Guitarist and JazzHouston writer Mark Towns sustained some rather serious injuries after being hit by a car yesterday afternoon. His feet were pinned under the car in the freakish accident which occured at his mechanic's shop. I spoke to Mark this morning from his hospital room.

AL: "So what happened?!?"

MT: "I was in my mechanic's garage working on my car. A customer pulled into the garage and ran into me. I was pinned between the two cars... which probably saved my life."

AL: "How bad is it? I heard it was your feet."

MT: "Two shattered ankles and fractured leg. The doctor said my ankles are like plates thrown against the ground: totally shattered."

AL: "So, is it horribly painful or are you totally drugged out?"

MT: "Yes it hurts. The morphine doesn't help."

AL: "How long will you be in the hospital?"

MT: "At least until Wednesday."

He went on to say that for the next month he'll have to keep his feet elevated and for a month after that he'll be confined to a wheel chair.

The biggest concern any musician faces in a crisis like this is the sudden loss of a revenue stream. He'll obviously have to bail on all gigs for an undetermined period of time.

On a positive note, someone is going to bring him his guitar and laptop this weekend. Having his guitar around will probably be more healing than anything else. He also promises us a post soon.

Mark says THANKS for the well wishes

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