Two Guys, No Script
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Two Guys, No Script
Ep. 2 Derek's Broken Neck
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Join Derek and Tanner as they explore the story of Derek's broken neck. Catch the humor and soft points of the story. Thank you all for tuning in!!!
Can I can't read the script you wrote? Derek, it's not scripted. Hey guys, welcome to the Two Guys No Script Podcast.
SPEAKER_00Oh, how's it going, Derek? Oh, pretty good. How's your day? Can't complain. Really? Well, the operator might have pissed me off at work. Again? Yeah, he's kind of an ass.
SPEAKER_01Oh, I could see why he'd piss you off with a hairdo like that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's a bad hair day.
SPEAKER_01Really? Is every day a bad hair day for you?
SPEAKER_00A little bit. Oh man. We gotta work on that, Derek. I could probably do a haircut. It's warmer weather now, so you don't have to be warm the winter.
SPEAKER_01I don't know. You're just like a big burly man. I can see why your woman just proves up on that. Yeah, I think so. Alright, I think today is gonna be a little bit of a heavier episode. There's something we brought up in the last introductory episode. And it's something we're gonna hit on a little bit harder today. And there's there's a lot of, I think it's kind of deep. There's a lot of heartfelt things, little dark things, and a lot of funny things too at the same time. I mean, it's a pretty good subject, and it's cool that you're willing to share this. All right, what are we gonna talk about today, Derek?
SPEAKER_00Well, we're gonna talk about the when I broke my neck and the effects I had from it and the experiences I had in the hospital, which surprisingly most of them are uh good memories now with a lot of laughter. I guess it was because I was trying to keep my spirits high, so I made light of the bad moment.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you you're you really excel a lot of this, and I I honestly, as a friend, I'm proud of you, Derek, for what what you've learned from it, who you've become after it, and the challenges you've gotten through. Well, I appreciate hearing that. Yeah, that's the nicest thing you guys are ever gonna hear me say to Derek. Um, there's actually something that I found, and I'll bring it up later in the episode, but I can't believe I said it to you back when this happened, but we'll get to it later. But I I got that in my mind, so be on the lookout for that.
SPEAKER_00So, what happened, Derek? So me and for some friends were canoeing down the river, and I decided I wanted to go for a swim. I was getting warm, and I thought the water was deeper than it was, and pretty much did like a belly flop into the water, hit my head on. We aren't sure if I hit a log, if I hit bottom, if I hit rock, but I hit my head on something and broke my neck and was paralyzed. And no, I mean it's common for me to just I float down the river, look for crayfish, stuff, just whatever, kind of not out of the ordinary for me to just float down the river after I jump in. And so they thought I was doing that, and no, I was paralyzed, couldn't swim, only my right hand worked, and got my head up above water and started yelling for help. And luckily, someone came down and grabbed me, and his wife called 911, and I believe you were the first one there, actually.
SPEAKER_01I for 911. I okay, I was I was the first one to you. I was technically the second one there, but I was the first one that seen it was you. And so a little background behind that. Derek and I are both on the fire department, and we're both first responders, so we're the like one of the lower medically trained people. And I remember getting there, and I'm like, I seen he was with one of our coworkers, and I'm like, what happened? Because I seen Derek laying in the water, and they didn't when they called us out, they didn't give a full description. They they had the age wrong, so I really didn't think nothing of it. I knew you were in the area that day, but didn't think nothing of it. I think it was paged out as like a 30-something-year-old male, and I got there and I see Derek laying in the water, and the guys holding him. I'm like, what happened? And I I honestly like that was it was crazy for me because I froze. I'm like, I don't know what to do. Like I like everything that I knew what to do just went out because I mean, there's my best friend hurt in the water, and and uh yeah, and eventually it kind of came back, and I don't I still to this day, I don't I took my socks and shoes off before I got in the water. Why I did that, I don't know, but I did. So I'm sorry I wasn't in the clicker. But I was the first one from the department in the water, and they had them there, and the first thing I did is I grabbed, so when you're suspecting it, they page it out as a suspected head injury or back or you know, something in the spinal cord, possibly, just the way they paged it out, you know, tingling legs, can't feel nothing. So the first thing you want to do is you want to immobilize the head and hold C spine. Well, that's the first thing I did, and I just talked to Derek the whole way through, and yeah, that was that was interesting.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it was a very scary moment, and I it's slightly blurry. I remember lots of it very clear, but also I think I just kind of blocked a lot of it out. I remember though making jokes while I was still in the water, freshly paralyzed, and I can't thank Tanner and the crew enough for what they did. And that was uh that was the start of the journey with my broken neck. I think I think Tanner wants to share an embarrassing part. I'll let him tell it and then I'll defend myself.
