Last Saturday evening, Fluffy and I were at the point of finally admitting we need to go to bed. It was one of those lazy nights where we knew nothing was going to happen on Sunday and we could both relax. Then we got a phone call from the University of Iowa Hospitals. Fluffy's father, JW, called 911 with shortness of breath. When the paramedics got there, he was quickly heading into no breath and they had to put him on a CPAP machine to get him to the hospital. When that didn't work, the emergency room put in a breathing tube and got him on a machine to do the breathing. The next day, they took him off a medical coma and he's aware, but there are signs of neurological damage and they have to do additional tests to find out the impact of what happened.

Life.

They found Fluffy's number by scrolling through the phone book on his phone. It didn't have any information other than just random calling people on the list. Which is scary in itself. One of the things I believe in is being prepared. And one way is to create ICE (In Case of Emergency) records in your phone's contact list. I have four, which include Fluffy's mobile, our home, Fluffy's mother, and my mother. That way, if I can't talk (like JW), then they can use that to find someone to call. Fluffy is JW's only daughter and one of the few people who really could make decisions about his life. She has a different name from JW and there was no proof that she was his daughter. So, also good to put relationships in the ICE contacts too.

It's a minor thing, but you don't think about it until you are in the middle of it.

Related to that, I was told that many paramedics will check the freezer when they come into a house and the person is unable to communicate. That whole "ICE" and "ice box" thing, but it is one of those places to put a ziplock bag with emergency contact information and medical information (e.g., if you have diabetes, JW had a blood sugar > 310). Just tape it to the ice maker or stick it some place that it would be obvious if a stranger came in and needed to find out critical information.