A few more details

I just want to add to Geoff's post by saying thank you to everyone for your support. We have received calls and e-mails from so many people, which just helps us to get through this. Even though mom is sedated and can't talk to us right now, I do pass along the well wishes and read her some of the e-mails that are sent. I know she'd want to hear them.

Mom is, clearly, in very serious condition. However, the doctors reports have been encouraging. She is very fortunate to have not suffered trauma to her head, neck, spine or pelvis. All that is broken can be fixed, which we have to remind ourselves of every day. They put mom on a feeding tube a few days ago, and she has been receiving the food very well.

As Geoff posted, we have been in the room several times when they have brought her out of sedation. They do this twice a day to check her neurological responses... asking her to wiggle her toes and fingers, which she does with flying colors. We try to be there each evening when they "wake" her, so that we can at least tell her that we love her. Even though she can't talk to us, we and the nurses feel it is important for her to see us and to know we are here. It is the most difficult part of our days, however. When she opens her eyes and sees us, tears stream down her face and she often looks scared and agitated. It takes all my strength to stay in the room with her, seeing her this way. Last night, Geoff and I told her that she will be able to speak to us within a couple of days. We let her know that she will be okay, that she will walk again, and that we are in constant contact with her doctors on their course of action. We tell her that Thatcher is being well cared for and we pass along well wishes from all of you.

I am awaiting results of a CT scan, which I had done Tuesday of my spine. My bruises are turning a lovely shade of purple and blue, and my left knee, which must have been bashed into the dashboard, is healing. The bruise on my forehead is almost gone and the cut on my nose has healed. I move around like a 90 year-old, but I think I have more mobility each day. It's just my back that causes the most pain at this point.

Oh - a little about the woman who hit us... 21 years old. Her birthday was last Wednesday, Geoff & Heather's wedding day. She had been driving for 2 miles going the wrong way on I-80. All reports are consistent... that she was driving straight as an arrow, never swerving, at around 60 miles per hour. She was released from the hospital faster than I was, without a scratch, and taken directly to jail. She sits there with 3 felony convictions so far. Toxicology reports are not in yet, but the investigating officer suspects that she was under the influence of meth-amphetamines or Ecstasy. We are still waiting to find out if she was insured. Initial reports were that she is uninsured and doesn't have a license. She was driving her sister's car.

I'll post more later. I do want to write my perspective on what happened. It's hard to recount, but I know I want to do it. I will say that mom and I had a great week in SF prior to the crash Friday. We laughed so hard, we almost fell over on several occasions. Something about mom and me trying to navigate SF is quite hysterical. We laugh more out here than anywhere. We did lots of cooking... prepping for Geoff & Heather's BBQ and making cupcakes for the weekend trip, which mom called "Operation Cupcake." She even answered her phone "Operation Cupcake" when Geoff called her on Thursday. Thursday night, we took a break from cooking and went to see "Spring Awakening", which I had seen on Broadway and insisted we go see together. We had a blast and both loved it. We finished the evening w/ Thai food at 10:30PM.... a perfect night for the two of us. As much as I would love to be pain free right now, I am grateful that I was in the car with mom. Just before the crash, we were, once again, laughing our asses off about something. So, at least we entered into this adventure together, laughing.

We're off to the hospital. Mom's surgery is scheduled for 12:30 PST.