SPEAKER_01So so on something that can happen when you break your neck, hurt something in your spinal cord, is you can get interaction. Well, there he was chubbed up. The water was cold. The water was cold. I mean, you know, the nickname Little D came about. Um he's cool with it, so we talk about it. But it's just it just adds to the story of of jokes and just the whole I mean it's it's a heavy topic, but the humor behind of some of what has come of this situation.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and so that was kind of the incident. What happened? I got flown by helicopter to the hospital. They landed right on scene, and then I was in the hospital for five weeks with uh trying to learn how to walk again, and actually left the hospital just using a cane to walk, which they were pretty impressed with. And uh many, many good stories from the hospital on my journey to recovery. So let's take a step back.
SPEAKER_01What did you break in your neck? You remember which one which was?
SPEAKER_00I believe it was C6 and C7.
SPEAKER_01I think that's what it was, but I'm not for sure.
SPEAKER_00I think five was fractured, and then six and seven were like totally broke. They had a fusels. So what was it? Did it hurt? Essentially felt like my entire body was asleep, like the tingling of like when your leg's asleep or and you stand on it. That's what my entire body felt like. And I could have sworn I was moving my feet when people would tell me to move my feet, but they didn't move at all. And the only movement I had at first when I came out of surgery was my right hand would move a little bit. It was not enough to really do anything. I couldn't feed myself, I couldn't really do anything, but it moved. So it gave that helped give me a lot of hope that there was some kind of connection going through my injured spinal cord.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, you were in high spirits right out of the gate. I mean, you were you were at all odds stacked against you. I mean, they I remember the first night you were in the hospital, um, your girlfriend texted me and was like, it's not looking good. They don't know if Derek's ever gonna walk again, like he's probably gonna be wheelchair bound. I think it was some I can't remember if it was your girlfriend, your mom, but they were kind of talking like this ain't good. And they would know more once you got out of surgery. And man, that night I couldn't sleep, and I'm just like, God, I can't drive in the cities. That's another thing about me, is I'm terrible at city driving. And of course, he's in the hospital, like a good trauma center, but it's an hour away in a big city from where we live. And I'm like trying to figure out who can give me a ride to the hospital, and no one's like, Well, I'm not going to the cities today, it's a Sunday, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, well, I don't want to drive there. Well, I couldn't do it anymore. It was like noon that day, and I'm like, I have to go see Derek. And so I have a newer super duty, and I'm driving to the cities in this thing. I suck at city driving. I managed to make it there. I get to the hospital in the parking garage, and all the little signs in the parking garage are rubbing on my roof as I'm going through it. I'm like, God dang, this guy must be my good friend if I'm doing this just for him. And walk in the hospital, and man, your mom started crying instantly as she seen me, and I'm like, oh, you know, it's okay. And I came in to see you, and the first thing you said is, Well, when I get out of here, I'm gonna run a marathon. And then after that, I'm gonna get more into the EMS world because I saw what it did for me yesterday. And well, we're gonna be running a 5K in like six months. And I, if you guys have seen a picture of what Derek and I look like, you're gonna think they're gonna need an ambulance on standby just to pick them up when they're done with this 5K. But we're gonna train a little bit, you know. I mean, we do races at work every time. Yeah, you know, some races, some Twinkies, it'll all help, right? No, it's really empowering what you did.
SPEAKER_00Honestly, I went and got my EMR. You did training. I was only uh I only joined the fire department a few months before I broke my neck, and then you know, continue with getting the EMR. So I've helped other people in similar situations, and then uh the the marathon that that might move down to 5k, but uh the marathon's still the end goal, but yeah, marathon.
