MARJY FALLS DOWN ON THE JOB
by Marty P.
Marjy gathered her bag of tricks, makeup, and costume, and carried them out to her car. She was enjoying her new career as a clown.Roy DeSoto waved to his next door neighbor and shouted, "Hi Marjy, how are you?"
"Doing great, Roy. I’m off to a birthday party. I’ll catch you later!" She replied as she sped off.
She arrived at the residence, donned her outfit, and applied her makeup. On cue, she approached the guests and began entertaining them. Her audience was 12 five-year-olds. She created balloon animals, making funny faces as she inflated them. Then she pantomimed playing "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" and blowing out birthday candles. They kept relighting until she "fainted". Finally, she gave each child a bottle of bubbles. They begged her to sit on the floor with them and each wanted to sit on her lap and tweak her clown nose. They hugged her as she left the party.
#######
About a week later, Johnny was over at Roy’s house. They saw Marjy exit her home and head for her car.
"Hey Marjy! How you doing?" Johnny called as he started walking toward her.
"Just fine, Johnny," she replied and sneezed abruptly. "Sorry about that, just a second, I have some tissues in the car."
"How was the birthday party?" Roy asked.
"Great! Made some balloon animals, did a few skits, and showed them some fun things you can do with bubbles," she said with a smile. "Five-year-olds really enjoy clowns. One of the children had the sniffles and coughed in my face. I guess I caught his cold," she explained as she exploded into another resounding sneeze.
"Where are you going now?" Roy inquired with interest.
"Oh, I’m off to the shopping mall. I find it really helpful to observe people. I get ideas for clown routines at the same time," she informed him as she began coughing.
"Marjy, no offense intended, but you’ve got quite a red nose there. How long have had your cold?" Johnny said with concern.
"Oh, it’s only been three or four days. I’ll be over it shortly," she remarked.
"Marjy, I think it’d be better if you stayed home and got some rest," Johnny told her as he glanced at Roy.
The two paramedics read each other’s thoughts. The last place she needs to go is to a shopping center; bed’s where she should be headed.
"Don’t give me that ‘I’m a paramedic and I’m going to take care of you’ look!" She exclaimed.
"Too late, it’s automatic!" Johnny retorted.
"Marjy, give me your keys," Roy said intently. Reluctantly, she complied.
After opening her door, he turned to Johnny, "Ready?"
Each man grasped one of her arms and escorted her through the door, up the stairs and sat her on her bed. "You are going to stay here and take care of your cold," Johnny told her firmly.
"I wish you two would leave me alone!" She complained.
"Look Marjy. You live alone and you don’t have any family in the area. Consider us your family and let us take care of you," Roy said emphatically.
"Okay, now go away while I go to sleep!" She acquiesced, lying down.
"Not so fast, Marjy. We’ll leave soon but first we want to take a look at you," Johnny said. He reached over and touched her forehead, "Marjy, you have a fever." He grasped her wrist and took her pulse, "pulse is 90, and respirations are 24, Roy."
"I’ll get her a pitcher of water and locate some cold medicine," Roy said to Johnny as he left the room.
"One more question Marjy, how long have you been coughing?" Johnny said to her.
"This is the second day. It’s really not a persistent cough, it just sneaks up on me occasionally," she replied.
"Here you go Marjy," Roy said a few moments later as he entered carrying the water, a glass and a bottle of capsules. He placed them on the night stand. "Marjy, take these," he ordered handing her two tablets. They watched her swallow them.
"You may want to change into something more comfortable after we leave," Roy suggested.
"Good idea Roy," she responded.
"Now, get some rest. Joanne or I will check on you in several hours. Call us if you need anything," Roy said seriously. "We’ll lock the door behind us."
########
About ten days later at the station, Johnny and Roy met in the locker room. "Roy, how’s Marjy doing?" Johnny asked as he combed his hair.
"Oh, her cold ran its natural course. She looked fine yesterday when she ate dinner with us," Roy informed him.
"Roy, I’ve never really seen a clown at work. It’d be great to catch her act sometime," Johnny said as he looked for his green pen.
"She really spends most of her time with children ,but I’ll try to let you know what her schedule is," Roy said as he tied his shoes and headed to the squad.
##########
The same day . . .
Marjy Mishap had an engagement at Arnold Elementary School. She and another clown, Monroe the Magnificent, had developed several skits to teach the children about safety. Their program was designed to educate and entertain.
"Good afternoon, kindergartners! My name is Monroe the Magnificent and this is Marjy Mishap! See what you can learn from us!" Monroe said with a flourish.
