Eddie! Eddie!
Damn it…
[QUOTE=Sunspace]
‘Manoeuvring’. /QUOTE]
…and you’re out!
Okay, I’m back!
Good point, trupa, about peoples’ reaction to crisis. Mr. Rilch and I were both pretty shook up, and not surprisingly, our memories don’t quite jibe. He doesn’t remember my giving the Heimlich at all, but I know damn well I gave two thrusts before stopping to further assess the situation. After I told him that at that point I wasn’t sure if I was seeing a choking situation and not a seizure or stroke, he admitted that his perspective is different because my dad is not blood to him. If it had been Mr. Rilch’s mom, Mr. Rilch would have been the one picturing even-worse scenarios, instead of sticking with the obvious conclusion, as he did.
As for my mom. Well, it’s party what trupa said: she probably would have cut out no matter who this happened to. She doesn’t handle stress well at all. Plus, as Dung Beetle pointed out, she didn’t see the beginning or the apex of it, so she didn’t get the full impact.
But as far as her being cold, well, that is unfortunately the way it is. Earlier that day, she had told me that she was on Paxil because “If I didn’t have SOMETHING to keep me stable, I was going to kill Daddy!” No joke: they really don’t get along too well. And don’t get me wrong: he was a bastard during my childhood and adolescence. But now he’s mellowed, and she’s still combative.
In fact, when we were loading up the car this arvo, I forget what prompted it, but she yelled to him, “SHUT UP! Did you ever thank them for saving your LIFE?!” Afterwards, I told him there was no need, of course, but there was also no need for her to say that. I did tell her so on the phone, when I called to let her know we’d gotten in, but all I got was an earful about how annoying he is. (Oh, wait, I remember: he was giving us directions that did, in fact, turn out to be wrong. Still, jeez.) So, not much more to be said, except that perhaps I should warn him to change his beneficiary.
PunditLisa, thanks for the tip. I just sent him an email to that effect.