To all of those who wrote messages of encouragement, prayed and otherwise cared about my new hip, I sincerely thank you.
Just as in my former job, you Constant Readers have become my second family, my friend group, especially as I have sat in this chair for two years.
I had right hip replacement surgery on Wednesday at Memorial Hospital of Converse County in Douglas.
Before you assume that I am a Banner Wyoming Medical Center basher (which has employed my daughter for more than 10 years), you need to know that Douglas is where my doctor, John Horberg, does his Casper hip replacements.
Most of his other Casper surgeries are at Summit Medical Center in Casper.
So when his scheduler picked March 19 for this new hip, I just said yes.
Then I realized consecutively that my caregiver bus driver would be on Spring Break that week (not exactly golf and palm trees), it would be the start of the NCAA Basketball Tournament (my favorite 2-1/2 weeks of the year) and it was the Feast of St. Joseph, carpenter, husband of Mary and patron saint of orthopedists, I learned from a doctor friend, because “they fix things.”
How cool is all of that?
Of course it snowed over black ice the night before surgery, so we left the house shortly before 7 for an 8:15 checkin.
Pre-op started immediately and then there was a long wait, which was the only time I was really anxious.
After that, the next thing I knew I was awake, a little nauseous but not bad, and getting my clothes on.
I was home before 3 p.m.
And that, my friends, is a miracle.
But please consider this next anecdote as well.
Several weeks ago, I was gifted an Advance Reader Copy of “The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree,” the first novel of Casperite India Hayford.
I read it in a day and a half and it is marvelous.
It gives “Where the Crawdads Sing,” and “The Glass Castle,” vibes.
The main character is a girl growing up in the South, who has an awful childhood and basically raises herself.
But along the way, she discovers a new family, with its own evil difficulties.
It’s primarily set in 1967 Arkansas, the home state of author Hayford.
And I have to share that there are ghosts and many of the most pivotal scenes take place in graveyards, which honestly I would turn away from in choosing books to read.
But these ghosts are likable and add to the story.
In the end, evil is eliminated. It is not a romance, as I so enjoy, but does leave the reader wondering, “What if! What if these two wanderers do find their way back together?”
I can’t recommend it enough.
It goes on sale Tuesday, March 25, and there is a book launch planned for Wind City Books in Casper on Saturday, April 5, and a book signing at 5:30 p.m., on May 21 at the Natrona County Public Library.
Thanks for reading, as always. A new hip and a new book, college basketball and pain meds, what could be better?
Sally Ann Shurmur can be reached at: SallyAnnShurmur@gmail.com
