So I had been having some issues with my hands and lower forearms …tingling and random pain.

Mentioned it to my Chiropractor. She sent me for an xray of my neck and shoulder to see if I had a restricted nerve or other issue.

I bring the CD with the assorted x-ray views to her office…she brings them up on her monitor.

“When did you break your neck?!? Why didn’t you tell me you had broken your neck?”

“Gee, Doc, I was unaware that I had ever broken my neck…”

“Well you did, it’s healed now, but it was pretty  bad. You are lucky you aren’t paralyzed…Any idea what injury might have caused this and when it happened?

“What sort of thing might have have caused a break like that” I asked

“A fall, Being struck by something, maybe something falling on you, Possibly something hitting you in the head or even being hit by something moving at high speed, like a car or something like that. Maybe a fall from a horse or a bike. Maybe something heavy falling on you.”

“yes” I replied.

“yes what?”

“Yes, any of those things.”

“I don’t understand”

“I’ve had all of those things happen. some more than once. Sometimes more than one at the same time. I can make a list of some of them if you got time for me to remember ’em, but it’s gonna be a long list… I rock climbed, explored caves, climbed trees. I worked in sometimes dangerous jobs. I’ve had stuff fall on me doing sketchy things. Fought fights with men bigger than me. Lots of possibilities”

“Did your neck ever hurt afterwards?”

“Yes, most of the time…Gotta remember that I drove it like I stole it. Never expected to live this long…. I just got up the next day and ate Ibuprofen like candy and went back to work….”

“People like you are job security for people like me”