SPEAKER_01I mean So uh why don't you explain like your leg a little bit more as to why you maybe couldn't run a full 5k or a full marathon?
SPEAKER_00So essentially the ankle, my ankle doesn't have full connection, so when like I try and lift my ankle up, the whole muscle won't react, and so I only get a slight bit so I can walk flat on my foot, and when I try and run, my foot just kind of slaps down, and then there's like a delay in all my leg muscles on my left side, so it's more of a galloping limp than a run, is what I do, so it's also hard on joints and stuff, so that's we'll start with the 5K, see how that goes, see if I can trade enough to do a marathon one day.
SPEAKER_01I'm gonna fill you in on a little thing. Our running bet is whoever wins out of us two wins the 5k owes the other steak dinner. So I am hoping I win this 5k because I want a steak dinner under I'm putting that out there.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, he's gonna make me a crippled guy by a mistake dinner for losing.
SPEAKER_01Ah, that's okay. You remember, remember, you still owe me for all the breakfast and all that I bought you.
SPEAKER_00So I remember by you a fancy steak dinner, maybe a lobster tail with it. Oh man.
SPEAKER_01So I don't know what's what's it what was it like being in the hospital? Like it's kind of from square one.
SPEAKER_00Well, the first week, I think it was, I was in intensive care unit, and they had me on pain meds and stuff, and that was awful. That part's kind of fuzzy, just I'm sure the pain meds and the trauma, whatever, but that really sucked. Family wasn't allowed to spend the night with me, so nights alone were hard. But then later on in the hospital stay, once I got to the therapy unit, and my girlfriend was allowed to spend the night at the hospital. That made it much much more tolerable tolerable. The food was bad. But uh Yeah, I was I was ready to get out. It was it was not a fun experience, but there's there was good times there. Right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's it's impressive. I mean I think a lot of people agreed it was your high spirits to get you back to where you were today. I mean, it's it's insane. What was What was running through your head throughout all this? I mean, I know you were in high spirits, but I mean, were you nervous?
SPEAKER_00I it was the first few days was very nerve-wracking when I couldn't move my legs. And I think it was only a few days uh before I started moving my right leg. And then it was kind of like, okay, you know, I can see hope. Like I'm getting movement back and stuff as swelling went down. And then like the one week area about there, when I started to get I think that's about when I could start moving my left leg, I could get it to wiggle, but nothing useful. I couldn't even pull my knee up like to my leg was straight on the bed. I could just get my toes to wiggle back and forth a little bit. So that was like another big step, you know, seeing movement in another limb. And then once they started getting me to stand up and stuff, that's when I was like, okay, that's when I really thought maybe I will run a marathon one day, and just knew I had to work hard. And I mean, I got a lot back in those five weeks at the hospital. The only thing that still doesn't really work is obviously my leg that I was talking about, but it's good enough to walk. And then my left hand doesn't really work good. I call it my meat claw.
SPEAKER_01So this is later on that this happened in this crash, but I think it's a good point to bring up right now the meat claw. Because when Derek first came back to work, he was holding on to a pop can with his hand, with that hand. And he's shaking it over the the bin that we throw our cans into, and he's yelling at his hand, drop, drop, drop, like he's talking to a dog. And I'm like, I didn't realize what happened at first. He's like, Oh, my hand's not opening, and then I caught on, and I died laughing. I'm like, I'm sorry, Derek, it's really not the funniest thing, but it is so damn funny right now because you're yelling at your hand to drop this damn pop can and it won't just funny. I didn't think I did it to you again at the county fair. I you went to hand me something or whatever, and I had to forcefully pull it out of your hand, and I thought he was just gonna set it in my hand. Well, yeah, here he can't open his hand at all and use it. But yeah, there's it's just little things like that. I mean, like I'll say a million times, it's a heavy subject, but man, there's just some when you're friends like that, there's just some funny things that come out of it.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and it's a lot of days at work there'll be something funny that happens with the the meat claw.
