Not just WHEEEE! But SPLAT! too!
We have a colourful expression in Yorkshire that is reserved for those times when adults fall down without meaning to and that is "arse over tit". Clowns do it all the time and that is what happened to me this morning. I fell down - arse over tit on the pavement in front of our house.
Unbeknownst to me, there was black ice on the pavement even though the outside temperature was 3°C. I was about to drive out to Stanage Edge for another walk in winter sunshine. I had my orange "Mammot" anorak on and I was holding a green "Waitrose" bag in one hand and my camera bag in the other.
The pavement just looked damp and there was certainly no sign of white frostiness. When I stepped off the block paving in front of our house onto the tarmacked pavement, I had no choice in the matter. My feet went from under me and I slammed to the ground, landing mostly on my left side and back.
For a moment or two, I just lay there hoping that I had not injured myself and wondering how I was going to get up from the black ice without hurting either of my knees. It is my habit to be very protective of my knees and kneeling down usually involves the use of a thick foam pad or a cushion.
Fortunately, Shirley had been up in the little bedroom. She had seen me going out to the car and then when she looked again I was not there. I was supine on the pavement like a clown who has just tossed some custard pies.
She rushed out of the house but stayed on the block paving, not wishing to venture on to the treacherous pavement. She scooted back into the house to grab a cushion but before she got back I was up again, slightly worried about my shoulder.
In situations like that the adrenaline rush can often mask pain and injury and it's only later that you realise what you have done to yourself. We will see how my shoulder is later today but at the moment I appear to have got away with it.
For twenty years, Shirley was a nurse in the Accident & Emergency Department of The Royal Hallamshire Hospital. Of course she saw many things there - some hideously tragic and some pretty funny but she always remembers icy winter mornings when the waiting room would be filled with people who had fallen down on slippery pavements. Often they had instinctively thrust out their hands to save themselves - only to end up breaking their wrists.
Jacqueline, a good neighbour of ours, also fell down this morning and badly bruised her thigh. I think there will have been many similar falls in Sheffield this morning thanks to the lethal combination of our hills and the black ice.
In fact, this is what was reported in our local paper this afternoon:
I'm sorry to hear this, Neil. Falls can be a serious thing at our age. I hope you aren't too sore or bruised tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteNow it is tomorrow and my shoulder remains sore. You are very right Kelly. As you get older, simple falls can be life-changing.
DeleteOh no! I hope you're ok! Black ice is nasty stuff.
ReplyDeleteI would not want black ice in my G&T.
DeleteWe don't seem to have any control over these falls. I'm glad that you're OK.
ReplyDeleteBad shoulder today but I hope I have just pulled something.
DeleteOh my goodness. I do hope you are ok. A visit to A &E is the last thing anyone needs!
ReplyDeleteWe have escaped completely from the snow. Low temperatures, around -5 at night but very dry. Storm forecast for today may change that.
God must be looking down on Blackburn just as he looked down on Bethlehem two thousand years ago.
DeleteOh dear! Hopefully, you have fully recovered from your fall. The shock itself is enough to shatter you to the core.
ReplyDeleteOur forecast is for the possibility of black ice here tonight and/or tomorrow; the weather is a bit up and down now, and even with air temperatures above freezing, the ground is still very cold - ideal conditions for black ice.
I am glad to be working from home today.
I think the black ice is at its worst when the temperature rises slightly above zero - creating a kind of surface lubrication.
DeleteI know the expression as " arse over elbow", but it still hurts when you do it!! Hope that you haven't done any damage.
ReplyDeleteStiff shoulder today and I cannot reach up properly with my left arm.
DeleteWe had black ice here earlier this week. I didn't dare venture outside as my balance is dodgy enough as it is.
ReplyDeleteIf you lay off the cooking sherry your balance will be as right as rain.
DeleteWe had the same problem here in Cheltenham. Like you, I wasn't expecting it as the temp was above freezing. Ventured out early and quickly realised that my drive was an ice rink! Was tricky trying to de-ice the car (which I hadn't expected to do either). A friend did fall and ended up with a broken ankle.
ReplyDeleteLet us hope that your friend makes a good recovery but ankle breaks can sometimes be complicated can't they? Thanks for calling by Pam.
DeleteI went down last winter whilst walking my little dog. I immediately signed up to be a community snow warden which means the council issued me with grit and a shovel. I wanted to be part of the solution (if we all gritted our own bit of the street we'd all be upright).
ReplyDeleteI admire your community spirit young man!
DeleteI am surprised that you don't know to be very cautious about weather conditions. You've lived through rather a lot of them. You don't think in advance about slippery conditions? 'This comment has been written rather smugly from a rather warm Australia'.
ReplyDeleteWhatever, if you are a hurtin' after your fall, I hope you recover quickly.
