TALE 7-The Rest of The TALE (at least for us)

Baby Bear and Silver Eagle

Saturday morning, Blue Butterfly and I got up and began preparing for the day. We were lucky enough to have been invited to eat cinnamon rolls with Boots Tex and Lone Star Quilter, so we were preparing to go to their campsite when Baby Bear and Silver Eagle stopped by. We talked with them for a few minutes and they mentioned that they missed us at dinner the previous evening. We explained that we weren't able to make it due to our time constraints Friday night. (We were touched that they missed us).

We made our way over to BT and LSQ's camp site with the Circus Train in hand for Baby Bear and Silver Eagle to stamp into. We explained to the gang that we were planning on writing the clue on a sheet cake. The clue would direct the letterboxer to our campsite, where the train would be "hidden" on our picnic table. They agreed that this was a good idea.

After eating the best campsite breakfast known to man, the famous brothers needed to get to the pavilion and we needed to finish getting our clue ready. While we were loading the clue, the Rodgers 7 stopped by, so Blue Butterfly had to do some quick maneuvering so we wouldn't give anything away. (That was close!) We finally made it to the pavilion.

The clue for the Texas Circus Train.

We added our dessert to the dessert table and watched carefully from a distance. A couple of people asked Blue Butterfly about the Train, and she told them to check the dessert table. Finally, Beach Bum and Pink Cookie picked up on the clue and claimed the train. We were glad that they were able to take it home and enjoy it!

After exchanging, getting personal travelers, and eating lunch, it was time for the famous group picture. After the picture, Blue Butterfly and I were anxious to actually "get out there and box". We wanted to start on the hiking trail because Blue Butterfly wanted to have some Bear Stew (sorry Baby Bear!) AND I definitely wanted her to be able to grab my box, too. We looked at the clues and saw that Bell Motel's box would be the first one we would pass, so we hiked down the trail to the dedicated spot. Since we like to kill two birds with one stone when possible, I said, "My box is just right over there. I'll go grab it while you get Bell Motel's. "

I went to the stump and was pushing the leaves out of the way and saw the box, but felt a sharp prick on my finger. I said "OW!" and pulled my hand out. At first, I thought it was just from a thorn, but it seemed to hurt more than a usual thorn. I thought the thorn might actually be IN my finger, so I was squeezing it to see if I could get it out, but I wasn't seeing anything. Blue Butterfly came over and asked if I was ok. "Yeah, I think I got a thorn in my finger". As I was saying that, she looked at the stump and said, "You were bit by a snake."

At that point, I was no longer calm.

I dropped my binder, BB dropped what was in her hand, and we ran to the trail head. There, BB found Barefoot Lucy who called for Fearless Fox. Fearless Fox was good enough to drive us to the hospital. We first stopped at the Ranger Station to ask for directions, and the Ranger came out to look at my finger. He said he'd recently been bitten by a copperhead and I should be ok.

The Offender

FF took us to Luling to the ER. I went in and told the nurse and doctor what happened. They gave me a bed and took a look at my hand. They put me on an IV with anti-venom, gave me a tetanus shot and FINALLY gave me some pain medication. My hand was starting to swell and it was certainly hurting by now. They decided to take me to Brackenridge in Austin and they used the ambulance to get me there. We loaded up, BB sat in the front of the ambulance, and we made the trip to Austin with full-on lights and sirens.

After waiting in the Austin ER for a while, (did I mention I still had my Lucy Locket name tag on my shirt?), they said they would keep me for at least one night. They finally took me up to the intermediate care floor. My mom called Barefoot Lucy and told her we'd be there for the night.

Between the pain and the nurse coming in every couple of hours, I didn't get much sleep on Saturday night. When Sunday morning rolled around, my hand was still swollen, but the surgeons had come around and said it didn't look like surgery would be necessary (whew!).

Sunday afternoon, I got a special package from Dewberry and Mother of 5. Later on that day, Bloomin' Gramma Jo came to visit. She also brought one present for me and two more "presents" that I would later find in my bed. You should have seen the look on the Nurse's Assistant's face when we pulled back the blanket on the bed as he was helping me back in it! Bell Motel, Whiz Gee, and Can Can also came to visit. They brought Blue Butterfly her suitcase, and they brought me my letterbox that Beach Bum and SandiBox had rescued from the vicious snake's nest! Our camp host had also sent a nice card wishing me well. It was great having all of these visitors! It meant SO MUCH to me that they would come to the hospital to see me.

We were also told that several letterboxers had pitched in to pack up our campsite. We were also grateful for that since that meant Blue Butterfly could stay at the hospital. I think it was Barefoot Lucy and Fearless Fox who drove BB's van to the hospital for her, too. (Please forgive me if that's wrong). It was great of everyone to pitch in to help us out. Again, we are forever indebted to all of you!

Earlier that morning, the docs had said that I might have to stay another night. We got word on Sunday afternoon that I would, indeed, be staying Sunday night, too. I had to make a couple of calls to work to let them know that I was stuck in Austin with a snake bite wound. After all the excitement of the visitors (and the cooties), I took a rest. Around 10:00, they said I was doing well enough to go to another floor. This meant I wouldn't be hooked up to the machines any more! Yay!

On Monday morning, I was visited by a couple of more surgeons, who said everything was looking great and the swelling in my hand had mostly gone down. I was finally discharged around 1:00. Lucky for us, Barefoot Lucy and Fearless Fox took a detour on their way home and dropped my car off at my house in Navarro County. This was a great relief, especially since I still had limited use of my left hand and was generally in no shape to drive.

After finally getting discharged, we left Austin and headed to my house. Blue Butterfly stayed with me on Monday night, then she went home late Tuesday afternoon. I went back to work on Wednesday and was welcomed by my students.

The wounded area. Luckily, the swelling was mostly gone by this point. However, see the pink ink on my fingers? Some of the nurses were also concerned about that. :-)

What did I learn? Well, a couple of things. First of all ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS poke with a stick SEVERAL times before using your GLOVED hand to reach into any type of hidey hole. Secondly, the letterboxing community is filled with AMAZING, CARING people. BB and I don't know what we would have done without all of the extra special attention we were given by Texas Letterboxers. We don't know what we did to deserve it, but we are genuinely grateful!

THANK YOU TEXAS LETTERBOXERS! WE LOVE YOU ALL!