#11F Snakebite! Melodrama at the end of our journey

Hello, All,

We got home to Crystal Creek about 4:30 Fri afternoon, but not without incident. I had queried my neighbor about the creeks and flooding and been reassured that the drive, with its creek crossings, should be no problem. And, because it has happened before, the big hickory tree across the track wasn't a total surprise---just one more challenge before driving into the overgrown yard. Marvin would need his chainsaw to clear the tree away, but for now, we could gun the engine, and drive around the end of it.

Marvin was already talking about cutting the grass as one of the first jobs on his list.  We were gone more than two months altogether, and the grass was as bad as he expected. I was equally dismayed by the mildew on every surface inside the house. We had at least a week's work ahead of us before we could settle back in to our normal routine. My first chore was emptying the cat litter boxes; she had been free to come and go through a window, with food and water inside the house. I carried the litter box out into the meadow, and a snake-in-the-grass nailed me. I didn't see the snake at all--- most likely a copperhead, as we've seen them around the place.  I thought I must have stepped on a bee, but the two puncture marks told the story.

Marvin provided a fast trip into Mena to the ER. Our local hospital didn't have anti-venom on hand, so the next new experience was an ambulance ride to the hospital in Hot Springs. After several people told me about serious side effects, I decided to postpone having the anti-venom and see how my body reacted. The first hours in the hospital were spent tracking the progress of the swelling, from the edge of the foot to the ankle to the calf and up to the knee. The lower leg was a big around as my thigh---gross!---and the black color didn't help appearances at all. Pain medicine was working its magic as I settled into a room. The major concern was checking the blood chemistry multiple times. There was one element that was going up--- something to do with coagulation-, I think -- that needed to be reduced before I could think about being released. I was at St Vincent Fri night, Sat and Sat night; by Sun morning the blood chemistry was declared back to normal, and Marvin could take us home--again.

So, the melodrama is all behind us. It's ironic that we went the whole trip with the only mishap one blown tire---which turned out to be a serendipitous experience----only to arrive home and be bitten by a snake! Who would have thought it?! Oh, well... as the saying goes, "IT IS WHAT IT IS". I have some healing to do, but I'm counting on my general good health to pull me through as quickly as possible. Right now, with the leg still so swollen and tender, it isn't hard to lie in bed with it propped on a pillow. Down the road a few days, I know I'll be impatient with the inactivity. All the swelling has to be absorbed by my body, and I'm told that may take weeks. You can join me in hoping that isn't true!