SPEAKER_01Well, not even the meat claw. Sometimes he he's not the most balanced individual anymore. So, you know, he missteps and he lands on the ground. I I wish I could upload that picture, use that man the other day. It looked like he shit his pants, but it wasn't, he didn't shit his pants. It was just mud, but it was all on the top of his ass. And it's just the way he said that was the funniest thing ever. Oh so I mean, progressing through your recovery. I mean, what was did it did it ever feel like it was completely impossible?
SPEAKER_00No, never felt completely impossible.
SPEAKER_01I mean, there was times of doubt, but let's let's talk about let's give an interesting moment in the hospital. What's something that uh stands out at least one?
SPEAKER_00Well, so after after I broke my neck, got on the helicopter, I had an hour-long helicopter ride to just sit there and think whatever. I was actually thinking about like my mom and her me and like my dad, like, oh my gosh, they're gonna be so stressed out and so worried. But I was mostly thinking about my mom because forever she's been telling me that I'm the reason she has gray hair, and I'm not the problem child, but let's just say if the cop showed up at the door, I know she'd be thinking about. So uh I thought I have to do something to lighten the mood when I first see her because she's gonna be devastated, she's just gonna be a mess. So I thought about the helicopter, couldn't come up with something, went into surgery, came out. I knew I had to think of something, and finally my mom comes walking up, and the second I saw her gray hair, I knew what I had to say. Mom, I think your gray hair is a little more gray today. And so she went from crying to laughing instantly, and it made me feel better. You know, at least I could still do something to make someone happy, even if I couldn't move.
SPEAKER_01But that that was that was something that was pretty powerful about your experience. I mean, not only did you keep yourself in high spirits, but you kept those around you in high spirits. I mean, the whole time it was you know, even I came to see you. I'm a bad friend. I only seen him twice in the hospital, but you know, I I had to work and make up for him being gone, you know. But uh uh even the second time I went and seen him, it was just constant laughter. I mean, he was as many jokes as he could think of and different things to make us all laugh. I mean, it was the whole time I was there, so that was cool.
SPEAKER_00And yeah, I think even the even the doctors knew that my uh nickname was Little D by the time. The the one nurse, I she came in and called me uh she said something about Big Fella or something. That's funny. All these nurses call me Big Fella except the one that has to do my catheter. What was that like? Oh, not fun. Ever shove a garden hose up your pecker?
SPEAKER_01I have not. I hope you know some days I piss like 40 times a day, and some days it's like, man, catheter wouldn't be so bad. But after listening to what it felt like, I think I'm okay.
SPEAKER_00Well, the worst part is when I was finally done with all the catheters, they told me that they have a catheter that they can put in just leaving. They don't have to keep pulling it in and out, but they didn't want to do that, I guess. So why I guess there's higher chance of infection if they do.
SPEAKER_01Well, I mean, you didn't want to get infection and have your pecker falling. Your old lady wouldn't be very happy. At least we knew from the start that was the one thing that's gonna work, right? So there's something else. So we talked about the front end, your packer, but what happened to your butt back? I heard there was a lot of stuff that a lot of stuff that entered that you weren't a fond of.
SPEAKER_00Suppories are not my friend. Uh yeah, they so when you break your neck, it kind of like paralyzes your colon, also. So they were filling me with suppositories and laxatives. And let's just say they all caught up at one time. Uh I wasn't on them for very long before luckily, I wasn't on them long before my whole digestive system started firing up and working how I was supposed to, but I think uh I have a pretty good story about when they finally decide that it was enough was enough for the positors.
SPEAKER_01So I think before he says this, I think we gotta give Remy a round of applause, a pat on the back, whatever, because what she went through in this instance, she's a hell of a woman. That was took about your side after dealing with that. Because if I was in her shoes, I'd have been like, nope, I'm out. See ya. Yeah, I owe her the world, I'd say that. Well, what happened?
