Winter 2007-2008

jurassictone    News    

BRAVE LITTLE SOLDIER!

Paul Cooper, our tambourine player, skis in Italy each year and this year was no different, except in one important respect!  Paul was hurtling down a slope in his usual style and, looking over his shoulder to see if the others were still with him, didn’t notice a large bump ahead.  He hit the bump at full pelt and took off.  As is so often the case, he was perfectly all right until the ground got in the way.  His shoulder took the full force of his (dare we say, not inconsiderable) weight and he felt some discomfort.

During the après ski, the pain was not too bad and he consoled himself with the thought that his shoulder wasn’t broken, but decided not to ski for the remaining few days.  Shortly after his return home (as his alcohol stream made way for some blood and the anaesthetising effect wore off), Paul felt less comfortable and decided to go to casualty.

Meeting the usual level of apathy in the accident and emergency department of the local hospital, it took several hours for him to have an x-ray and for the specialist to consider it, at which point, all hell broke loose!  Paul suddenly became a priority and he was admitted overnight for an operation first thing in the morning.

Paul Cooper’s repaired shoulder

The specialist told Paul he expected to put his shoulder back into place in about half an hour.  It was, therefore, with some surprise that, as he recovered from the anaesthetic, Paul realised the view from the window was of the sun setting!  Considering the options, he came to the conclusion that the operation had taken longer than expected and the heavy bandaging on his right shoulder did little to alleviate the suspicion.

It was later confirmed that the operation had taken 9 times longer than anticipated because, on opening him up, they discovered he had shattered the top of his humerus.  This had to be mended with a plate and a pin to provide enough stability for it to be levered back into its correct position in the shoulder.  Needless to say, a tricky procedure.  We all hope they made a better job inside than on the outside, where the sewing shows a lot to be desired – the puckering on the skin at the bottom of the wound would shame any self-respecting seamstress.

Brave Little Soldier

Although Paul has very restricted movement until the bone has healed, the prognosis is excellent.  We hope and expect the brave little soldier to  return to full health within a matter of months.  In the meantime, we have bought him a left handed tambourine so that he can continue to fulfil his main role in Jurassic Rock.