GOLDEN POND

Chapter 6 The Operation The medusozoas are still alive. Bill is too....barely! Bill is anestisized by Dr. Myeyes, who rather skillfully avoids the jellyfishes. He has a story too, as we all do. But at a later date. Bill begins dreaming of his favorite meals: Shrimp scampi, shrimp creole, soft shell crab, blue crab, snow crab, deviled crab, crab etouffe, crab fritters, crab with manicotti, stuffed crab in mushrooms, frog legs, baked flounder, dungeness crab dipped in butter, and basa! Basa was his favorite which hails from Vietnam! As he loses consciousness, Bill continues to stroll down memory lane. Farmer Carter, Rosalynn, Amy. Billy-beer in hand -appear. And the hobbits for Humanity, as well. And biscuits with sawmill gravy, sometimes with hot sorghum syrup, prepared by his ma. A hodgepodge if you will. Dr. Christian goes to work. Scalpel, saw, scissors, gauze, forceps-all used. He's sweating. Time is of the essence. Nurse Betty monitors Bill's blood pressure and heart rate. Dr. Christian continues. A snip here, a snip there- just as if he were cutting his nose hairs. A fait accompli, the jellyfishes loosen their grip and are DOA before they hit the floor. Dr. Christian relaxes for perhaps 30 seconds. Removes his perspiration-soaked surgical mask and breathes a sigh of relief. He removes the diver's mask from Bill's face. Bill's vitals are improving. It appears the operation is a success! Dr. Christian congratulates the team. "Myeyes, ( pronounced "my eyes" ) good job!" He nods in approval! "Zorba, Casey. Good job!" "Nurse Betty-good job!" She's beaming! She looks at his beautiful smile....and teeth. All white, no imperfections, and his canines- a ten! Wrapped up in her career and gambling, she had never noticed before. Her heart flutters! Dr. Christian: "Zorba, please send the medusozoa specimens to the CDC in Atlanta! And let's get Bill to recovery!" The team is in a celebratory mood. The scrub room is stocked with cans upon cans of "sex in the beach" ( Dr. Christian's inventive concoction ), hors d'oeuvres made of smoked sockeye salmon from Alaskan waters ( a tribute to Bill ), and foie gras. Nurse Betty skips the liver pate as she's a vegetarian. But does have a small morsel of salmon. Bill awakes. Checked and rechecked and finally sent to a private room! He's a bit groggy and wonders why he's here. Hungry, he calls the Nurse! "What's for supper? Is clam chowder on the menu? Two dozen raw oysters-extra cocktail sauce and Texas Pete. And heavy on the horseradish!" The nurse responds: "Mr. Bill, you've been through a traumatic experience! You"re having jello and broth for now!" The door opens. It's Phil! Phil O'Soffikle. " I was so worried about you! Damn, you gave us a scare!" Phil updates Bill on what has transpired. But it makes Bill even hungrier. Bill: "Phil, see if you can find a McDonald's nearby. I love the double fish fillet sandwich. I think it's a number 9 or 10. And a coke zero, heavy on the zero. Oh yeah, lots of ketchup for the fries" Bill feels great! He does 100 pushups. 100 jumping jacks. Holds his legs 6 inches from the floor, a drill he learned in high school. He holds them for 15 minutes, in fact. He tries 100 situps but stops at 25. A little rusty he thought. He can't wait to get back to the aquarium. And to find Juan R. Mann. Phil returns with the filet of fish sandwich. He bought Bill an extra one. And two apple pies for a dollar-a treat! He was happy to have his friend back! They laughed. They told old war stories. They joked. They cried with happiness. A knock on the door. It's Nurse Betty. "How's the patient? I'm Nurse Betty. I assisted Doctor Christian in the operating room!" Although she hardly ever drinks, she is a bit woozy from having indulged in sex in the beach. Suddenly without warning, Billl begins having convulsions. His body writhing up and down! His forehead flushed, grimacing in obvious pain. Nurse Betty hollers "get help stat!" Bill's stomach is vibrating. He seems to be hemmoraging. A strange creature, a small medusozoa, explodes from his chest-blood everywhere. It quickly slithers away and out the door! Phil is in shock-Nurse Betty screams in horror! End of Chapter 6