My Dad fell a few days ago, and has not been able to sit or stand. Yesterday I traveled to their house and we spent today in the Emergency Room getting x-rays. Fortunately he has no broken bones. The doctor says he has a severely strained back and prescribed pain medication and further bed rest. My Dad says he is not going to get the prescription filled, but is going to give his body time to heal. We may need to revisit that decision tomorrow, but tonight I am just thankful that he is at home in his own bed tonight, rather than in a hospital bed awaiting surgery.

When they took him for the first round of x-rays, I went to find something for my Mom and me to eat. There were lots of vending machines filled with wheat and sugar. I found my way to the cafeteria. It was set up like a food court.

I first went to the plate lunch kiosk. All the vegetables were mixed with avoids: English peas & mushrooms, broccoli & cauliflower, acorn squash & sugary syrup. All of the meats had gravy on them. My Mom wanted a sandwich, so I stood in line at the Deli. Roast beef was on the menu, so was ham salad. I thought I would get my Mom a roast beef sandwich and substitute roast beef for the ham in the salad for me. They were out of roast beef - all they had was corned beef. I got my Mom a turkey sandwich. Next I tried the salad bar. They sell salad for 29 cents an ounce. You put as much salad on your plate as you want and they weigh it at the check out line. I got some salad with olive oil, but I needed protein! In desperation I tried "The Grill" and got a hamburger patty. If they charged me full price, I was ripped off, but by then I didn't want to know. I just wanted to get back to Emergency with food for my Mom.

I know they make lots of jokes about hospital food. Here was a hospital that was trying to make people happy. They were borrowing the popular ideas from shopping malls and college campuses. There were lots of choices. The arrangement was attractive. But it was nearly impossible to get a Blood Type meal.