09/12/2025
It will be a week tomorrow since Jack was released from the hospital after his heart attack on August 16th. We spent 3 nights in a motel in Albert Lea, Minnesota because both elevators in our apartment building were broken. It was a bad situation because Jack couldn't lie on the bed because he can't breathe when he's on his back and no amount of pillows helped. The only chair was a small office chair so he couldn't put his feet up, which he was supposed to do. I bought a used chair and footstool for him, but it didn't help much. The $8,000 Prevena incision device started making a horrible beeping sound and instead of going back to the hospital 50 miles away, Jack took it off (he had watched the doctor replace 9 or 10 while in the hospital). Needless to say, his incision started seeping and actually bled whenever he coughed. We went through several boxes of sterile pads, gauze and tape.
On Monday (Sept. 8th) we killed time driving around the town of our youth, waiting for the call that at least one elevator was in working order. The call never came so we drove to Mason City and waited in the car for nearly 4 hours. I made a couple of trips up the 103 steps to our apartment and to the basement to glare at the arrogant 20 something repair guy. By 4:30 the elevator was operational, but no lights. It was the first time Jack had gotten to see it and he was grateful to have a comfortable lift chair to sit in.
I could write a 200 page book on everything that happened during that 4 day/3 night stay. Jack should've been in the hospital or nursing home and I should've been in a mental institution.
He had his first appointment with the surgeon on Tuesday and it went well considering the rough weekend. The doctor reminded Jack that he will have a long, slow recovery due to the damage to his heart, all the complications, and 3 surgeries with general anesthesia he went through. Jack will never be good as new, but he's determined to be better than before.
