Wedding Day Drama

A few months ago, Nathan and I were invited to the wedding of Erin and Sakher, a couple that Nathan worked with while at UMKC.  Nathan was really excited to go because it meant seeing dozens of former colleagues and mentors from his time in residency.

I was excited because the event was being held at an amazing, rustic location, the Fresh Air Farm, that promised to be the best photo background that I've ever seen for a wedding. I was also excited to get a high-end dress from Rent the Runway. Rent the Runway is a dress rental site that ships nationwide. You go online and can chose from thousands of dresses from $30-$1500. You rent them for 4-8 days, and get to pick 2 sizes (of the same dress) to ensure a perfect fit. I've had several friends use the service and say it was a great experience. I wanted a really great dress and debated spending $100 on a dress I may not wear again, or spending $50 on one that I really loved (and retailed for $495) once. I decided to rent a mint, floral/lace dress.

It was due to arrive on Friday, and be sent back on Monday. I waited all Friday, but it never arrived. At 3pm I started to get nervous, called the service and they said that they couldn't deal with my issue until after the 8pm delivery shift ended (last possible time for delivery). At 8:01pm, I called to report my missing dress and got a recorded message that they were closed for the night.

I called in the morning, and while the operator was apologetic, told me that there was nothing that could be done because to get a dress overnighted, I would have needed to call before 4pm the previous day (can you hear my internal screaming?!) My second issue was that according to the tracking number I was given, the dress wasn't due to arrive until Tuesday (4 days after the event, one day after it was due to be returned) and there is a daily late fee charge of $50. I was stressed that I would have to spend hours sorting this out next week, but the operator managed to stop the package at it's latest location so it would be out of my hands. She refunded my money, and offered me a 50% off my next dress. This is always so strange to me. If a restaurant gave you food poisoning, but offered your next meal half off, could you really trust them? I guess I thought it made more sense to offer me a free dress (of the same value as the mint dress) to show me that the service can work.

So now it was 9am and I was stressed because I was counting on that dress and had no back-up plan. Nathan was sleeping (he had a long week at work and had been dealing with some stomach pains) so I took Allison to Target to see if I could get a dress. For the price I would have spent on renting the dress from Rent the Runway I bought a dress, nylons, earrings, and a shawl.

Allison's babysitter arrived at 4:30 and we drove the 50 minutes to the rustic farm for the wedding. Right away I could tell that Nathan was tense and wasn't his easy-to-laugh self, even though he was surrounded by so many friends.

Our table had 7 internal medicine doctors (and me) and immediately they began asking what was wrong with Nathan. He was totally white and had become cold and clammy. It was funny because they were all excited to give their diagnosis. I could tell we were on our way out so I quickly ate as many appetizers as I could (4!) because I was so hungry. We approached the bride and groom to tell them congratulations but that we had to go, but they are both doctors and began asking, "well, when did the pain start?" like it was just another day for them.

I was in charge of driving (since Nathan could barely get out of a fetal position) and made it back to the Shawnee Mission Medical Center in 45 minutes. We arrived at the hospital at 7pm and were immediately admitted and Nathan was given some strong drugs to take the pain away. The doctor seemed pretty sure it was appendicitis, so while Nathan went for a CT scan, I went home (10 minute drive) to pick up some clothes and toiletries. I'm glad we had a babysitter who could stay while I went back. I arrived as Nathan was being wheeled back into the room. His scan (which he wanted to see) showed an inflamed appendix. A surgeon was called, and Nathan was prepped for his first ever surgery.

I said my goodbye and headed home to relieve Victoria since Nathan would be exhausted after the surgery and there wasn't a reason for me to be there. I was awakened by a call from the doctor at 1am telling me the procedure was successful, and then a call an hour later from Nathan telling me that he was okay. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep last night.

This morning, before church, I took Allison to see Nathan. At first she was timid and didn't understand what was happening, but she relaxed quickly. Nathan said he was still in pain and showed us the drain that is still in his abdomen, and his two small incisions. He's still in a lot of pain, but able to walk around the floor.

Hospitals move slowly on the weekends so he may be home late Monday, or possibly Tuesday.