SPEAKER_00So pretty much to use the bathroom since I couldn't walk, they'd put me on this chair with a hole in it, and then wheel me over the toilet. I'd do my thing. I'd wipe myself as good as I could. And then the nurse would come in and get me cleaned off. So I'm sitting in my bed, sitting, or I was sitting in my wheelchair. Because I couldn't sit up in bed. I was sitting in my wheelchair eating lunch. And I was still having issues with not being able to go poop. And I'm like, uh-oh, I have to go poop. And so I'm trying to hold it, but obviously I'm still having like some paralysis and stuff, so I can't hold it that good. So I'm like, yeah, I have poop. So Remy's like, okay, let's get you transferred into bed so you can get your pants off, so you can get into your toilet chair, and so we can wheel you to toes. I'm like, okay. So I get in bed, get my pants off, and she's starting to get the chair with the hole in it. And I'm like, uh Remy, will you hurry up? And she's like, I'm going as fast as I can. So I'm sitting there just trying to hold it, trying to hold it. I'm like, oh my gosh, I don't want to piss her off. Like she already yelled at me. But she didn't realize how bad it actually was. So she gets a chair ready. I get on it. The second I sit down, I'm like, oh my gosh, I need to get to the toilet. So I'm yelling at her. Push me to the toilet, push me to the toilet, get me to the toilet. And I moved about one foot. She pushed me about one foot closer to the toilet. It's only about five feet to the toilet. She got me about a foot. I'm like, once I can get back, watch out. And everything let loose on the floor. I may have got some on her shoes. Just an absolute mess. There was nothing thought about it. So then I got it pinched off. I'm like, okay, give me to the toilet. No, I'll finish in the toilet. So she moves me about another foot. And there I go again. Stand back, get away. So not only did I leave one big splatter, I left two. That at the time I was disgusted with myself and felt bad for the nurses, but looking back, it's a pretty funny story. And if she can stick with me through that, that's a good side.
SPEAKER_01I think that Remy is a good woman for doing that. Man, I mean you uh you you splattered the floor. With shit. Yeah, and her shoes. And her shoes. Did you buy her new pair of shoes?
SPEAKER_00Uh you probably shouldn't have buy her some this summer. Now that she hears that, you get a lot of pair of shoes.
SPEAKER_01No, that is I and I only feel bad for Rami, but I feel bad for the purple person that had to clean that up. Because I'm sure it did not, it's still all good. I'm sure that was not in their job description when they started. So was it a janitor or was it a nurse?
SPEAKER_00As far as I know, it's the nurse that had to clean it up. Oh man. Well, that is bad. Uh-huh. That was not good. But yeah, that was the last day that they gave me a suppository or laxative. From then on, they just let me do it on my own.
SPEAKER_01Well, you know what probably didn't help. It all came out because of the whole uh, you know. So I don't know much about this, but the one time I went and seen them, they were telling me how they had to check for anal winking. And based off of what I heard about anal winking, I hope to hell I never break my neck. They're taking away with anal winking.
SPEAKER_00I wasn't gonna bring this up, but I guess it's too bad.
SPEAKER_01You gotta give the full info.
SPEAKER_00I mean, this is funny, kind of. So to tell if you're getting control of your colon again, they have to place a finger in there. You have to try and squeeze it. Like you're trying to hold a turn in. It's the most awkward thing. And it's it's why I can officially say I know I don't like stuff off my butt.
SPEAKER_01Well, I mean, it might have just been the wrong chair, girl. No, it's it's crazy what they have to do when you're breaking your neck.
SPEAKER_00That's the thing. It's like you ought to be pissed at the doctor's like, why are you shoving your finger up my butt? I'm sure they don't want to shell their finger up my house any more than I want them to.
SPEAKER_01The only problem that came about is Derek always asked me why I was checking for anal winking while I was in the water. Yeah, I still don't want to. Sorry about that, Derek. That is that in all, you know.
SPEAKER_00You probably just figured you want one last go-round in case I died. Pretty much, yeah. For all legal purposes, that did not happen.
SPEAKER_01Uh as long as we're friends and you were a consenting adult, right? I mean, just because you broke your neck didn't mean you were in an altered mental thing. Consenting adults, that's a scary thing with him and I. Yeah. That is a topic for a different day. I don't know what's happened, but you know. Alright, back to the broken neck. Is there anything else that's funny that happened in the hospital?
SPEAKER_00Oh, well, there is. I mean, we could keep going on.
