Getting back in the swing of things

This week totally kicked my butt! I went back to work, and while it's great to be getting back to normal, I have been totally wiped out all week. It didn't help that my boss was out the last few days for a conference, so I was holding down the fort solo. But, everything got done (I hope) much to my shock. When I looked at my to-do list on Friday, I really didn't think I'd get it all done.

I went for my post-op doctor's appointment this week, and it went great. My recovery is going about as well as possible (knock on wood!!). My stitches are out and I can finally see the back of my arm. And man, what a sight for sore eyes....I was SHOCKED at my post-op visit to learn just how big the plate is in my arm!!! I have TEN screws. It really is a bionic arm!









Brewster is still really unhappy that I can't do as much as usual. He's actually harassing me right now! And tonight I have a date...someone new. I'm a little nervous to show up with my robo-arm, but we'll see how it goes!
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Back in the 'hood

After staying with my parents for nearly two weeks, it was time to start living independently again. I'm going back to work on monday, and I wanted to give myself plenty of time to get acclimated to being on my own.

So of course my heat wasn't working and we got a big snow storm. And of course, after a freakishly mild winter, we get a snow storm when I've got a broken arm.

Happily, the heat is working again, although Brewster and I are getting adjusted to slightly lower temps than we've been enjoying at my parents'! (My furnace SUCKS and drinks oil...so I'm a super Scrooge with the heat!)


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Update: going stir-crazy

I guess the theme for this week is that saying, "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Or something like that. I think it's actually a bible verse. Anyway...I'm ready to get up and go, but my body is not.

The good news is that, according to my physical therapist, I'm doing great and recovery is going about at well as can be expected. I'm making progress: now I can take off the bionic arm brace for short amounts of time! This is a HUGE relief for me, because that thing is driving me nuts. Taking off the brace meant I could also check out my incision...caution, not for the faint of heart:



Sorry for the poor quality. And the red mark at the corner of my phone? For SMS reason I've got a couple random stitches off to the side. Not sure why, but I'm sure my doc will give me the scoop at my follow-up appointment next week! The news from physical therapy was all good- I'm healing really well, swelling is way down and the surgery was very successful.

I'm still at my parents' house. They're great and are taking such good care of Brewster and me...but I'm ready to be back in my own place! Only problem is I still can't tie my own shoes...

I think by the time we go home Brewster will probably double in size! My parents are spoiling him rotten and he is loving it. He's getting a little bit out of control and was just full of piss and vinegar tonight- harassing my mom relentlessly. I think they've created a monster- a food monster! I NEVER give him table food and gave them strict instructions to stick to it- not just to be a stickler- he has a very sensitive stomach! (I don't call him Funky Brewster for nothing. For such a small dog, he can clear a room.) But I keep catching them slipping him bites of food, and I know that there's a lot more I'm not seeing. Now whenever there's food around, B just expects some and gets really sassy if he doesn't get what he wants.



He does make a very nice lap desk though!



Poor quality pic, but that's B with his new BFF, my mom!

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Glutton for punishment

Yesterday I had my first physical therapy appointment, and it was actually rather pleasant- all they did was hook me up to these electrode things to stimulate circulation. It felt like a massage!



And the physical therapist (my new BFF) took off my bandages so I could scratch my itchy arm...let me tell you, it was like a little bit of heaven!



I'm still staying at my parents' house. I'm very, very blessed to have them, and they have been wonderful about taking care of both me AND Brewster. But...I'm used to having my own space, and they are too- I'm sure I'm cramping their style just as much as they're cramping mine!

I'm going a little bit stir crazy. Not that I have any energy to do anything anyway. There's a guy that I guess you would say I'm talking to. He wants to come visit, maybe get me outta here for a little bit. If I was home in Providence, by myself, this would be a great idea. But here at my parents' house, this is a potential minefield! Not sure what I was thinking when I took him up on his offer. Actually, I do know what I was thinking- I was still in denial, thinking I would be back in Providence by now.

Anyway. The issues with having a gentleman caller visit me at my parents' house are myriad. For starters, my mom is the biggest nosebag I've ever met in my life. When I was in college, she used to "clean my room" every year- the day after I moved back to school. She would go through everything- she even read my diary. (She claimed she just "moved it," but she left it open on my bed. I said she was nosy, not smooth.)

And for some reason, she likes to throw things in my face a bit. I don't think she means to- I think she's just so nosy that she doesn't really stop to think about someone's feelings. She still asks me about guys I dated in high school!

The biggest issue though, is that this guy wasn't supposed to make it off the boo list. There's um, a bit of an age difference. As in he's a bit younger than me. Like 8 years. And when that age difference is 25 vs 33, I think it's a big deal. I really, really don't want to have to explain this to my parents!!

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Perspective

As miserable as I am right now, it could be so, so much worse. I have a broken arm- it's temporary and will heal. It could have been a much worse injury, or, I could be dealing with something else entirely.

I came across a prayer link for this poor sweet baby boy- I can't even imagine what his mom is going through right now. I'm sure she'd be grateful to trade situations. Tripp's story

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Gimpin' ain't easy

Today is the one week mark for my big injury. The pain is better- I don't feel like I want to tear my arm off all the time- but morale is low. I think it is sinking in that I can't just power through this with a positive attitude. Up until yesterday, I was really hoping to be back to work tomorrow. Now I realize how pie in the sky that was. I really thought if I just wished it better, I could somehow speed up my recovery. Mind over matter and all. Then I went to the Gap yesterday with my mom (she is the queen of pushing just a bit too hard- the day after my dad had a heart attack she was lecturing him that he couldn't "just lounge around the house all day") just to get comfy stuff I can wear now....and I nearly lost my shizz at the Gap. I'm tired and cranky. I'm sick of feeling like a broken bulldozer- I'm constantly dropping stuff and knocking stuff over. I feel so helpless- I can't even put my own hair in a clip. I'm sleeping in a recliner, so I'm really not sleeping super well. everything hurts- my muscles are sore from being in basically the same position all the time.

