Off The Tracks

Off The Tracks
  • Blog
    • Interviews
    • Miscellany
    • Special Guests
    • Reviews
  • Podcasts
  • The Vinyl Countdown
  • Back Catalogue
  • About
    • About
    • About the banner image
    • On Song
    • Advertise
October 16, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 183 It Hurts to Laugh and Hurts to Cry Two

hosp2Day One: Sunday

I’d been sick for a couple of weeks and was shit-scared of what might actually be wrong with me. In the end it was Malky and Truda that made the difference and they helped me over the road to the A&E at Wellington Hospital. There were a lot of questions from the nurse on the front desk and I answered them all as best and as honestly as I could.

She looked me straight in the eye and said – “Have you been drinking?”

I felt really guilty and answered – “I had a can of beer yesterday afternoon”.

“Is that all!”h2

“Oh, water and coffee too”.

We both felt relieved and she wrote something down.

I actually didn’t have that long to wait – they rushed me into a room and another nurse came and took down my particulars then kitted me out in one of those hospital gowns. A beautiful young doctor looked me over and said they would have to admit me right away – x-rays and ultrasound just like that and samples. Time melted away and the pain relief they gave me was no good at all. I wound up on the seventh floor in the place they assess you for surgery.

There was a young Irish surgeon who was really nice and he let me go over home to get my laptop even though it was against the rules. I was really grateful for that – it meant I still had my facebook world and my music and this series on the Vietnam War that was gripping and could take my mind away.

They put me in what would turn out to be my own room on a drip and gave me morphine and that actually did take my mind away…

Day Two Monday

But not the pain. Nothing took the pain away.

h3Through the nights I took off the nicotine patch as they recommended so the big dreams wouldn’t come. The nurse would visit at various times and take readings.  Mish was her name and she looked after me that first night then I never saw her again but she told me some of what I needed to do and how to hook up to the hospital WiFi.

The main surgeon arrived in the morning and did a lot of poking around on the front of my torso. He said he was still looking at results and hadn’t decided not to operate and they would keep looking at my heart, blood and piss. I told him about my left leg and left shoulder. There were several doctors there and one took an interest in my leg and my member – she didn’t think they were connected.

I was taken down to the ultrasound room again in a wheelchair and got hammered. The woman who wheeled me back knew I played guitar and they were all very amused that I’d just put out an album called Epidural.

It had been a very strange year so far…

But I had my own room and I’d been very lucky.
h1

hosp-3
The Ghost of Electricity – 
War
 Stories by Jon McLeary is a new initiative at Off The Tracks, a series of stories and reflections from painter, writer and musician Jon McLeary

To read any of the first 182 in the series click here

 

Posted in Blog, Miscellany and tagged with A&E, Art, Day One, Day Two, ep 183, Epidural, Guest Blog, Guest Post, Hospital, Illness, It Hurts to Laugh and Hurts to Cry Two, Jon, Jon Mcleary, McLeary, Medication, Music, Recovery, Sick, Spines, The Ghost of Electricity, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 183, The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 183 It Hurts to Laugh and Hurts to Cry Two, The Spines, Treatment, War Stories by Jon McLeary, Wellington, Wgtn, Writing. RSS 2.0 feed.
« Poem: Always Starting, Never Ending
The Mountain Goats: Goths »

One Response to The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 183 It Hurts to Laugh and Hurts to Cry Two

  1. Pingback: The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 197 Second Time Around

Popular

  • Janna Lapidus Leblanc: Four Years In Pictures
  • Gig Review: Live Rust Concert Tour (August 6, Wgtn)
  • The Sad Story of Bob Welch: Fleetwood Mac’s Most Undervalued Member
  • The Best Guitarist in The World: # 8 – Mark Knopfler
  • David Bowie’s Most Underrated Album: 1. Outside
  • Mike Edison: Sympathy For The Drummer – Why Charlie Watts Matters
  • The Best Guitarist in The World: # 11 – Lindsey Buckingham
  • The Ghost of Electricity: War Stories by Jon McLeary # 174 Maraetotara Falls
  • Revisiting Live at Knebworth (1990)
  • Stubs: # 280 – Waiheke Island, Auckland, 2021

Archives

Tags

Album Review Auckland Book Book Review Compilation DJ DJ Set DVD DVD Review EP Film Film Review Gig Gig Review Guest Blog Guitar Interview Jazz Jon Mcleary Live Live Gig LP Movie Music NZ Podcast Poem Record Records Simon Sweetman Soundtrack Spines Spotify Stub Stubs Sweetman Podcast The Ghost of Electricity The Spines The Vinyl Countdown Vinyl Wellington Wgtn Writing You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron [OST]

Categories

  • Back Catalogue
  • Blog
  • Interviews
  • Miscellany
  • Mixtapes
  • Playlists
  • Podcasts
  • Reviews
  • Scene Of The Day
  • Special Guests
  • The Vinyl Countdown

Off The Tracks is the home of Sweetman Podcast, a weekly interview/chat-based pod. It's also home to my reviews across film, TV, music and books and some creative writing as well.

Off The Tracks aims to provide quality reviews and essays, regular blog updates about the shows, albums, books and movies you should be experiencing.

It's a passion project. Your support will help to keep Off The Tracks online.

All content © 2021 by Off The Tracks. WordPress Themes by Graph Paper Press