Friday, March 11, 2011

Day Ten of the Hole


Nothing like a little road trip to shake the cobwebs from the brain and turn my blues to pink. Today, S.B. and I drove up to my step dad's to help him with a few household tasks in prep for his move closer to Albuquerque sometime in April. While S.B. took care of some electrical work, I packed up a few things, swept and vacuumed the entire house, and then we moved a piece of furniture that he doesn't want to take with him to the new house (a really cool rustic New Mexican cabinet) into the back of the truck. Not only did my toe never hurt me, even better, we spent the entire two-hour ride up and back listening to all the latest news on satellite and watching the stunning Northern New Mexican scenery unfold outside the truck windows. Not a cloud in the deep blue sky, temps in the high 60s, the kind of day that makes me optimistic that maybe winter is over, the sun will continue to shine, and I'll be able to run again. SOON.

So, at least my doc is capable, has a good sense of humor, and says nice things to me like, "For a tall gal, you're awfully small-boned and have really great muscular structure in your feet." (Which was also his way of easing the pain of explaining to me why my toe is now a full 1/4" smaller than it was before—originally, he'd intended to cut only half the joint, but once he got in there, saw just how small it was, he just plucked the whole ding dang thing out.)

Great. Now not only do I have Frankenstein Toe, apparently it is also Pygmy Toe.

He has also cleared me to drive, but not bathe, because the stitches need to stay in until next Tuesday. And I still have to wear Das Boot, but not all the swaddling. Just the toe itself is now wrapped and I can wear a good heavy sock instead of all that Ace bandage-ey stuff.

Still. I want to be in a proper shoe. SOON.

17 comments:

czar said...

"Small-boned." I think of people who say they're not fat, they're big-boned. Heard a doctor say one time, "Funny, I've never seen a big-boned skeleton."

moi said...

Czar: I've never understood the "big-boned" versus "small-boned" thing. Aren't all bones, given a certain height and sex, the same size?

Sharon Rudd said...

Glad to hear you’re making progress, and weren’t in pain for your house-cleaning and furniture-moving adventures – even better your Spring-ish road trip. Couldn’t help but wince at mention of plucking the “whole ding dang thing” out. But resumed breathing upon realization you were apparently referring to the joint, not the toe.

Love the Cuba city limits/elevation sign. There’s a tiny burg by that name in Ohio on the way to one of my favorite state parks. The incongruity of the name with its very non-Caribbean locale never fails to make me smile – especially when I’m meeting friends and directions to the park include: “Turn left at Cuba.”

Take care, and continue to heal – proper shoes, running, and spring will be here before you know it :)

Jenny said...

I have no idea how you're handling the "no shoe" thang for so long. ;-)

But I'm glad to hear you had a lovely day of beautiful scenery and SUMMER weather (for my part of the world.)

What are you going to do with the "new" furniture? You're keeping it? I hope so.

Happy Weekend!

darkfoam said...

well i'm glad to hear that you are healing well! soon you will be in those loboutins again .. :-)

Anonymous said...

You might be an ectomorph. Send me the topless pillow-fight pics so I can make a determinative analysis.

moi said...

Eggy: My Cuba is not known for it's tropical weather, either, as you can see by the photo. But yesterday it was brilliant sunshine and blues skies, with only a bit of snow clinging to the mountain's higher elevations. We also got to eat at our family friend's restaurant, http://www.elbrunos.com/, which makes the best carne adovada in the universe.

Boxer: With a little blood, sweat, and tears, we got the cabinet in my office. Twenty years ago, my mother spotted it up in Santa Fe, hauled my step dad up there to wrangle it on the truck, hauled it back down to Cuba, and managed to get it into their house. Every day I see it more clearly: I am my mother's daughter.

Foam: Right, because I am visiting the Louboutin Boutique in Newport Beach soon! Bwhahahahahaha. Cram those little tosies right back in a peep toe, keep my doctor's children in sports cars :o)

moi said...