-sigh-

I know in the scheme of things, this too shall pass and I need to be more patient. I'm lucky that my injuries weren't worse. And I'm so, so lucky to have my parents so close by- they have been wonderful about taking care of both me and Brewster! I'm truly grateful.

I need to keep reminding myself of this when my dressing is itching like crazy, my arm hurts, my hoodie is falling off because I can only drape it over my shoulder, my ice pack falls on the floor and I can't reach it, and Brewster is trying to climb up into my lap!!


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One-armed bandit

Monday night I fell down my stairs. It's an old house with steep, narrow stairs; I've fallen both up and down them several times before. But never this badly. I went tail over teakettle and hit the ground like a ton of bricks. I don't know if I was in shock, or just stunned, or what...but I picked myself up and went to bed. And slept through the night. The next morning I woke up before my alarm (first indicator that something isn't right), showered and started getting ready for work.

I knew something was wrong when I couldn't lift my right arm to wash or dry my hair. But I still managed to one-handedly wash and dress myself. At this point I was getting clued in that this wasn't just a bump or bruise. Since I couldn't lift my arm, I thought maybe I had dislocated my elbow trying to break my fall. But I wasn't sure and didn't was to alarm anyone unnecessarily, so I just drove myself to urgent care.

As soon as the doctor saw my arm, he said "yup, that looks broken." At which point I cursed out loud. An X-ray confirmed that it was indeed broken- badly. I was referred to an orthopedist, that day. At this point I started thinking I needed backup, so I called my dad. He was at the airport about to board a flight. As soon as he heard my voice, he knew something was very wrong. He cancelled his ticket and came to shuttle me around.

Urgent care referred me to an orthopedist I've actually been to before, and he's one of the best around. I knew I was in good hands.

After a couple more X-rays, he broke the bad news: I hadn't just broken the bone, I had shattered it, and I needed surgery.



By then I was so uncomfortable, if he had suggested amputation, it would have seemed like a reasonable option! I could feel the broken bones moving in my arm, occasionally hitting a nerve- NOT pleasant.

To make a long story short, I fell Monday night, went to the doctor Tuesday, and had surgery Thursday. It was supposed to be a 2-3 hour procedure, but of course with my luck....it was about 6 hours. When he got in it was even worse than he thought. So I'm typing this one-handed. I now have a plate and pins in my arm, as well as a pretty diesel arm brace:



I start physical therapy Monday, and I'm really hoping to be up and about soon!! I still can't believe I did this...I feel like such a butthead. It's not even a dramatic or interesting story!! But I guess I'm lucky it wasn't worse.

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Knew this was too good to be true...

This evening I did (almost) all of my dishes, gave the dog a bath, went to bed early AND even fell asleep at a decent time.

Was just woken up by Brewster puking. IN MY BED. On my freshly washed blanket.

I'm not sure what upset his stomach: earlier tonight I caught him licking a lemon. Yes, a lemon. Then I caught him nibbling at my chocolate brownie. I think it was the smell of his own gas though- he likes to sleep under all the blankets and was pretty foul- I think he stunk himself out. Of course now he is snoring away and I'm still awake.


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Post-holiday recap

Where does the time go?? I can't believe Christmas and New Year's are over already! I didn't take much time off for the holidays this year- I took a random day a couple weeks ago, then we had long weekends for both Christmas and New Year's....but that was it. I think I'm in need of some time off to recharge. I was talking about it today- I realized in the past couple years, I've had 5 different jobs. FIVE. And that doesn't even count the times I was bounced around through a few different departments at my current place. (Before you think I'm a crazy flake, there's a very good reason I've moved jobs so much: I work in politics, and last year was campaign season. 'Nuf said.)

Plus I bought my house. I won't even get into the madness at came along with THAT.

So the past couple years have been crazy ones. 2010 was particularly tumultuous for me, and I remember feeling relieved last New Year's eve just to have it over with! I didn't have quite as much upheaval in 2011, but I feel like I spent the year getting settled in: to my job, in my house. I watched my sweet dog Mac get sicker and sicker. Then before I knew it I found another dog, and that was a whole new process of both of us getting settled.

My goal for 2012 is to just be able to enjoy things more. Not be waiting for the next hurdle, but just to be happy for what's already here. I'm not big on resolutions, because I feel like if I need to do something, I need to do it- not because it's a certain day.

I had a very mellow New Year's even this year. Instead of going to a party or bar, I spent the night with one of my college roommates. It felt appropriate: her husband was in the Marines for a while, and I used to go visit her wherever they were stationed. I went to stay with her for a few New Year's eves when her husband was deployed. Now he's not in the service anymore, but he's away for work. She has a sick toddler and was staying home. So I went over, we got Chinese food and drank wine and champagne, played cards and watched the ball drop.

I'm hoping this New Year's eve will set the tone for this year for me- I'm ready for less hustle and more mellow!




(Brewster agrees and is doing his part to help me veg out- he has been parked ON me for most of the evening!)

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