’t die, and situates itself in the proper place. Only time will tell! The doctor says the new scars will diminish and Michael will be the star of the blog for a while until they heal up. :-)

We’re leaving Canada on Friday, heading to Washington to see Captain Don & Ursula, dear friends from Alaska. Can’t wait…

More to follow…
Rene