Our New Years Tradition

BACON! Yep, that's what we're eating! Every New Years Day we remember how lucky we are to be alive- all because of bacon. Sounds kind of crazy, but Brad and I probably wouldn't be here today if bacon didn't smell so good when it is cooking.

So the story behind the bacon... While we were building our house we stayed with my parents. We were out with friends for New Year's Eve and so when Brad and I slept in New Years morning longer than usual my parents didn't think anything of it (this was New Years 2003- pre children!) My mom was cooking bacon for breakfast and I remember smelling it down in our room in the basement, but I just couldn't get out of bed. I just wanted to keep sleeping, and Brad didn't even smell the bacon, he was still sound asleep. But over the Christmas holiday my mom had cooked bacon one morning and I wasn't there to help eat it! I was so disappointed I didn't get any that as I layed there in bed I kept thinking I'm not going to let them eat it all this time, I had better get up so I get some. I remember rolling out of bed and not being able to walk, but that bacon was calling my name so I literally crawled up the stairs. My dad said I sat down at the table and just looked at them and said, "I don't feel so good." And I slid out of my chair and was unconcious on the floor. My dad yelled for Brad and he came running up the stairs to call 911. I wasn't gaining conciousness, and my dad was getting frustrated because Brad was so out of it he couldn't tell the disbatcher the information she needed. Luckily it only took the emergency crews about 3 minutes to get to my parents house and they immedietly figured out we had carbon monoxide poisoning. Some how my parents furnace had malfunctioned and our room was right there by the furnace so we were affected the most. Obviously this story has a happy ending. I don't remember the only ride I've ever had in a fire truck, but Brad said it was pretty cool. It was a strange feeling because I remember hearing everyone around me and people talking, but I couldn't move or respond to anything they were saying. I remember hearing Brad ask the EMT's if I was going to have brain damage and they just said they weren't sure. This really freaked me out because I couldn't respond to tell them I was okay. Shortly after arriving to the hospital I regained consiousness. They tested Brad and my parents and everyone had dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide so we all spend New Years Day 2003 in the ER (until they kicked us out later that day because they need our beds)!

So every time I smell bacon cooking I think how lucky we are that it smells so good and that it got me out of bed New Years morning. If we had been much longer in that basement, we never would have woken up. Thanks for saving our bacon... bacon!!

Happy New Year!