Well, That Was Interesting …

Tuesday of last week, I was pushing through two projects, tying up revisions on a third. I stopped to get a quick lunch, answered my mom’s phone call, then sat back down to finish.

That lasted about 20 minutes.

In that time, this annoying little pain in my right side, which felt very much like I should avoid spicy foods and grab some gas-relief pills, had me on the floor, quite literally.

Husband called the doctor’s office and requested a call back. Five minutes later, I said “I can’t wait. Urgent care.”

After some excruciatingly painful time in urgent care getting x-rays and scans, I was in the back of an ambulance.

Five days later, I was back home.

Who knew an abdominal surgery from six years ago could cause a bowel obstruction and such ungodly pain?

Everyone in the medical community, it seems. And luckily, they know exactly how to treat it. No surgery required this time, amen.

But what that did to my work schedule. Oh my.

I was fortunate — I was able to get emails out to my clients letting them know what was happening, and no one was put out too much. The revisions I never finished were easily finished by my editor. The project I was to start on Friday and finish today was redirected.

I’m one who’s typically prepared. In the past with both a pregnant daughter and a gravely ill father, I’ve gotten used to working ahead of deadlines should something come up. So I was in decent shape, except for the project that was coming up.

And yes, I begged my husband to go home and grab my laptop. Here I was thinking I’d be able to type coherently while flat on my back steeped in morphine.

Wisely, he took the laptop home with him and I did what I should have been doing — resting.

But what do we do in these instances? I could have referred the scheduled project to a writer friend, but again, morphine. I wasn’t thinking clearly. I just let them know and faded back into my stupor.

We can’t avoid the unavoidable. We can, however, be a little prepared for it. Here’s what helped me stay connected when I was, well, connected to IVs and a stomach pump:

• Synced calendar and email apps
• A cloud account
• Auto-sync To Do list app
• Cell phone and charger

Even if you’re not a Microsoft Office fan (I am, unapologetically), you can sync the bejeezuz out of your apps so that all the info on your work computer can be accessed from your phone. the idea is to have easy access for you, or anyone you trust.

Writers, what’s your backup plan in the event of the unexpected?