January 24th, 2011 by Conor

My worst fears came to fruition earlier when my mom approach me in the lobby and told me that Teal was working again tonight. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. There must be some other place in this hospital system that she could fit in. I resisted the temptation to go to HR and try to find a new job for her. I pictured her cleaning bathrooms, making photocopies, oh maybe even answering phones. Anywhere, but back in my life!

I’m not sure if it was just a mean joke on me, or if she got kicked out early again, but by the time I made it into the room Teal was not there. YES!!! There is at least an ICU god! Tonight we have “Jackson.” Jackson sets the standard for ICU babysitting. He pays attention to Danny and does his job well- the kind of guy you could imagine taking good care of your kids. I am happy that one of us is here though. There is a sort of creepiness to his demeanor which brought on his name. Jackson was named after pop sensation Michael Jackson (allegedpedophile- ). Jackson is the kind of guy that you sleep with one eye opened around. He looks eager to help Danny in any way he can.

All joking aside he is a nice enough guy who is just trying to do his job. At this point it’s just not as fun when Danny isn’t awake and I am trying to entertain myself.

It’s tough because Tom got here just a little while ago. We were all hanging out for a little bit and then Danny got really tired. All I wanna do is sit around and laugh and have a beer like we usually do. Danny and Tom and I ALWAYS have fun. It’s cool that he came out to be here for Danny and all of us, but it’s hard because it isn’t a usual session of chilling and laughing until we can’t breath. I’m sure those moments will happen plenty while he is here, it just different without Danny’s direct involvement.

Danny is right here in the mix though and has been smiling quite a bit since Tom showed up. He was very happy to see Tom. He raised both hands over his head as if he had just won some major snowboard competition. I think there might have been a fist pump in there too. He had a big smile on his face that was a mixture of elated and confused. It was awesome! Tom had barely even made it in the room before he began to strip down. I wasn’t sure if there was more to this friendship that I didn’t know about. Michelle looked confused but was hoping for the best. Tom wasted no time showing off his body. No, he wasn’t a recent P90X grad looking to show off his guns, he had sold messages on his body as a fundraiser for Danny.

It was awesome watching Dannys face as Tom led him on a grand tour around his tatood body. Jackson looked pretty happy in the corner when Tom pulled down his pants to show Danny one of his greatest pieces. Our friend Zac had drawn a bunny on Tom’s lower back that extended to the top of his butt. I later saw the pictures of how that picture had been created and I couldn’t help but think that Zac might be a great match for Jackson.

Danny started to get a little bit tired so Tom and I settled in on a game of Words and in between turns, I began to write. At some point in the silence Tom asked me why the room wasn’t decorated. I pointed him in the direction of some of the things that hadn’t made it on the wall yet. Within 5 minutes he had made quick work of the room. Danny watched in awe with a level of stoke that you wouldn’t normally see from this kind of activity. Usually he makes these kinds of faces when he is doing something outside or for the first time. NOT TONIGHT. Hanging up unicorn and fantasy themed plastic flags across the room did the trick.

We got kicked out of the room at 4 so that Danny could get some sleep. Somehow Michelle managed to talk the nurses into a night alone with Danny. I am beginning to think that she is paying Cindy off! Surgery in an 45 minutes. Gonna be a long morning to come. Many updates to come!

Good luck Danny!
Love ya Dood!
~Conor