SPEAKER_01We gotta get some more out of this. Oh. I'm trying to think of some of the highlights. Get any sponge baths by some like nurses?
SPEAKER_00No, I use it. I'd make Grammy give me sponge baths, you know. All the brown, the brown towels, you know, hospitals, they all have white towels. The the nurses, let's just put it this way the nurses are not good at wiping because after I'd take a sponge bath and I'd uh get in my crack, the towels would be brown. That's the one thing Remy keeps reminding me of is that she put up with all the brown towels in the hospital that I can dance with her when we go out, and yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know, you really you can't ever you can't ever do it, not do something she has. I mean she she has that everywhere. Hey, maybe we were pumping her ego now. That's maybe bad to do too, you know.
SPEAKER_00Oh, another fond memory from the hospital is so I was still in the bed. I wasn't able to get in the wheelchair yet, and the they had to have a CT scan. So they have these people that their job is to just get patients, bring them down to CT, X-ray, MRI, that kind of stuff, bring them back to their room. So they come get my bed and go to bring me down for the CT scan, and they go to put me in the elevator. And the bed was too long, so the elevator door starts smashing my bed, opening up. Well, it would only open like two inches, and then I would try shutting again. So I'm just going back and forth and back and forth, just getting banging around this door with a broken neck, and then they're trying to get me out, and they can't get me out because the bed's wider in one point than the rest, so the door's not opening enough. So I'm like, well, how about you guys leave my bed up, which will make it shorter? So they leave my bed up, door shut, we get down, see, do the CT, everything goes good, whatever. They go to take me back, and this time they put me in head first when my feet were by the door. And I told them, like, well, aren't you gonna leave me up? So they leave my bed up so I fit in the elevator. They push it in, and the door hits my feet. I go up against the wall, and the door almost stops, and just slowly closes. I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm gonna be stuck in the elevator. That door's not gonna open. So we're sitting there waiting, get up to the I think it was the third floor or whatever it was on. The door opens, and I'm pushed up against a door still, it slides me over to the other wall. And luckily, the last little bit, it was barely moving, but opened all the way, and we were free to go with it. But yeah, that that and I've heard that uh from a few people that they haven't gotten new employees for that. Uh it's still the same thing.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_00I don't know. We were we were laughing about it. I was just wasn't too mad about it, but that that's embarrassing for their staff.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. That's a good storytelling. It'd be better if your head was hanging off the batteries not the door's closing on your head. Get that brain damage while you're in there for your broken neck. I mean, you probably already got brain damage. You might as well add to it, right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, might as well.
SPEAKER_01Okay, let's get something else entertaining. What else happened in the hospital?
SPEAKER_00Oh. I mean, I know there's a bunch of stories I'm trying to think. When I'm talking with my family that was there all the time, they have story after story. Oh, I had another kind of a creeper nurse. And he was a very nice guy, but just kind of gave you the E BGB's a little bit or whatever. And he'd always they have to check on you every half hour or whatever, just make sure everything's okay. And so most nurses would just poke their head in and like just say hi, pretty much. Well, he would just come around and open the blinds with two fingers and just peek through and then let them go. And so we were talking about how he's kind of creepy, and as we're talking about him, the door opens and he comes in and asks how I'm doing. And it was kind of weird because he usually just you know peeked in. Then he was like, Yeah, you had pee recently. I said, Yeah, they had. He's like, Well, you want catheter for old time's sake? Yeah, we were we were all just kind of chuckled and whatever. We're like, Oh, I wonder if he could hear us. But then that was supposed to be the first night since I was in rehab that nobody was gonna spend the night with me. After that, I'm like, no, I'm I'm paralyzed.
SPEAKER_01I'm not spending the night alone with him, but I mean he might have wanted to see what that little D and D never know. Yeah, you never know. You ever have any nurses come on you other than him?
SPEAKER_00No, yeah, no, just Rami. Just Rami came on. Nurse Rami.