Marjy marched over to the classroom’s play kitchen and proceeded to taste the invisible bottles she found under the sink. In a short time, she began to hold her stomach and make gasping, painful faces. Monroe discovered her and ran to the phone, "Help, operator, my clown is sick! Can you send help?"
He turned to the youngsters, "Boys and girls, never, ever taste anything without an adult’s permission. Eating and drinking the wrong things can make you very, very sick."
The room had two small cars for the children to play with. Monroe went and after some effort climbed into one of them. Marjy picked up a ball and began to play with it. She dropped it and it rolled away. She chased after it and ran right into the path of Monroe in his automobile. She fell down from the impact. Monroe got out of his car and stood over Marjy.
"Oh no! I ran into a clown! She didn’t look where she was going and ran out into the street! I didn’t see her fast enough to stop before I hit her! I hope she’ll be okay!" He exclaimed, clutching his clown wig in distress.
Monroe looked intently at the audience and said, "Children, never, ever run out into the street. It is very dangerous and you could be badly injured!"
For their final safety demonstration Monroe and Marjy each got into a car. They were a tight squeeze. Monroe pantomimed carefully fastening a seat belt around his waist while Marjy made sure the children knew she wanted nothing to do with wearing a safety belt. The two drivers drove around the room briefly and then without warning, had a head-on collision. While Monroe bounced briefly in his vehicle, Marjy went sailing through her "windshield" and feigned unconsciousness as she lay over the steering wheel of the car and hung out over the hood. Monroe slowly extricated himself and went over to Marjy. He looked at her and cried, "Oh my! She looks badly hurt! Help! Help! Marjy Mishap needs help!"
He turned back to the spectators and said carefully, "Kids, it’s very important you wear your seat belts. They protect you and help keep you safe when you are in cars."
Marjy tried to get out of the small car and found herself trapped. She motioned to Monroe to assist her. He ignored her.
"Monroe, I need help, I can’t get out of this car," she said in a stage whisper.
He came over, "What? You can’t get out? Here let’s try this..." Grasping her under the arms, he tried to pull her through the front of the car.
"Ouch, my feet are caught. Stop!" She cried quickly.
The teachers came to find out what the problem was. "She’s stuck. I can’t get her out of this little car," Monroe notified them.
The three adults tried every way imaginable to release Marjy, but none were successful.
"What’s wrong, Marjy?" One of the boys asked, noticing the fruitless efforts of the adults.
"Oh, it’s not a problem, young man. I’m just having trouble getting out of your car," Marjy told him, trying very hard not to panic.
"Why don’t you call the fire station? They help people who are stuck in cars," he said matter-of-factly.
"Excellent idea, kiddo!" Monroe affirmed. "Where’s the phone, Mrs. Robbins?" He asked, turning to one of the teachers.
"Monroe, please don’t call the fire department! This is so embarrassing!" Marjy pleaded.
"I’m sorry Marjy, but we haven’t been able to free you," Mrs. Robbins said apologetically.
###########
At Station 51 it had been a routine day. The men had spent most of the shift cleaning, polishing and checking their equipment. They heard the tones for their station: "Station 51, woman trapped at Arnold Elementary School, 4100 West 227th Street, cross street Kent. Time out: 1310."
The firefighters quickly responded to the emergency. In a short time they were met by Mrs. Robbins at the entrance to the school. "Thanks for coming so quickly. We have a woman who was teaching the students about safety and got trapped," she said as she led them to her classroom.
As she entered the room she announced, "Children, it’s recess time. Let’s all go out to the playground while these firemen assist Marjy Mishap."
"Did you say Marjy Mishap?" Johnny asked in disbelief.
The six firefighters walked into the room and spotted Marjy. After a brief pause, Chet said glibly to Captain Stanley, "Uh, Cap, you want me to get a crowbar?"
"Quit that, you twit!" Cap replied to Chet.
"Marjy, are you hurt?" Roy asked as he approached her.
"I’m not sure, Roy. My feet are all tangled up inside this small space. I’ve been stuck in here for about twenty minutes," Marjy told him.
"Should I get the soap, Cap?" Chet said, still unable to control his amusement at the situation.
"Shut up, Chet! She could be injured! Lay off!" Johnny defended her.
"Sorry, Marjy. I just wish you could see what you look like! I wish I had a camera!" He broke into uncontrollable laughter.
"Marco, get Chet out of here! He’s just making things worse!" Cap ordered, glaring at Chet.
"Now Marjy, let’s get you out of there," Cap said confidently.
"All right guys, what suggestions do you have?" He asked the men.
