Originally Posted on 2/28/08
Last week, despite having a nasty cold, I traveled to Boston for a show at Northeastern University. My show was part of Bananawareness week. The CUP at Northeastern had a week of events dedicated to the theory that bananas are going extinct. Not sure how I fit into it (they scheduled me for that week anyway, haha) but I played along.
I appreciate the 220-some folks who came out to the show, including the 20 or so local friends that stopped by to see me! Very nice of everyone to come out. The NU “AfterHours” venue is really awesome for a show like mine. Here’s a snapshot of the venue:
Went out with some friends after the show and then woke up for what proved to be a really scary day!
Woke up with the sensation that an elephant was sitting on my chest and my heart thumping so hard I thought it was going to bust through the skin. I showered and drive to Manchester, New Hampshire despite the fact that I was now sweating bullets and couldn’t feel my fingers. I was supposed to be at St. Anselm College for a promo at noon and a 7pm show on Thursday. I showed up at St. Anselm at noon and walked into the Student Activities office not feeling the best (and according to them, not looking the best either!). By now I couldn’t speak two sentences without being out of breath. Kristen, a student and Arlene, the director, insisted that I see the nurses down the hall at the health center. My blood pressure and pulse were up and so we decided to go to the hospital.
I have to say thanks SO MUCH to Kristen, who stayed with me all day at the Emergency Room. It was a scary day and I’m lucky someone was nice enough to stay there with me. At one point, the Doc told me I might be in the risk category for a pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lungs) due to flying! They tested my blood for that (6 freaking vials of blood) and it was negative. An EKG showed that my heart wasn’t experiencing any serious cardiac conditions. Turns out that they thought maybe I had a bad reaction to medicine (I’ve been on a lot of cold medicines all week) possibly combined with chest muscle spasms from coughing and over exerting myself. Maybe a touch of anxiety/exhaustion involved too – which is weird because I really didn’t feel anxious about anything.
Needless to say – we had to cancel Thursday’s show (to be made up at a later date) and I felt awful about it. Sorry to everyone. I was actually sitting in the E.R. yelling at Kristen that I wanted to do the show (while simultaneously clutching my chest).
I made it home Friday and am home now resting up until I leave again to perform at Rutgers University in Camden, NJ on Wednesday, Bradley University in Peoria, IL on Friday and the WVKO Democratic “Party” with Stephanie Miller on Saturday.
Thanks so much to those of you who kept up with status messages on Facebook and Myspace and were concerned. I appreciate your messages.
Peace, Love and Doctor Bills,
MK