SPEAKER_01Nurse Remy, huh? Better not say too much. Her parents might listen. Does she play house on you in the hospital? Uh uh. She's not here to defend herself. Does she have any weird feelings about playing house with you in the hospital? Poor Remy. She did all that for you, and then, you know. Throw her under the bus like that. Yeah. You know, I mean, props to you. I mean, hey, at least your wiener still. I mean, that's a plus. If I broke my neck, that's the first thing I'd ask him. My old lady's still get on. Have you ever heard of? I mean, gotta keep her happy if she don't wipe my ass. I think that's the most important thing, actually. I mean, uh I could I could push myself around in a wheelchair. Okay. So, is there anything else from the hospital?
SPEAKER_00Not specifically that I can think of. I'm sure stuff will come up on later. What was it?
SPEAKER_01What was it like getting out of the hospital? I have freedom.
SPEAKER_00That was nice. Couldn't do more than couldn't drive, so I was stuck at home. Me and my dad, we'd go out to eat a lot. Really? I gotta play retired old guy for a while. Use a can, go out to eat, go to the hospital a couple times a week. Not a hospital.
SPEAKER_01You and your stories of going back for therapy, that was entertaining as well. I mean, you would think this hospital system Derek was going to for treatment was a pretty large system. And the amount they jacked you around every week. I mean, he was just pissed. And of course, you I mean, I'm not calling you a Karen, but you will call him complaining if there's something wrong.
SPEAKER_00And I mean, God'd think they'd figure it out after a while. As simple as taking my neck brace off. So at 12 weeks or three months, they said that that's when I had to get my neck brace off. So I had to schedule a CT scan to make sure everything was good. So I got my CT scan done. And I was going on a trip like the same week that I was getting my neck brace off. So I was supposed to have a phone visit with my doctor, they never called me. I even waited to leave on my trip. That way I knew I'd have service. Never called me. So the next day I called them and asked like what happened. And oh, they she was busy, never got around it. So I was on, it was the entire trip. It was a four-day trip, I think it was. I had my neck brace on the entire trip. It wasn't until the last day before I was gonna head home that they said I could take my neck brace off. And this trip, me and a buddy went out to the Dakotas camping and hunting prairie dogs. So I'm using a cane some and trying to lay down and shoot guns with a neck brace on. And this whole time I would have been fine to take it off, but the doctor never got back to me. Yeah, it was very troublesome, and appointments getting canceled, and that's part of why I quit therapy.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, one day you came to work. Didn't you drive like it's an hour drive, and you drove like half the house.
SPEAKER_00So 15 minutes away, and it was postponed till three. So I told him we'll just do it a different day because I'm gonna go to work the rest of the day. Yeah, that's that's insane.
SPEAKER_01That that was kind of a sad part of your story.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that I gave up on actual therapy. I think work though does more therapy for me than driving to the cities to do their therapy for an hour and trying to save money, probably. Yeah. What was it like coming back to work? That felt good. It added normal like made me feel normal again. It definitely uh definitely is a lot harder to do the work I did or was for a while. I mean, I'm getting used to it now again. Yeah, I try to figure out how to do stuff with one and a half hands essentially.
SPEAKER_01It's kind of like more like uh a hand and a hook. I mean, your arm is a hook. But I don't it's and then like you know, we're uh public business. Oh, so you got this handy capable guy working out here, and you got people coming in, and Derry's helping them, and they're kind of like looking at him funny, like, what's wrong with this guy? It's like, yeah, you know, he's handicapable, he's he's getting the job done, he's he's alright, you know.
SPEAKER_00Um, I mean the worst is I don't want to say like games or anything. We have a few people actually that come in that also have like handicaps and stuff, and I'm always like, I hope they don't think I'm making fun of them.
SPEAKER_01Like, I'm just trying to be me, I'm doing my everyday thing. Oh, I've got that one funny moment. So it's uh and Derek might be able to tell us better, but I gotta, at least from my perspective. So I run a piece of equipment, a material handler, and uh Derek works on the ground, and I had my window open, which is a rarity, you know, in the operator life, you gotta have the luxury of in-cab only stuff and uh climate control. All right, that's that's the one time you'll hear me say that. But then this customer goes, This is asking why you're limping or something like that. You tell him you jumped off a dock or whatever, and the guy goes, See, kids, that's why you don't jump off a dock. You'll end up like him. And I'm like, I can't believe that guy just did that to you. Like, that is so it's kind of messed up because he doesn't know who you are or anything, he's just saying that.
