Stockholm was always going to be an odd thing to write
about, that’s maybe why it’s taken me so long to write about Berlin etc (see
previous blog).
When I split up with my ex* I wrote a list, places I wanted
to go, things I wanted to do. Not a checklist but just something to remind me
of the dreams I once had which had been hidden and forgotten over the course of
time. Stockholm was on this list.
The list features Stockholm, and I guess Sweden and other
Scandinavian countries, probably as I have a vision of time in a cabin
surrounded by a snowy landscape, with a log fire, good music, doing snow angels
under the Aurora Borealis (if anyone wants to fulfill this and whisk me away then go right ahead!)
I digress, once I decided to add Stockholm into my schedule
I was really excited. It ‘s an expensive place but seemed a great place to end
my time with this tour, and I got to see friends who weren’t doing the earlier
shows. There was a sort of draft plan, time here was short so it seemed
sensible to have an idea of what to do. It began with saying goodbyes to those
friends leaving the tour in Germany, a short flight to Sweden, check in, find
food and have a quiet night in order to recuperate from Berlin ready for the
gig at the Globe Arena. Show day would involve sightseeing, the idea of a tour
by boat had been mooted.
So, yeah, that was the plan, the reality was somewhat
different.
After some sad goodbyes in Berlin and time in very hot
airport where the availability of liquid was next to nothing, it was a fairly short
flight to Stockholm, with some stunning scenery. I was tired from the time in
Berlin but looking forward to seeing somewhere new.
On arrival, my phone buzzed constantly from some friends who were already there and enjoying themselves.
With some reservation and with the lack of food available at the hotel, the
plans changed and off we trooped to a rock bar who were having an 80s hair metal night. The
immediate reaction was it was busy, loud and I was pretty tired but the cider
was nice, I could have drunk quite a lot of it I think.
So, this is when things went awry. Friends were full of merriment and dancing on
a stage/podium thing, when despite being sober, I joined them dancing for a giggle.
Unfortunately, (during a Def Leppard song!) I slipped on a spilt drink, feet
going forward and the rest of me heading backwards, into some weird overbalanced
position. In doing so I managed to damage my elbow which upon being pulled back
to standing was fairly obvious. I was kind of stunned with pain and right now
it’s odd to be thinking about it, as it is all a bit of a blur. There was vaguely
leaving the stage, sliding down a wall in the toilets then passing out, a concerned security guard,
concerned friends, there was certainly intense pain, my arm not looking or feeling right and it was fairly
quickly established that my suggestion of just taking ibuprofen wasn’t going to
resolve the matter. (Really the lack of
ability to move my arm, the incredible pain, the swelling and purple colour
should have given me a hint!)
After that, it becomes even more of a blur, but I tried my
best to keep it together. I failed, and if it wasn’t for some of the most
amazing people I am lucky to call friends, I probably would be considerably
worse off now. After a very long time in a Swedish A&E department, lots of
x-rays and with my friends cold in a waiting room whilst I was merrily off my nut on the morphine and snuggled under blankets in a single room, the night progressed. I was released the next day, early in the morning with a diagnosis of a dislocated
elbow, a possible chipped bone and extensive soft tissue damage. I tell you now, you do not realise how much you
use your elbow, or the pain they can cause.
After some (odd painkiller induced) sleep, a distinct lack of any sightseeing, after picking
up a morphine prescription and paying the hospital bill, we ventured to the gig.
Yes, you read that correctly, we ventured to the gig. There were some discussions about if I should go, not only with the medics (who
thought I was bizarre) but with friends too. For me there was no decision on
this, I was going...and I went, it was my last show of the tour and the tickets were bloody expensive. However much I tried to hide it and cover it up, in reality I was in quite a lot of discomfort and a lot of pain, this and the subsequent morphine
dose did somewhat cloud the experience, but I still enjoyed it.
It was great to be in the venue, to feel the
excitement, to see the extraordinary tall people in the crowd and to hear All
Those Yesterdays, Garden and Love Reign O’er Me. it’s always ace to hear State of
Love and Trust and just generally to be with good people. I guess because of the other events the gig itself
seemed overshadowed for me, but it was so good to see friends from the States enjoying
the GA experience, the emotion in the room and friends I rarely see having a
blast.
That was the end of my Pearl Jam tour this year, and whilst
some people carried on, and a friend unexpectedly and spontaneously decided to
do the rest of the tour. I was homeward bound, after managing a sightseeing
tour bus for a couple of hours before my flights so I did see something of the city, I headed for London. It was sad to end it that way, deep down I really wanted to carry on, to maintain my Pearl Jam fix, but in hindsight, it’s a good job I didn’t.
I’ve said it to them
in person, but my friends who stayed with me that night and then cared for me
for the rest of the weekend, well I can’t say thank you enough and I truly
appreciate it more than I can express.
‘Til the next
time....
I guess people might
want to know what happened next with the elbow. On coming home and seeing my
GP, I was referred to hospital here to see an orthopedic trauma consultant.
Turns out an ibuprofen wouldn’t have fixed it and it’s a pretty bad injury. I
was off work for seven weeks, am undertaking physiotherapy and have gone
through various stages such as not being able to feel my fingers, use a knife and fork, touch my
head/face, carry anything, do up buttons, put on socks, jewellery etc.
Unfortunately for me the elbow is pretty much
one of the worst parts of the body to injure, and so I will have some degree
a loss of permanent movement/extension. It looks pretty weird, feels like a constant ache
and I can’t do stuff as easily as I used to, but am becoming very adept at
finding ways around things and there are improvements in what I can do all the time. I will still have to go to the hospital and physio for another few months at least. It could have been worse though!
*I have had more than one relationship in my life, so have
more than one ex boyfriend, but this guy is generally referred to as ‘my ex’ as
we were together for almost 10 years.
No comments:
Post a Comment