"Why don’t we try placing the car on its side? That should enable Marjy to free her legs and then we can help her out of the vehicle," Mike proposed.
"Good idea, Stoker. Let’s give it a try," Cap assented.
They carefully turned the car. "Marjy, are you doing all right?" Roy asked, keeping an eye on her.
"Marjy, your shoes are gigantic! I think they may be hanging you up!" Johnny said as he sized up the situation. Let’s see, can we untie them?" He inquired.
"I think so Johnny," she said, trying to see what was going on.
He maneuvered his hands into the small space by her feet, grasped the laces and pulled, "okay, they’re untied, now let’s see if we can get them off of you."
He tried to find room to remove the oversize shoes. "Ouch!" Marjy said unexpectedly.
"What’s the matter, Marjy?" Roy wanted to know.
"I think my feet are twisted inside the shoes. I don’t think they’re broken though," she said positively.
"Marjy, I think we better try to cut them off of you, just in case," Johnny said.
"Oh, is it really necessary? I just bought these shoes!" She said with a groan.
"We don’t want to further aggravate your injuries," Johnny reminded the former paramedic.
"You’re right. Go ahead. Boy, if I’d only known I’d get stuck in here!" She said in resignation.
Johnny took his scissors and soon created adequate space to remove her feet. They quickly freed her from the tiny car.
Johnny checked her for injuries, "Marjy, your feet got swollen in your shoes while you were struggling to get loose. I don’t think you broke anything but you might have torn ligaments. I think we better notify Rampart."
"Here Roy," Mike said as he handed him the blood pressure cuff and stethoscope.
"Johnny, pulse is 80, respirations are 20 and blood pressure is 120/80," Roy said to his partner.
"Rampart, this is squad 51, we have a thirty-two-year-old female who was trapped in uh,…a small vehicle. Her vitals are normal but she may have injured her ankles." Johnny notified the hospital.
"Okay, transport as soon as possible," Dr. Early ordered.
"Cap, would you check on the ambulance for us?" Roy requested.
In a short time, Marjy was placed on the stretcher and wheeled to the waiting ambulance.
"Hey Marjy, did you get whiplash? Monroe said you weren’t wearing a seat belt!" Chet said as he saw Marjy, starting to break into laughter. He suddenly realized she was on a gurney headed for Rampart and quickly sobered.
"I’m sorry Marjy, I didn’t know you were injured," he said hastily.
"See ya later Chet! No hard feelings!" Marjy called to him.
One of the children ran up to Marjy. "I’ll always wear my seat belt, lady! I won’t forget!" She proclaimed.
"I’m glad you learned a lesson today!" Marjy said as they put her in the ambulance.
At the hospital, Doctor Morton examined her, "Let’s get x-rays of both ankles."
"Miss Mishap, I’ve never treated a clown before. I think you may have sprained your ankles but we’ll soon know if you broke anything."
"Please call me Marjy, Doctor, everyone else does!" She corrected him.
In a short while, he gave her the diagnosis, "Miss Mishap, uh, Marjy, you were lucky. No fractures or torn ligaments. You will need to stay off your feet for several days and give them an opportunity to heal."
"I’ll call Joanne and see if it would be all right to camp over at the DeSotos for a few days," Marjy informed him. "Thanks, doctor."
##########
About a month later . . .
Marjy entered the children’s ward intent on cheering up the kids. She spent time drawing stick figures, reading in a falsetto voice, and giving countless hugs. She was careful to spend time with any patients who looked lonely, sad, or scared. Unbeknownst to her, Johnny and Roy had come to the fourth floor as well. They were checking on a child they rescued several days earlier. Being careful not to be noticed, they watched Marjy consoling, comforting, and entertaining the children.
Glancing at her watch, she noted the time and told the young patients good-bye. She located the elevator and waited for its arrival. When it failed to appear in several moments she found the stairs and left the floor. Hurriedly she made her way toward the first floor discovering clown shoes made it very difficult to negotiate steps. After descending several flights, she slipped and toppled down the stairs, crashing into a wall. She tried to rise, but blacked out.
In the meantime, Johnny and Roy used the elevator and headed to the squad. In a few minutes they spotted Marjy’s car.
"Hey Roy, didn’t Marjy leave the children’s ward before we did?" Johnny confirmed.
"Yeah, I’m pretty sure she did. She acted like she was set on leaving. Think we better check around and see if we can find her?" Roy asked his partner.
"Well Roy, based on past experience, I would feel better if we made sure she was all right," Johnny replied, remembering the many times he and Roy had aided Marjy.