GRRR! Good job there are 10,500 miles between us you smug wombat!
DeleteI noticed that our street's WhatsApp page had warned about slippery pavements. You need Crampons.
ReplyDeleteAre they like croutons?
DeleteBlack ice is the worst. Far worse than snow. Hope you are okay today!
ReplyDeleteSnow can be nice and soft to fall on. Like a featherbed.
DeleteI hope the greatest injury was to your pride, and you are back out exploring soon.
ReplyDeleteMany people fell in Sheffield yesterday but at least we were not shot by ICE agents.
Deletemurdered
DeleteYes. That is the right word Kelly.
DeleteTake care of yourself, sir, we do not need our pudding strewn about the sidewalks!
ReplyDeleteIt could have been a lot worse.
DeleteI had a fall a couple of weeks ago but a root (and my inattentiveness) was to blame, not ice of any kind. I did a literal face plant. Luckily, no broken nose or loss of teeth but yes, a wrist that is just now healing from what what was probably a sprain and what I think was a strained rib muscle both became apparent in the days following. Falling is so odd, isn't it? I hope that if you did receive any injuries, they are minor.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed "odd". You lose control then SPLAT!
Delete"In situations like that the adrenaline rush can often mask pain and injury and it's only later that you realise what you have done to yourself." That situation is, I believe, called "life".
ReplyDelete"Life" could be what happens when a seething Yorkshire chap appears at your apartment door with a cricket bat!
DeleteI'm glad you're okay. I say, ass over tea kettle, but don't know why. I am not a fan of ice but right now we're lucky enough to have a good coating of snow over the ice which helps. I'm in the process of chipping ice off of our driveway, a slow process for me but I'm getting there.
ReplyDeleteThey are not fond of ICE in Minneapolis either.
DeleteHope you aren't injured, Neil, and you feel all right today. Falls are such a big fear of mine as it can change one's life in an instant. Take care!
ReplyDeleteI agree entirely Ellen. As you get older, any fall has the potential to utterly change the way you live your life.
DeleteI hope you didnt get any permanent injuries from falling a*** over t**. I managed to do that when there was no ice (instead a raised tree root on the pavement) three years ago and still get the odd niggle in my ankle where I sprained it.
ReplyDeleteI have a stiff left shoulder today and I can't reach up very well with my left arm but I am not in pain. Hopefully I will be completely better in a week's time.
DeleteI remember the feeling all too well from my own slipping and falling three months ago - on mud rather than ice, but still dealing with the consequences (knee still not quite back to its old self). I hope your shoulder didn't get too badly hurt. The advantage (hm) of 20-30 cm of snow like we have here now is that at least one sees it...
ReplyDeleteAnd if freshly fallen it is soft! Tarmac is solid. They should make it rubbery!
DeleteDid the same thing a couple of weeks ago - not ice but a huge dip in the road which I didn’t see as I as hurting to catch a bus. It is amazing how long it seems to take to reach the ground “0h **** this could be nasty. Am I going to get away either this? We have tickets for Nine Lessons and Carols at Kings College tomorrow…” SPLAT
ReplyDeleteThen just lie there and wonder how much damage you have done.
I hope yours was no worse than mine…nothing broken just some nasty bruises.
Thirty six hours later and my shoulder is stiff but I am not in pain. I guess that even Albert Einstein and Jesus of Nazareth fell over occasionally. I wish Donald Trump would fall down from the top step of a marble staircase.
DeleteI'm glad you weren't injured, at least not in a way that was immediately detectable! I experienced this "black ice" phenomenon on yesterday's walk to work. The sidewalks didn't look icy but I was sliding around like crazy and eventually abandoned walking and took the tube.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, we do not have a tube in Sheffield.
DeleteIs black ice not a common thing there? We contend with it regularly here, anytime the temperature hovers around freezing. It is treacherous. I hope you have no lasting damage from your fall. Re the expression you quoted - my father always used the expression "ass over teakettle". Funny how expressions get changed.
ReplyDeleteBlack ice is quite a rare phenomenon here. Some winters may pass by with no black ice days. I would not wish to put my ass over a teakettle - especially when it is boiling .
DeleteI am just getting back to blogging after taking some time away over the holidays. I am so sorry to hear about your fall. I fell like that last winter and I remember lying there on the sidewalk praying that I hadn't broken anything. I wish you a speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteLike Andrew I sometimes wonder why snow and ice countries don't all have "spikes" to strap over their shoes to prevent slipping on ice. Sadly there was no ice to blame when I went face down a few weeks back, nothing at all to trip on either. I was up and then I was down, with only a sprained wrist which healed in a couple of weeks.
ReplyDeleteHope your shoulder heals as quickly.