Healing Up

So this is five days since the surgery. Pain is decreasing and mobility is increasing very nicely. But the full-leg knee immobilizer is growing its annoying-ness. I've had some feeling in the area of the incision and it seems well. Increasing the length of the daily walk also.

Surgery

The bike fall with clipped in shoes was a little more damaging than I expected. So the upshot is that surgery is scheduled for later today to repair the torn ligaments of my quadriceps. The recuperation and rehabilitation period is supposed to be long. In a small irony, the preferred activities include swimming and biking!

What's Cookin'?

Morty got us home in just two days, but the weather penalty says that we beat spring to central Ohio by a good margin. As we unpacked we found the Gephardts' Chili Powder that my brother requested, and we tried it for ourselves with a little home-made traditional chili.

Very good overall taste with many overtones that go well beyond the generic product we had been using. I just wonder if it could be picked out on a blind test. You would really have to come with your game taste buds on.

Highly recommended.

Turn for Home

We will make the turn and head for home tomorrow. We called Woody Acres home for 15 days which is probably close to a record long stay for us. But the people just kept being so nice, that we didn't want to be the first to leave.

My original prediction in mid February when Lynne wanted to know when to restart the paper was Sunday April 3. Now that is looking pretty solid, but it is the meteorological pattern that has the ultimate say. We are just along for the fine weather.

Today, by the way, was the perfect specimen of the perfect spring day here in Fulton. Perfect!

We invited Mark and Beth over for wine and cheese to toast the sunset and to thank them for their kindnesses. That was wonderful, and they even brought along dinner, an upside down pizza made with warm-and-serve rolls. Since it also contained low-fat ingredients, it was a double winner.

Recuperative Solitaire

A discovery that you didn't see coming -- a new solitaire game for the Mac that actually improves your play measurably. The problem with most of the other solitaires out there is that they are dumb media substitutes for physical cards, with dealing and score keeping added in.

Try McSolitaire free from the MacApp Store. This game will tell you when there are no more moves, and if you don't see the move it will play it for you. Wow! Your game will start improving instantly. There are so many subtle moves that I never knew existed, but now look for routinely. Highly Recommended

Death to the clip-in bike shoes! Hello Ultrasound!

With our new neighbor [caused by the departure of the one between us] telling me about the Great Blue Heron Nesting site in Rockport, I biked on out the five miles to explore. It was a little further than my average jaunt, but nothing remarkable. While checking out all the museums and aquariums and the like I was surprised to find an art center. So surprised that I fell sideways and wacked my good knee into a concrete curb -- hello strained ACL. It really is past time to give up on shoes that clip my feet to the pedals. I just can't react fast enough to get them unclipped in even a slow fall anymore. I had to beg a local sculptor for a ride back to Morty. The two days since have been devoted to elevation, ice and rest. I found a ultrasound machine that ought to provide some extra healing power like the time I was in physical therapy for busting the ligaments in my left knee. It looks pretty good, and is less than half the price of most such devices being sold on the internets.




Since we ate our last RV dinner last night we were desperate to unplug Morty and head to the local Walmarts [here that has a special meaning because the new supercenter is right nest to the abandoned old-style store.] In addition to stocking up on what will probably be the last week's worth of food for this trip, I also got a knee brace which I put on immediately -- pretty big help. The UPS guy brought the Ultrasound package right up to Morty's front step. I opened it and began the first treatment. It ran for 30 minutes and shut off automatically. Just like the profesional treatment, the immediate reaction is muted indeed, but the psychosomatic benefits are huge. Highly recommended, but watch this space.

Pedal thru the Pines

The morning was cloudy, cold and a little rainy.  Pedal thru the Pines is a fundraiser for the Family Crisis Center in Bastrop. The ride started 12 miles away near Bastrop State Park, and about 45 minutes later came through on the parkway to Buescher where we were camping and doing a little photography. There were some 700 pictures before editing, so there were probably that many or more riders. By most accounts the participation was down substantially from last year when the weather was much more accommodating.



If you are looking for your picture and couldn't find it, my apologies -- at least the price was right. If you want a higher resolution version, just let me know.