He feints one way, dives another…
A few months ago, I went to an external seminar for work, with maybe 150 people there. During the morning session, I passed out in my chair. Apparently, I made a weird grunting sound, kicked back in my chair and then fell to the floor, bringing the whole thing to a halt while people tried to revive me. Even though I came round after a couple of minutes (pale as a sheet and sweating bullets) and managed to walk outside, the hotel manager had already called an ambulance and insisted that I go to the hospital to be checked out.
So, feeling fine but kind of freaked out, I got strapped down in the gurney, taken to hospital in the ambulance (with no lights or sirens, sadly) and hooked up to all kinds of monitors for a couple of hours, only for the grumpiest doctor in the world to look at the charts, glare at me when I said that I’d skipped breakfast and tell me that it was from a combination of low blood-sugar, fatigue and hunger. And then he ordered the qualified nurse that had been looking after me and others for a couple of hours to go and make me a cup of tea and some toast. I felt like a tosser.
Tomorrow, I have another seminar, run by the same people, about the same stuff and in the same hotel. I’m actually pretty nervous. I don’t think I’ll pass out again, but most of the people who are going to be there will have been there last time. I’ll walk in with my head held high, but I think there might be a few empty seats around me in the room and there will definitely be a few sideways looks.
Some friends at work have tried to make me feel better by reminding me that tomorrow’s seminar is only a half-day, from 9-12. But then I’ve reminded them that, last time, I didn’t even make it until 10am.
Notes