Tidbits and Tottering Thoughts

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Random thoughts, barely connected.

My mother came through the heart catheter and stent insertion with remarkable aplumb, even for her. One of the drugs gave her an odd rash, so she left the hospital on benedryl and a dose of an IV steroid. The combination resulted in a mood quite capable of turning me in to a surprised 14 year old. Amazing how mothers can do that without even trying very hard.

I didn’t think the photo would take, but it did – here’s my mother’s normal sinus rhythm. When my mother asked why I was taking it, I just explained that since I put a lot of people in the hospital, it’s a touch of realism for the suspense stories.

Ah, the way a writer’s mind works, looking for fodder in every corner.

I think opening up the right cardiac artery on her heart improved a lot for her. She’s quite perky, and a lot of her energy has returned. Amazing what a flush of blood will do for one.

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As I’ve written here before, The Taking of Carly Bradford was dedicated to my teachers, including my first grade teacher, Mrs. Fay Camp, who now lives down the hall from my mom. In the name of shooting more pictures for the blog, I took a short excursion yesterday.

Crestline Elementary, Hartselle, Alabama. The class there at the end of the building was my first grade class. And back in 196um, the building had no air conditioning. This room faces west. As my mother quickly lost interest in washing my hair every night (this was before the era of in-home dryers), I went from having long curls to a pixie cut.

I used this event in a short story I wrote a few years ago, “The Onion Chain,” which I’ll post here tomorrow.

And, soon, I want to talk about “home churches.” And rock school.

Obviously, going back to Hartselle stirs up my writer’s imagination.

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