How much is a quarter worth?

I don’t know and I’m scared to find out…

Enjoying a cool beverage in MOPP 4 (stock USAFR photo). Newer suits are hoodies - no need for the rubber hood

I had chem warfare class this afternoon – a few briefings, cleaning the mask, then getting into the suit and mask (MOPP 4 – everything on), doing a quick decontamination then removing the gear.

Back in the car I see my wife (aka Louise) has left a voicemail…no doubt yet another telling me how much she misses me, how handsome and strong I am, you know, the usual stuff.

Not this time…my youngest son, Cole, is in the hospital.  About the only thing worse than hearing your son is in the hospital is hearing it when you’re several states away.

He’d swallowed a quarter at school and it was lodged in his throat.  His grandmother picked him up and took him to the hospital; Louise was on her way there. 

He was fine at the moment but the doctors wanted to remove the quarter.  Good plan, I thought.  I found little comfort in knowing they used to wait a day before removing such objects.  Unfortunately he had to be transported to another hospital.  By ambulance, of course, probably great fun for him.

After more pressing emergencies were dealt with he was finally knocked out and the quarter extricated.  Cole has a cold so there was some concern about anesthetizing him and impeding his breathing further.  After measuring his blood oxygen levels post-removal he was sent home on the bus.  Why not?  He had the 25¢ bus fare for minors.

Thanksgiving 2008 in Williamsburg, VA. The nugglehead ("knucklehead" to the rest of you) du jour is on the right.

Yes, of course Louise was there, as was a friend who stayed with them the whole time and was going to drive them home, but was unable too…she got sick and almost passed out at the hospital.  Louise drove her home, dropped her off, and now we have her car at our house.

Some 7-8 hours later after the initial call (sure felt longer) I got a call from the patient.  Let’s see, he got a ride in a wheelchair and they drove him in a squiggle, left, right, left, right.  He got an Orioles backpack…I think he also got crayons, a necklace, a stuffed animal, and he got to play with a toy doctor’s bag.  He’s not good at speaking into the mouthpiece and the connection was bad going from cell phone to cell phone.

My mother-in-law wondered how he ended up with a quarter in his throat.  Well, he’s not one to put things in his mouth but he is one to put on a show.  Apparently he put the quarter on his tongue at lunch and then the sequence of events muddies a bit.  All I know for sure is it involved laughter and a girl grabbing for either the coin or my son.

Brother, can you spare a quarter?

In the end, Cole’s fine, Louise is exhausted, and as a positive she was able to test out our support network.  My deployment has her worried – it’s a lot to manage 3 kids and a house on your own.  It’s reassuring to know we can count on family and friends…sometimes that’s not a given.

When I get home I’m going to have a talk with the boy.  At 6 I didn’t think he was that much into politics but clearly he took the whole “embrace change” thing a little too literally.

I can’t wait to get the bill from the hospital.  I’m going to have that quarter framed…it’s worth hundreds of dollars – maybe more!