Ken rolled over to see the clock radio lip flip to 5:00. He usually got up at this time, but sensed something was wrong.
He cleared his throat. "There it is," Ken Records thought, "a catch." Ken knew he couldn't host a three-hour radio show with a sore throat coming on, so he rolled over to pick up his phone.
Pete Moss was already at the station doing the morning news when his phone vibrated. "Can't make it. Sick. Sorry," read Ken's text on the screen of Moss' phone. He picked up the phone, read the message, and made mental adjustments to his schedule.
Back at home, Records sent an email and croaked out a message on the voicemail of Dr. James Noel.
Noel was up early, finishing his workout while listening to WRSE through his headphones. Noel grew up in Roseville. He and his dad, a doctor before him, fished and hunted together every chance they got. It wasn't often and came at odd times. It's also how he learned about the life of a small town doctor.
On the air, Jeff and Pete recounted their weekend adventure at the ski show with special salutes for the local skiers. Beach music filled the airwaves between newscasts, weather forecasts, and the daily announcements for deaths and birthdays.
After the news at 7:30, Jeff and Pete welcomed the morning show hosts from WCLO, Janesville in a two-way on air interview. Jeff and Pete welcomed Al and the Janesville news guy congratulating them for the win by the Aqua Jays and a community to community thank you. (Everyone in Roseville knew having a great team from not far away would help their first show succeed.)
Ken Frisque and a couple other Aqua Jays were special guests in the WCLO studios and lavished praise on their Roseville hosts. "We loved your ski show, and I'll tell you right now our group will come back anytime. Please tell Mr. Brandt we'd be proud to perform in Roseville any time. In fact, our team loved the water so much we'll come up with our trick performance team and do a fund-raising show for the Roseville team."
"Wow, that's great." Jeff and Pete were astonished by the offer, "we have Els coming in to our studio next hour. We'll tell him about the offer, if he hasn't heard it already, and have him give you a call."
At the Rose County Hospital, Dr. Noel was finishing his rounds. Back at the clinic, he knew Ken Records was at the lab for a blood draw and some tests before his 9 a.m. appointment. There were also appointments with George and Jake Bauer to gauge their recovery over the past five weeks. And that was just this morning.
George and Barb Bauer were sitting in the examination room when Dr. James Noel walked in.
"Hi George. Hi Barb. Good to see you. George, how are you feeling?" Dr. Noel took a seat on the rolling stool and grabbed a tablet. He swiped across the screen to open the Bauer file so he could see the most recent electrocardiogram results.
"Well, Dr. Noel, I'm feeling pretty good. I've lost 10 pounds and I'm walking everyday. I don't know that I feel any different than before my heart attack, but I guess you can tell me about that."
"That's right, Mr. Bauer. We're going to hook you up to some electrodes and get you on the treadmill to see how the ticker is working. If you don't have any other questions, head down to the therapy room and I'll see you next week."
As the doctor moved down the hall to see their son, George put on his running shoes then took Barb's hand for the long walk.
Jim's phone vibrated. He picked it up to see a message about Ken Records test. The allergen levels were extremely high. Noel punched a button that put him through to the hospital at the University. He hoped to Skype one of the top allergists to see what might be going on with the radio guy.
In exam room 3C, Jake Bauer and his fiance' Emjay Marberg sat. Well, Emjay sat. Jake was trying to find a way to be comfortable with a cast running from his ankle to his waist. He hoped the femur healed enough to get out of this thing. Emjay decided she liked the cast - it kept Jake from moving too fast.
Dr. Noel popped the latest X-ray into the viewer. It showed a long white line running down the center of Jake Bauer's leg.
"Congratulations, Jake. I'll get the saw and we'll get that cast off. You can't start running for a while, but if you take it easy you should have a full recovery."
Emjay and Jake smiled at each other. Their hands tightened around each other's. Jake was going to need to sign up for dance class after all. The wedding was in six weeks.
The last stop for Noel was in his office. He walked in to find Ken Records staring out the window holding a cup of hot tea.
"What's up, doc?" Records quipped. He and Dr. Noel went way back. Records and Jim's dad went to school together. Ken remembered watching little Jim run around the house swinging his dad's stethoscope.
"Mr. Records," Jim started. He was nervous talking to a good friend of the family, especially when he wasn't sure how to tell him the news. "I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with you. Your tests look way beyond normal. I've called the top allergist in Madison and they are starting to look at your results. I hope we might have an idea what this by next week."
Ken paused a moment, looking at the young doctor as the smile ran from his face. "Uh, Dr. Noel, thank you for telling me straight. There is nothing wrong with not knowing. That's what tests and experts are for, but I want you overseeing my care, OK?"
Jim stopped shaking, he hoped Ken hadn't noticed, "thanks, Ken. We'll figure this out and go from there. Right now the best I can suggest is you should get home and lay low. We want to keep you isolated for now. Maybe some others are going to report the same symptoms. If that happens we can make a diagnosis. I'll check on you personally everyday. And Ken?"
"Yes, Jim?"
"Tonight I'll bring some Leinenkugel's with me."
The story continues tomorrow morning at 9 with Chapter 15.
Comments
Post a Comment