Towncrier
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 23, 1999
Yesterday it was in the 50's here in NE Ohio. As the day wound down, it started to rain, washing all the salt off the roads and parking lots. The temperatures plummeted to the teens overnight, so I should have been prepared for the treacherous conditions this morning. After unsticking the frozen car doors, we drove to church. I parked without incident. That's when the fun began. Our chuch is in the midst of a huge construction project and, as such, the parking lot is a bit jumbled. As I was walking to the church, I was concerned for Sarah as she is very afraid of slipping and falling on the ice. At precisely the wrong moment, I turned to see if I could take Sarah's arm and keep her upright during our trip across the lot. Just then, I stepped onto a patch of black ice that was covered by a light coating of snow. I lost my footing and fell, first on my backside, then onto my back. There was a large (and frozen) piece of clay about the size of a bowling ball directly beneath my head. Sue said that my eyes nearly bugged out when my head slammed into that hunk of clay. Immediately, Sarah fell too. Sue was convinced that I had split my skull wide open because I was just laying there with a blank stare on my face. Then Sarah started to scream at the top of her lungs. She wouldn't stop. I sat upright and started yelling at her to calm down (which in retrospect is like spanking a child to get them to stop crying). At that moment, Sue knew that I was OK. We both managed to get up and Sue and Sarah headed for the church door while I spent the next few minutes standing the parking lot warning everyone else about the black ice that was hiding beneath the snow.
After the church service, one of our members who is a paramedic gave me a cursory check to make sure that I hadn't seriously hurt myself. She thought that I seemed no worse for the wear, but that I should take lots of Advil today for the aches and pains that are certain to show up tomorrow morning.
I feel truly blessed that neither Sarah nor I were seriously hurt today. And that nobody else fell in our parking lot. By the time church was over, the sun had managed to melt the patches of ice that had been a problem only a couple hours earlier. I went out and kicked the hunk of clay that I smacked my head on and it was still as hard as a rock. Good think I didn't break my toe.
FYI - The guy that the church pays to plow our lot has been unable to get any salt to spread on our parking lot for the past couple of weeks. It seems like this winter has caught everyone by surprise. I am now officially SICK AND TIRED of winter.
After the church service, one of our members who is a paramedic gave me a cursory check to make sure that I hadn't seriously hurt myself. She thought that I seemed no worse for the wear, but that I should take lots of Advil today for the aches and pains that are certain to show up tomorrow morning.
I feel truly blessed that neither Sarah nor I were seriously hurt today. And that nobody else fell in our parking lot. By the time church was over, the sun had managed to melt the patches of ice that had been a problem only a couple hours earlier. I went out and kicked the hunk of clay that I smacked my head on and it was still as hard as a rock. Good think I didn't break my toe.
FYI - The guy that the church pays to plow our lot has been unable to get any salt to spread on our parking lot for the past couple of weeks. It seems like this winter has caught everyone by surprise. I am now officially SICK AND TIRED of winter.
I hope you are not injured too badly. feel better soon.
I was quite sore the next day, so try and take it as easy as you can on Monday. It took me a few days to really get over the effects of the fall. Will be saying a prayer for you!!!