Troll: Nice try, bub . . . I am typed as borderline ectomorph (my thumb and middle finger overlap both wrists) and I used to be able to eat anything I wanted without gaining an ounce. Today, I gain weight easily and lose it with difficulty, which basically has led me to conclude that I belong to the body type most commonly known as: Welcome to Your Forties, Sucka.

Jenny said...

bwahahahaahahah to Troll. You have to give him credit.

The story about the cabinet is great and I'm so glad it now has a place in your home. :-)

sparringK9 said...

i could so see you bumping along in a truck with those wide open skies. I cant wait to see them. Glad you got out and about. when my neck was healing i couldnt get in a car, but when i finally was able to the world was so new and fresh and full of possibility. like going out after having a terrible cold.

im surprised you didnt fashion a stylish wedge onto das boot!

big boned and small boned: you put your hand around someones wrist...like people that are similar in shape and size - some bones are larger- but it isnt profound. Im relatively small (less so now -welcome to ya FIFTIES sukka) but ive had larger friends with the smaller wrist so....i dont know.

KOby is big boned. you have never seen such forearms on a dog.

glad youre healing so well and quickly.

Aunty Belle said...

@ Troll....ooh, he's clevah. An' persistent.

Glad youse on the mend, Moi.

On bones try this: Iffin' ya circle yore left wrist wif' the thumb an' middle finger of yore right hand an the fingers easily touch thas' small boned; barely touch, youse jes' right, fingers doan touch over the wrist bone, youse large boned.

Big boned folks used to be called "stocky" --solid but not fat. An small boned folk can get doughy.

Aunty Belle said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Aunty Belle said...

oh, duh...if I had read the comments all the way, I'd have seen yore own.

The trouble wif these morphs is that ectos can morph to endos. thas' tragic, but I seen it.

Happy youse out an' about.

moi said...

Boxer: It's been installed, AND filled!

K9: Aging isn't for wussies that's for sure. Nor is Koby :o) The stretch of highway from ABQ up to the furthest northwest corner of NM is one of the most lonesome in the state. The section from ABQ to Cuba is vast expanses of nothing but red rock mesas and the silhouettes of ancient volcanoes shimmering on the horizon. Weird rock formations popping up willy-nilly out of scrub dotted dust and serpentine gullies two stories deep carved by ancient rivers. I love it. Maybe we'll take a drive out that way . . .

Aunty: I actually drove myself to the grocery store yesterday. More adventure! But I'm going to have to hire a dog walker when S.B. goes back to work next week. I'm not going to be able to navigate those rocky, hilly trails for a while yet.

Unknown said...

I don't buy the whole being able to touch your thumb and finger around your wrist ... I'm more with you ... and why why why do we beat ourselves up over the size of our bones. One more thing to feel bad about that means nothing, really. Except doctors who have a way of making us feel bad, even though they are supposed to make us feel good! But am glad your toe is healing nicely! I think orthopedic guys are more architects than the touchyfeely kind of docs anyway. Yay for no pain, and yay for the wonderful mom memory. Glad you were able to take on that particular piece.

LaDivaCucina said...

Well, as a reward for being such a good girl and listening to the doctor, I'm sure you have already planned what kind of stiletto shoe you will be purchasing? One must ALWAYS show off good surgery (after all!)

On a serious note, I do hope your scar tissue will not cause you pain like it does me...can't wear anything strappy that "bites" into my feet. But that's from old surgery and today's scars heal so much better. Wishing all the best and SO GLAD you enjoyed the sunshiney blue sky day with hubby! Nice to get out and breathe the fresh air!

PS: Didja make the chicken? Lost four lbs. now......xoxo

moi said...

Pam: Bodies types ebb and flow over the decades. And today's standards are a little whack on crack.

La Diva: Four pounds? That's great!

As with any surgery, there is always the risk of ongoing pain and swelling. But it was either live with definite pain, which was only going to get worse, or risk the surgery and the potential for no pain. A definite rock and hard place situation. Only time will tell . . .

Lemons are preserving now. Decided against the dumplings until I'm back exercising again :o) The lemon chicken will be next week.