Sunday, January 3, 2010

I'm more behind than I thought....and the food in my local hospital

I knew I had not blogged in a long time, but I also did not think it had been FOREVER....almost a year. I'm ashamed but just now have something to say. Actually I made notes for this post in my trusty Moleskin notebook back in September while I was in the hospital for a long weekend. I came down with a case of spastic bronchitis, could not breathe, and needed a weekend of IV antibiotics. I was dreading the whole admission deal since we have public insurance which for sure at all times means a shared room. My roommates turned out to be kind and very nice and I was super glad to have had them for company. But the food. Dear God the food. The following are my notes from that weekend:

Food from the I can't breathe asthma tour of 2009

1. Friday lunch - Spinach, egg and potatoes. Soup with stars. Almond pudding. Ate this but otherwise too sick to eat.
2. Dinner Friday - Still too sick to care but bread, cheese, soup with something that looks like rice but isn't, took one bite and fertig (finished).
3. Breakfast - 2 pieces of ham, bread. You kidding me?
4. Quark strudel NASTY. Mandarin oranges (good), grapefruit slices (good) Bernd got me a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald's (very good). My roommates sent compliments to the chef via the nurse. Dear God. I think airline food would be a huge improvement over this slop.
5. Pasta salad drowning in mayo with carrots and peas here and there. Cold chicken thigh. Bread, more bread.
6. Breakfast - Surprise! Bread! I'm starving.
7. Lunch - Some kind of cream soup that was good. Cabbage rolls with mystery stuffing (animal? vegetable? I think I ordered vegetarian come to think of it). Mashed potatoes with zero flavor. And for dessert a little cake in a package like you might buy in an American gas station if you were starving and then be mad that you had wasted your money on it.
8 Dinner - My last one. BREAD! Lunchmeat with horseradish sauce, yogurt (decent)

Checked out at this point AMA. Not really because of the food but because I was 1000% better than I had been on Friday when I checked in, because I had no more veins left from all the antibiotics (all blown in my wrists at least), and because the doctor had promised me that if I could manage 24 hours with no fever I could go....he forgot to mention that he would not be around on Sunday to see if I managed the 24 hours with no fever. Got the nurse to find another doctor to sign me out. One thing about German hospitals...once you are in it is for definately sure hard to get back out.