drwex | I just stepped through the looking glass

ETA: now unlocked.

This has been a hell of a 36 hours. On Friday we left for a family trip to upstate New York. On Saturday morning we got word that Shazza's husband Aries had died in his sleep. This was a shock - he had been ill but all signs pointed to a slow recovery from his illness. You could see his body had taken a tremendous beating from the surgeries and the medicines he had to consume but there was no warning it was going to give up on him.

I'm still trying to process all the feelings that come with a sudden death of someone close, and it's much more complicated when the news comes while in the middle of the family. Pygment told the boys right away but I don't think they've truly grasped what it means. I'm not sure I have, either.

Saturday was spent in and out of cell phone contact with people in the home area. Say what you will about this social group, it knows how to take care of its own. Eventually it became clear that the best course of action we could manage was to get back to the hotel, clear out, and drive back Saturday. We did, and I was able to visit with Shaz for a couple hours thanks to transport and logistical help from several folk. I finally got to sleep around midnight-thirty.

Around 4:30AM I was woken up by Pygment who informed me that Liam had fallen out of bed and broken his other collarbone. I can't find the LJ entry where I posted about his first collarbone break - Pygment thinks it was over a year ago. Anyway, this break is worse - the bone is visibly displaced and he's screaming in pain. By about 5AM we get him slung, upright, and headed off to the ER. I was too wired to go back to bed immediately, but the rational brain tells me that if both of us are wrecks it's not going to help anything, so I pass out.

Wake up at 8:20 to find that they're still not home. I'm sure Pygment will post the details when she gets coherent again, but the gist is that it has taken forever and he still needs to see an ortho. No idea when that can happen. She finally gets home around 9 and I put her to bed. How she managed four hours in an ER on about 4 hours' sleep is beyond me.

While Pygment is asleep I'm trying to keep the boys quiet. Of course Liam keeps wanting to use the arm, despite the fancy sling, and hollering when it hurts. So for now I'm in Parent mode, and Family Coping mode. I'm pretty sure that somewhere along the drive I fell into a deep well and just failed to notice.