Driving Along Just Minding Our Own Business.

OK, this is late because I had the in-laws in town over the weekend and couldn't get to the computer. So, let's talk about Friday.

The day started out normally enough.
We received 5 post assignments within 10 minutes...
Were dispatched to a prank call...

The first patient we made contact with was having some freaky hepatic encephalopathy action going on and was alret and oriented but very combatant and doing some crazy stuff. Had to call one of my captains in and two cops...dude ended up really, really pleasant and conversant on the way to the hospital before having another seizure on me...ah, medicine.

So, we were like crazy busy all the rest of the day.
It was Motor Vehichle Accident Central. Call after call after call.

Later in the evening...about 21:30 (9:30PM) we get sent to a post in a neighboring town. It takes a while to get there...a bit of a strech on the interstate without much lights (You've driven on stretches like that)

So...we're driving along just minding our own business.
Suddenly, my partner swerves to barley miss a guy walking down the middle of the right lane of the interstate.

I have NEVER seen my partner so angry.
She pulls over onto the shoulder and starts to unfasten her seatbelt.

I start to get this really bad feeling and I say to her,
"Don't do it, he's crazy"
She opens the door
"Don't do it, he's going to charger you"

She get's out of the door, yelling at him words I shall not repeat on this family oriented site..
I think to my self, "I'm going to get killed because of my partner." and get out my side of the road.

Sure enough (I must have the gift of prophecy) he begins running at my partner screaming and waving his arms in the air. "Greeeeaaaaugh....Roaaaaeerragh"

So, the brashness that filled her spirits a moment ago jumps aboard one of the passing cars and hitches a ride to Oklahoma City...my partner promptly jumps aross the gully and away from the fine young gentleman with long billowing hair doing his best "Wild Kingdom" impersonations to alter course to follow her, gain his attention on me and change course once again to the Paramedic who foresaw all of this coming as soon as my parter started to slow the vehicle some moments earlier..

I reach in vain for my missing flash light...(Dang, in the truck)...key my mic and tell dispatch to stand by...("Unit -19 repeat?")..."Unit-19, Stand by"... ("Unit -19 are you in need of assistance?") I crouch down like a kung foo fighter...I start planning to do a leg sweep at the precise moment my advancing new found buddy gets close enough to me...when our sojourner miscalculates the slope ratio x his velocity x traction of his footing and encounters the gravitational pull of the earth...falls...and rolls into the ditch.

My partner leaps back over and starts making her way back to the Ambulance as I watch the undeterred animal impersonator literally crawl his way back up to the side of the highway..."Raaarh....GRrrrrreeeaaaaargh....meeerreeeearh!"

Just as he reaches begins to reach the top where it begins to level my partner shouts, "Put your knee in his back..put your knee in his back so he can't get up."

Sounds like an idea.

So, I put my knee into his back and hold down his arms.

-I hear my partner tell dispatch where we are.-

The man beneath me starts shouting, "Eeeeaaaauugh! She thinks I'm cazy!"

I shout back, "You're running down a dark highway, what else is she going to think?"

He makes a completely logical retort, "Aaaagh, I'm trying to get my life back together!"

-naturally-

I start patting him down and make it just to past his back pockets...
Just then..two cops run up, just as four more Tula Police cruisers and two Tulsa County Sheriff cars pull up.

(Holy SMOKIES! It wasn't EVEN two minutes from when I first keyed dispatch)

-Very impressive-

They ask me to back off of him, which I am all to willing to oblige...still marveling at thier response time.

They pick him up and promptly escort my new found buddy to jail.

One of the police officers (and a very, very giant of a police officer at that) turns to me, pokes me in the chest and asks, "You don't wear a vest?"

I say, "I'm thinking about ordering one."

He nods approvingly and says, "Good. Do it." and walks back to his cruiser.

Even if I wasn't planning on it and I am, I would not want a big, big man like that to come back to me later and ask where it is.

So, the rest of the night was still pretty busy, but not nearly as exciting as the first ten hours.