Call Me Grace...

 I've been working in the garage lately. Last Friday I spent all morning there, cleaning and organizing. I get such satisfaction in throwing out stuff! I think of it as paying mortgage on real estate which is only filled up with stuff we don't need, haven't used, and most likely will never use!

     There's one large item in the garage which needed to be attended to, and that is the solar pool cover for the in-ground pool. It is a 16' x 24' piece of blue bubble-wrap but much sturdier than regular bubble-wrap. Along with the large piece is a 6' round piece, for the jacuzzi. Previously I had loosely wrapped it in a black piece of plastic and stored it in the rafters of the garage. Recently it had come 'un-done' and each time I pulled the car into the garage, the blue bubble-wrap and the black plastic would inch down from the rafters and hit the top of the van.

     I managed to pull everything down from the rafters without the use of the ladder (see top photo). I re-rolled the blue bubble-wrap tightly, wrapped the black plastic around it, and taped it (see photo at right). And then things got tricky. How do I get this beast back up to the rafters? Oh, I know! I will climb on the ladder and muscle this thing up there! Why not?  No problemo! I asked Steve to help, since he was outside anyway, changing the tire on his car. I climbed the ladder, Steve held the beast, I took one end and attempted to put it up. And that's when the ladder fell out from under me, I grabbed the rafters with my right hand, and my life flashed before my eyes. My past, present and future in 10 seconds on fast-forward played out in my head. In my head I heard my Tae-Kwon-Do instructor say, "If you are going to fall, make yourself as small as possible." I held onto the rafters as long as I could (a few seconds), then made sure the ladder was settled. I glanced at Steve, and decided he would not be able to catch me. Then I let go. Eight and a half feet I dropped, and I did not land on my feet. That proves I am not a cat. I did, however, land on the most padded part of my body. I did not bounce like a rubber ball. Thud, on my bottom on the concrete floor! My left arm hit the leg of the ladder. I remember tucking my head and neck towards my torso to make certain I would not hit the other leg of the ladder. And the bruise on my right thigh indicates I hit the ladder there. "Don't hit your head, save the neck!" kept running through my mind. "Stay out of the hospital, don't call 911!" was foremost in my thoughts! Steve was nearly in shock, and did his best to help. He got an ice-pack from the freezer for my wrist, which immediately got a goose-egg bump, a bruise, and broke the skin. It could have been so much worse! I'm O.K! I'm O.K! Shaken-up a bit, but A-O-K! And by now (one week later) the bruises are yellow and really ugly. I went to chiro Wednesday, and I'm going back right now for more shock-wave heat treatment for my tailbone. Yay for chiro! Yay for Epsom Salt baths! And for landing on my bottom! ~ and now you have...the rest of the story! Good Day!