[Coco] Get to know your neighbors, folks

[John Donaldson]

Hey dude,
    That was a close one. I would make real small pieces. That way they 
don't get stuck.

John Donaldson
Dallas, TX



Roger Taylor wrote:
> Your fellow webmaster and CoCo friend almost bit the dust today.  Not 
> like the high speed rollover I had a few years back or the time I 
> slammed into the back of a highly flammable gas canister truck, but 
> something different.
>
> A family backyard picnic today turned into chaos today.  The kids 
> woofed down their hot dogs and jumped back in the pool and started 
> feuding again as usual.  I finally got to sit down with a huge steak 
> and some sliced sausage.
>
> On about my second big bite of steak I didn't chew it nearly long 
> enough.  I bet you can figure the rest out.  When it got hung and 
> wouldn't cough up, I decided to try to swallow it harder, then it 
> *really* got stuck.  No air flow at all, guys.  I jumped up and tried 
> to cough it out for 30 seconds with no luck.  A quick gulp of soda 
> only made it worse.  My little kids started panicking and crying. I 
> made it obvious I was choking.  My girl yelled that she didn't know 
> what to do.  I knew I had to find another adult and quick.  Out of 
> about 6 lazy and odd neighbors I chose the house where a (not fully 
> citizen-status) Mexican family lives and ran up on their porch and 
> yanked the door open.  The mother was sitting on the couch and I went 
> through all the motions and whatnot that you'd expect a dying fella to 
> do to get help.  She didn't understand.  I could barely get a gasp to 
> say "I'm choking" but it didn't come out right.  She just looked at 
> me. The kids were crying.  She followed me out on the porch.
>
> I was getting weak and my face probably went through 10 shades of 
> purple before I grabbed the woman's arms and put them around me and 
> showed her what to do.  She didn't do anything.  She didn't know what 
> I was talking about.  Still, no air.  I was in trouble, but at the 
> second, I realized I was *really* in trouble if she didn't understand 
> what was going on.  Finally she attempted the motions but she wasn't 
> doing it hard enough.  So I *barely* got enough gasp to say, Harder!, 
> but again, it didn't come out in Spanish, nor nearly loud enough to be 
> vocal.  The kids were hysterical.  I told my little boy it was going 
> to be ok, which took my last bit of breath-effort and was almost 
> inaudible.  Finally the lady started to improve... but it wasn't 
> working! I tried with all my might to puke the damn chunk of steak up 
> but it wasn't budging.  I could feel my passageway under serious 
> pressure.
>
> Then at last, a miracle thrust to my gut from the woman resulted 
> in.... (giggle now, because I'm alive) a huge chunk of steak about 1 
> inch in diameter hurling through the air, across her porch... it 
> rolled to a stop.  Actually, I saw it in slow motion so it took 
> forever to come to a complete stop.   Slobber was all over the place 
> and the kids were still crying, but a life was saved.  During her last 
> thrusts I was also trying like hell to barf, so with all things 
> combined, the obstacle was pursuaded to move.  I'm still in a little 
> shock I guess.  In 41 years, nothing like that until now.  Get to know 
> your neighbors, folks.  Learn some Spanish?  I refused the idea until 
> now but tonight I'll *probably* Google up "I'm choking" and keep that 
> on standby.
>
> Lessons learned: chew your food well, know thy neighbors, stay in 
> shape so you can run fast.
>
> That is all.
>


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