Beware the Blueberry

This is one of my very favourite fruits. I love a blueberry eaten right out of my hand. I love a blueberry (or several handfuls) on my cereal in the morning. I love a blueberry pie or a blueberry tart. I loved them long before I knew that they were good for you, filled with wonderful antioxidants.

But beware. A blueberry, a simple, straightforward, tiny little blueberry like this is also a missile. Oh yes, a projectile missile. So small, so unassuming and filled with the potential to do some serious damage.

On Tuesday as I was sauntering up and down the aisles of one of the local supermarkets, I was looking up, checking the aisle signs for something Mexican, or something that said salsa. I was, in fact, looking for green chilies which I never did find. The store managers had reorganized the shelves since I had last been there so I was confused.

I took a step in one of the main aisles and felt my left foot suddenly sliding out from underneath me...in a very cheerleader kind of move. If you know me, you know it's hilarious even thinking of me as a cheerleader. My leg continued to slide, I dropped the basket I was carrying and realized I was just going to have to go with the flow...the leg went, the ankle hit the cement floor. The right leg went down, slam full on, right on the cement and it skidded for a while (I left skin on the floor as testimony to the skid marks). At that point my right elbow completed the fall. My purse crashed behind me. I had no idea that I could do the splits that well, but then, I did have a little "help". Talk about "greasing the wheels".

And there I sat in my splendor. A woman, quite a few years older than me tried to help me up which was awkward with one leg going north and the other going east..but we did it. And as she yanked me up she yelled "sue the buggers, sue them all!"

My instinct was to laugh so I did...at how silly I felt, how 6 years old I felt as another customer asked if I was all right. All right? My teeth were jarred, my spinal column was compacted and my knee was aching, but hey, I was "all right".

I did manage to tell the cashier to get someone to clear the skid from the runway as I was cashing out with my few purchases and gingerly made my way home.

My children took very good care of me and plied me with a very large glass of red wine to calm my nerves and sent me to the garden to recuperate and gather my shattered nerves and scattered marbles.

Banana peels?? Oh I say they cause no problem...you can see them. Beware the tiny blueberry. One never knows the havoc it can cause!!!

*photograph originally uploaded to flickr by kmrphotography