Labels are there for a reason

I'm not very good at reading attached labels, on anything. Maybe occasionally I'll see if a new shirt is supposed to go in the dryer or lay flat, but then I forget before the next time I wash it, and don't bother to read again. And yes, I have a closet of shirts that no longer fit!

My husband on the other hand does read labels. He just doesn't do what the label suggests. Occasionally, he pays the price for his mistakes too. Mine oversights just not don't carry as severe of a penalty. This week, hubby filled our water softener with 160 pounds of rock salt, rust remover type. We live in the country, with very hard well water, the kind that turns your white shirts and your showers a pretty orange color if you don't pay attention to your softener. Hubby decided to be a little proactive, the rock salt wasn't enough, he wanted to put a little extra cleaner in. He found this:

This is a great product, I've treated laundry with it. Hubby read the label, sure enough, it can be added to your water softener, so far so good. Then he continued to read: use in a well ventilated area. My water softener is in my laundry room. Which happens to be in the far back corner of my basement. Not too many windows in that room, not too many windows in my basement in general. Not a well ventilated area. Do you see where this is going? Yep, hubby proceeded to pour rock salt and iron out into the machine. As the puff of vapors rose, did he take a break? Nope. He continued to pour and suck it all in, until he was done. 4 bags of salt produced a lot of vapor. He coughed, and I instructed him go outside. Yes, I know it's cold, go breath the fresh air. He (we) didn't sleep well that night, because he was coughing. I went and read the label-harmful to mucous membranes. Hubby, I said, you need to see a doctor. He ignored my suggestion for 2 days. Yesterday, I could hear his raspy breaths, from across a room. His normally low blood pressure was up there, and so was his heart rate. At 9pm, he finally agreed, maybe he needed help. He really wanted to wait until morning, but he later confessed, he was afraid he might not make it.

The ER was not busy last night, and I suspected, breathing problems take priority, so we weren't there very long last night. He had chest x-rays and a breathing treatment, which made him feel amazing. And he brought home a prescription for an inhaler. I suggested fill it last night, he wouldn't. This morning, he wished he had it when he woke up. We both slept much better last night. He's going to be ok, no antibiotics needed. But I'm hoping he'll also read, and follow the label next time! And when his wife, the nurse, says go to the doctor, maybe he'll do it the first time I suggest it!

Even though I hated to see my hubby suffering, it was good for me. I was able to practice on him, some of the things I'll be tested on in a couple of weeks. When I told him his lungs were clear, but his vitals were too high to be good, it was what he heard from the hospital staff. I've got a case of nerves, but maybe I'm more ready for my test than I thought I was!