My job responsibilities sometimes take me into hospitals. I was in just such a facility the other day and while waiting for a meeting to start was reviewing the postings on the bulletin board.
Like bulletin boards everywhere, this one had it's share of memos that were outdated by several years, pages with curled corners, and an evacuation plan obscured by an announcement of an upcoming luncheon. What drew my attention was a color coded placard explaining "codes" that might be transmitted over the intercom system. I was familiar with Code Blue from television shows and movies I've seen; but Code Orange was a new one for me.
The poster explained that Code Orange signified Elopement. Well, okay, it was a long term care facility so I figured it was conceivable that a couple of patients could develop a special interest in each other and run off to get married - but did that happen often enough that a special Code was required?
Catching the eye of the receptionist I asked about the whole marriage scenario. Giving me a look that parents and teachers reserve for kids who just don't get the obvious, the receptionist explained. Sir, we are a mental health facility. Patients sometimes wander off - usually without realizing they have. We refer to those unexpected disappearances as elopements.
Oh. No wonder foreigners have so much trouble learning the English language. After fifty-two years I'm still trying to figure it out.
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