SPEAKER_00And it wasn't as simple as that. We were at the back of the trailer, and he asked me, I told him the story. And he's like, Hey, follow me. So I don't I'm like, I don't know what I got myself into, but whatever. I'll I'll follow him. Like, you know, I'm not gonna question him. And then he leads me to the truck, yeah, full of kids. Hey kids.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, don't this is why you don't jump on a dog. You let them up like I was bewildered by that.
SPEAKER_00I guess hopefully those kids will know how to do it.
SPEAKER_01Hopefully. Yeah, that that's insane.
SPEAKER_00I don't take offense to stuff like that. It's just funny. It catches you off, you know, off guard.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you can't believe a guy just said that to you? Like, really, man. Like that's kind of personal. I mean, yeah.
SPEAKER_00I mean, like, you know, the wrong person, if it wasn't me, oh yeah, I mean it would have been very offensive, but like I don't take offense.
SPEAKER_01I mean, are you able to be offended by anything? Not really. Yeah, I mean, I don't know. I yeah, your your next story is I don't know. It I'm sure people have been through similar things, you know.
SPEAKER_00I wish I will hear a lot more hospital stories, the funny hospital stories. Just I'm kind of was put on the spot and can't think of them, but right. There's a lot of funny things that have happened with it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I well Remy comes on the show. We're gonna have to we're gonna have to question her what she did to you. Because I I mean I know, and I think I think it's too good not to share. I mean, kudos to you, right? Anything else from the broken neck? No.
SPEAKER_00A lot of medical bills. Yeah, a lot of medical bills. Luck they had gun insurance. Take kids this way, don't break your neck. I mean don't don't jump off the pontoon, kids.
SPEAKER_01The freaking helicopter bill is like$80,000. Or no, was it$50?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it was 50X.
SPEAKER_01Okay, yeah, because I think when my mom crashed her motors like it was like 50,000. That's insane. Yeah, there's a lot cheaper ways to ride on a helicopter than break it. It's insane with that car. I mean, the whole biopill system, that's a topic for a different day. Yeah, you you need it in your life, but man, when you actually need it, it's so dang expensive. And and poor Derek, just he can't work. I mean, you were lucky you were in the situation you were, I mean, yeah, with the place of employment.
SPEAKER_00I think was that was that this episode or the last one that I said that? Like Alec just assured me that you know I was gonna have a job no matter what.
SPEAKER_01Uh been this one. I I hope we can get him on at some point. I don't know. He's not the biggest supporter of our podcast.
SPEAKER_00We'll have to have a little beep button though.
SPEAKER_01Every other one will be beep. It's we're trying to keep it a little tamed on, just me and you. I mean, I think I have a worse potty mouth than you. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00But I I it depends. I can l I'm good at filtering mine, I feel like. Yeah. I I'm trying we're trying not to do too much of it. Right.
SPEAKER_01Right.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01We're new to this world, so I mean, we don't want to lose all our hard-earned stuff. Well, this has been fun. Yeah. I hope it continues to be fun like this. These topics. I mean, I I know I think what our next topic's gonna be, and I think that's another slap out of the park topic. I'm just gonna give you a brief heads up. Derek's and Neanderthal. That's all I can say about it. Well, Derek, I think we should wrap her up for the evening.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, you should probably get to bed soon.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's getting late. You gotta work hard tomorrow. To watch you work all day.
SPEAKER_00In your climate control calves.
SPEAKER_01I'll have the podcast going in one year so that way you know I can make sure it's good. That's good.
SPEAKER_00And then we have to also make sure it's good so that way our truck drivers have something to listen to while they're driving around their climate controlled calves.
SPEAKER_01Hey, I mean you get into climate control a little bit once in a while. You know, that skits you. You know, it's 30 degrees now, and the AC's down full board. I don't know why you have to do that, but you just have to. All right. Well, thanks everyone for tuning in to the Two Guys No Script Podcast, and we'll catch you in the next one.