They reentered the hospital. "Okay Roy, we didn’t see her at the elevator. Why don’t we check the stairs?" Johnny said as he walked toward the stairway.
As they approached the third floor, they spotted her sprawled on the floor. She was unconscious, and her left leg was bent at an odd angle.
Johnny grabbed the HT, "LA, we have a still alarm at Rampart. Woman down," he reported.
"Johnny, I’ll go get help from the Emergency Room. Why don’t you stay with her and start evaluating her condition?" Roy said as he rose and headed back to the first floor.
Johnny began checking her extremities for injuries. Then he took her pulse and respirations. When he started to check her pupils, she reacted, "What happened?"
"Whoa, Marjy, don’t try to move," he said, noticing the sluggish reaction of her eyes to his light. "Marjy, you fell down a flight of stairs. How do you feel?" He asked.
"I’m feeling dazed at the moment. My left leg really hurts and I think I’ll soon be covered by bruises," she replied after a moment.
"It looks like you broke your leg, Marjy. You might have a concussion as well. More help should be here soon, just hang in there," Johnny informed her.
In a few minutes Roy returned with Dixie. He was carrying a splint. They were followed by two orderlies carrying a backboard.
"Hi Marjy, I really like your clown makeup," Dixie said as she spied Marjy. "Okay boys, apply the splint and we’ll carefully transport her to the Emergency Room."
They placed the splint on her injured calf and with extreme caution lifted her onto the backboard and took her to the nearest floor. The elevator quickly sped them to the ground floor. Doctor Brackett and Doctor Early were waiting in the hall.
"Well, what do we have here?" Doctor Brackett asked, gazing at Marjy.
"Doc, Marjy fell down a flight of stairs. It looks like she has a broken left tibia and a possible concussion.," Johnny notified him.
"Marjy, I don’t think I’ve ever seen shoes as big as yours before. Did they trip you up?" Doctor Early asked.
"Yeah, I was in a hurry and took the stairs instead of the elevator. Now I realize it was a bad idea," she replied.
"Treatment Room 3 is available, Gentlemen," Dixie interrupted.
They wheeled her into the room. "Dixie, I want a full skull and spinal series as well as x-rays of her left leg," Doctor Brackett said.
"We have to get back to the station. It looks like you’re in good hands," Roy said to Marjy, waving as he and Johnny left the treatment room.
"I’ll call you as soon as I know the extent of her injuries," Dixie told both of the paramedics.
In about an hour, the phone rang. Marco answered it, "Roy, it’s Dixie."
"Hi, Dixie. How’s Marjy?" Roy said into the mouthpiece. He listened for a few minutes. "Okay, thanks," he said, hanging up the receiver.
"Dixie said Marjy does have a concussion and a broken tibia. They had to set it surgically. She’ll be in the hospital for three or four days," he said to the concerned men.
############
Several days later. . .
Johnny and Roy visited Marjy in her hospital room. It was covered with children’s drawings. "The kids made these for me, aren’t they wonderful!" She exclaimed happily.
"Here Marjy, thought this might cheer you up," Johnny said as he handed her a straight, black cane.
"Thanks Johnny, a cane will be really helpful when I don’t have to use crutches anymore," Marjy told him gratefully.
"No Marjy, push the button near the bottom of the cane," Johnny instructed her.
Obediently she did and was treated to the sight of a bouquet of flowers popping out of the cane. "Johnny, this is great! I’ll love using this in my act!" She said with enthusiasm. "This will be a great addition to my props!"
"Well…Chet wanted me to get the flower you attach to your lapel which squirts water at people ,but I liked this more!" He told her.
"Johnny, thanks so much! Everyone’s been so generous to me," she said with great pleasure.
"Marjy, could I ask you a question?" Johnny inquired.
"Sure Johnny, shoot," Marjy replied.
"Well, I volunteered to help with the benefit for the Firefighters’ Fund for Orphans and Widows. Would you be willing to perform?" Johnny requested.
"Johnny, it would be an honor! Just let me know when it is so I don’t schedule anything else," she said without hesitation.
"Marjy, Roy and I watched you working with the children in pediatrics. You are so good with them. I was really impressed!" Johnny complimented her.
"Marjy, now that you’ve been clowning for awhile, what do you think of it as a career?" Roy said as he watched her playing with the cane.
"Roy, I thoroughly enjoy it but I didn’t realize being a clown could be so hazardous to your health!" She answered.
The Girl Next Door - Installment One
Further Adventures of the Girl Next Door - Installment Two
Marjy Becomes A... - Installment Three
The Benefit - Installment Five