Friday, October 5, 2012

Minor Calcio Injury

This post is not going to be easy to write. Like, literally. Typing with only my left hand is not so easy.

Let me explain.

So yesterday I went to play calcio with some friends. We kicked the ball around outside of our school with some Italians until a couple of cops told us to move to a calcetto field. So we did so. It was a lovely day.

A lovely day
Within about five minutes of playing on the field, I went for the ball and got bumped and fell hard to the ground with my arms extended and palms out in front of me. I was surprised at the force of the impact. Until then I'd thought I'd been playing on astroturf but as it turned out the field consisted of fake grass on top of cement. Ouch. My palms and one knee were scraped but what really worried me was that my right arm could barely move.

A friend who I'll call "A" (because I didn't ask if I could use her name) walked me back to the school where one of the women there disinfected my scrapes and told me where to go to the hospital. A and another friend went with me and I was thankful that they navigated our way there and carried my backpack for me. I was a little in shock and I couldn't think clearly.

At the hospital the doctor told me that I needed an x-ray and he referred me to another hospital. A kind lady offered me a ride there. My friends went with me and helped me find where I was supposed to go in the hospital. After I checked in, I told them that they could go because the first doctor warned me that the ER would take a long time. I gave them my bus map so that they could get home and I told them that I was fine with taking a cab.

I got in and got x-rayed quickly. The x-rays were excruciating because I had to bend my arm in ways it was unwilling to go. 

After that I waited for what felt like forever. It didn't help that my arm steadily got more painful. I was feeling kind of lonely so I texted my homestay mom that I'd be late to dinner as I'd hurt my arm and was at the hospital. She immediately called to say that she and my homestay dad were coming. That made me feel better. After that there was more waiting. My arm hurt more and more. Eventually someone told me (aka la ragazza americana) that my homestay parents were here and that my arm wasn't broken and I was free to go in ten minutes.

Rather than being relieved, I was afraid that they would send me home with this excruciating pain that would only get worse and worse. I believed them that my arm wasn't broken (I figured that it would be numb if it was broken) but I still needed something done for the pain. So I started crying.

Soon enough, I got a sort of temporary cast put on to hold my arm in place to stop the pain. It worked immediately and I felt just fine. The name for my injury doesn't translate from Italian. Basically, my arm is stuck in a wide V-shape (I think it's an elbow joint problem- basically it's temporarily paralyzed). This injury is very common in Italy. Probably because of those dang cement calcetto fields.

Terrible webcam picture of me and my cast
So, I am totally okay and my cast will only be on for ten days at most. My homestay family is feeding me this weekend even though they do not have to do that. I'm glad that I didn't make any traveling plans this weekend or I would've been bummed. Living without my right hand for a week or so will be tough, but it could have been so much worse. On the plus side, I don't think that anyone noticed that I'm wearing my maroon-ish jeans.

It was nice to come home to my two homestay sisses hugging me and kissing me and to the grandma beaming upon seeing that I was okay and to my homestay parents making me dinner.

On a lighter note, yesterday morning while I was enjoying my brioche and coffee this was on:


Dad and Spens, I am thinking of you two! It's a cartoon version of Mr. Bean! I think that it was even in English but it was hard to tell because he mostly grunts.

Today, I mostly slept. I was wiped out. My homestay mom called my school to tell them I wouldn't make it. Haha! :)

Prayer Request: For me and my arm, please. That it heals without complications. Also for God to bless the people who helped me.

2 comments:

  1. Kinsey,
    I love your web site, your pictures and your narrative. About your crying and getting a cast for your arm; you may have inherited that ploy from your grandpa with one exception. I seldom got sympathy and usually was told to quiet down. Your adventure in Italy is so fantastic that your parents are to be congratulated for every euro they're spending for you. How about another semester in England?
    I love you so much,
    Grandpa Ben

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  2. Dear Grandpa,

    Thank you very much! I'm glad that you like the blog! I don't know why the crying technique doesn't work for you... works for me every time! I would actually love to spend time in England! That would be amazing! But, alas, I must get back home.

    Love you!!! <3 Kinsey

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