Ouch! That's gonna leave a mark!

It was an absolutely glorious day - high of 27 so naturally we took to dining "al fresco" on the deck. Andy cooked a whole chicken on bbq using the rotisserie (which we absolutely couldn't live without now) was served alongside a colourful garden salad. For whatever reason, the "privacy screen" (solid fabric show draped in the photo above) was full extended to ground level in our screened gazebo which faces outward toward the lawn. I was sitting with my back to the privacy screen which we never usually use ... and suddenly a gust of wind brought the privacy screen up and over my head. I wasn't sure why the screen had been let down, but assumed there was a reason so I decided to tie the corners to the supporting beams of the gazebo. I secured one side and went to secure the other, but the next thing I knew, I was in a slow motion dive to the ground. Erin and Lyden, who were already sitting at the table had front row seating to my "poetry in motion" movement which from Lyden's description amounted to a 360 degree lateral sommersault springing from a face plant on the top deck riser (impacting on my chin, bottom lip & nose). Suprisingly, my glasses remained on my head and were not damaged. The funny thing was I could feel myself falling and instinctually grabbed for the closest thing to prevent the fall: the unoccupied patio chair which resulted in the patio chair being a partner to my fall.

I landed face down on the grass. Andy rushed to my side while Erin and Lyden stood nearby, mute in disbelief. Because Andy didn't watch my fall from start to finish, his immediate concern was whether or not I had hit my head. I could only feel my now throbbing chin/lip and reassured him I had not hit my head otherwise. He cautioned me to sit up slowly. I reassured him I "was fine". I sat upright for a moment before rising to the standing position, and proceeded up the risers of the deck only to feel immediately faint. I quickly returned to the prone position on the grass until the queasiness passed away (about 5 min). Meanwhile, Andy was applying ice to my face and inspected the damage done to the rest of my body .... grazed skin on my left elbow and right forearm, skinned left knee, skinned nose and a swollen middle finger on my right hand. My bottom lip is still swollen (3 hours later) but I'm hoping the immediate icing will be adquate to prevent any bruises appearing on my face tomorrow!