So, yeah, I am still in the hospital. I have a low fever, high white blood cell count, and nobody knows anything more. The PCMO tells me they are basically keeping an eye on me to rule out some of the more exotic central american diseases. I am getting pretty tired of being here. I hear rumors that a communicable diseases spcialists is going to see me this afternoon. I’ll let you know how that goes.
I am pretty tired of my cell, so I went into the hospital courtyard today. It’s warm and sunny, cloudless, perfect. The topiary in the middle is shaped like a Quetzal, the national bird of Guatemala. Very clever! The grass is golfing-green height and comfy, so I took a little nap. Later, I came back and did Tai Chi in the courtyard when no one was looking. That made me feel a little less cooped up, I suppose.
I have a competent-seeming doctor, but still have little faith in the friendly but inept nursing staff. I REPEATEDLY told them they can’t get an accurate temperature reading if they take it right after I had a glass of water. Eventually, on the PCMO’s recommendations, I waited 15 minutes and walked up to the nurses’ station.
“Hi. I’d like you to take my temperature, please,” I said.
Baffled look. Flips through chart. “We just took it 15 minutes ago, at noon. You’ve been at 36.5 all morning.” (for those not Celsius-oriented, that’s BELOW normal)
“Humor me. I will go back to my room if you do.”
So an intern shrugged, whipped out a thermometer (they still use glass ones here) and took my temperature. “38.2!” he exclaimed. “You’re fever is back!” the nurse added.
No duh, retard. So I spent a few minutes telling them AGAIN that they can’t get accurate readings unless they warn me 15 minutes before, and I stop drinking the water. I drink a lot of water, you see, a holdover from when I almost died of heat stroke at summer camp. (that is another story entirely)
I hope I get to leave tomorrow. Apparently they are waiting until at least then, to see the result of some blood/ hemoglobin/ bile test they took yesterday. My Spanish failed me at one point, so I can’t be more elaborate.