Friday, June 29, 2007

Water, Water Every Where


Breaking a 5 gallon jug of drinking water on your kitchen floor is not a good way to start the day.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

In One Foot and Out the Other

I injured one foot last week and this week (figuratively) shot myself in the other. I don't know why or what I'm doing to myself. Maybe I just like being miserable?? Time to get my head shrunk again, I guess.

So I injured myself considerably on Wednesday and showed up for Crater Days on Friday at 5 p.m. On Saturday morning I returned at 10 for the parade and spent the whole day at Crater Days (except for a one hour break to return home to get a visor and MORE batteries for the camera). I made it home about 2 Sunday morning, then went in to the (damn good farmer food) brunch about 10 a.m. on Sunday.

After I ate I came back to my rural neighborhood and caught up with Crab who had been helping the neighbors. I sat with them and imbibed, WTF. And my foot hurt. It was probably the first time I looked at it all weekend. My foot and ankle were huge.

Evidently, it is not a good idea to spend countless hours on your feet with an injury such as this. I have tried to baby it since then and it has shrunk somewhat. The bruising has settled in my foot and makes it look like my foot is dirty. But I have washed it, honest.

Here is a pic of Felix helping me photograph my foot:

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Killer

As the Ankle Turns
24 hours later



It appears that my ankle is swollen. On the advice of former Air Force Medic Captain Crab, I spent much of the day with my leg elevated. Occasionally, I applied ice packs.

I guess there was blood from the scrape, but it was not gushing blood so I dismissed it. Blood must gush to count.

I don't know what is with that weird blister, though. At first I thought it was a bulging vein ready to give birth to a blood clot that would worm its way to my heart or brain and kill me as snapped photos of Crater Days getting flooded out again. But it's just a weird blister.

I can walk so I know the ankle isn't broken. But can I stand on it for hours on end? No way. I don't know if I can even drive.

I have been reading an Augusten Burroughs book today to pass the leg elevation time. I would tell you which one but I'd have to hobble across the room to look at the title. Or Google it. But I'm too lazy to do either.

Is it normal for pain to make you tired? I'm tired and the most exercise I've done today is strap on ice packs.

I can't wait for this to turn purple and green. And for it to stop hurting.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

It Runs in the Family

Over at Random Mindless Ramblings, H has commented that her klutz factor that seems to rear its ugly head at weddings. I don't need a special event to cause damage to my body. Any old ordinary day will do.

Last Monday I hurt my ring finger when installing the window air conditioner. I didn't realize it at first. Later my finger really, really hurt. Inspection revealed that the ring had cut my finger right at the base on the inside of my hand. Wow. Now I know why so many farmers are missing that particular finger and why my husband refused to wear a wedding band. My wedding band went on a chain around my neck. The finger still hurts.

But the house is cool. Well, it is COLD in the kitchen and really warm in Captain Crab's room, but hey, it evens out if you walk from one end of the house to the other.

This evening I was looking out the kitchen window and noticed that it was sprinkling, but only at the kitchen window. It is sunny and hot with nary a cloud in the sky. So I went outside to inspect the source of immaculate precipitation.

Outside my kitchen there is a big hunk of cement that used to be an entry stoop back in 1899. Now its just a big slab and a repository for shit that hides behind my house. Shit like a dog house for the yard dog that we had 10 years ago, the retractable clothes line that is broken but is going to get fixed, dammit, and my hillbilly grill.

I made the hillbilly grill out of cement blocks, bricks and the grates from a gas grill that fell apart after 3 seasons of use. It is not mortared together, but it works on the rare occassion I have enough foresight to start charcoal.

To inspect the source of the moisture I stood on one of the cement blocks on the slab. I deduced, but could not tell for sure, that the water was coming from the vent in the top of the window air conditioner. In an attempt to will the stoop closer to the air conditioner so I might inspect it better I tipped the cement block off the stoop. The block fell off the stoop and onto my leg before hitting the ground.

Ow (at first). Then -- fucking double shit ow.

No blood. Good.

Big ass dent on back of leg. Bad.

Walking is possible. Good.

Made it to house. Very good.

It took me a while to come out of my pain haze to realize I should do something sort of first-aid like. Then I remembered to apply cold. So that is what I'm doing. Sitting here with an ice pack tied to my leg. Hobbling is possible. Pictures of an ugly purple and green bruise to be posted in a few days is probable.

Ow.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Cruisin' for a Bruisin'

I am trying to dig out my house. I am in a twilight zone now, not quite at the "everything must go!" stage but in such a pickle with the mess I've created while trying to dig that I see no other way out. And no place to sleep tonight, for that matter.

And I keep finding things that throw me back a few years. Sometimes I think "why in hell did I ever keep that?" and other times I'm so absorbed in my trip down memory lane that I forget my original mission.

For example: I came across a notebook small enough to stash in a purse. In the back of it were some notations not worth keeping. I almost tossed it. BUT -- in the front was my little diary of the cruise I went on in 1999.

First of all, people, I want you to know I am not a cruise person.

Shortly before I went on this cruise I told someone who was trying to get me to fork over big bucks to go on a "class reunion" cruise that the only way I'd ever go on a cruise is if someone paid my way.

Be careful of what you don't wish for. A few days later I got a call from a friend who'd already booked a cruise for 2 and her significant other was unable to sail away with her.

Being the good friend that I am, I took her boyfriend's place, went on the cruise and recorded events in my tiny notebook.

One entry that really made me laugh was about sharing a room and one tiny hairdryer.

One afternoon we came back to the room after a long, hot day on shore and had to get ready for the early seating formal dinner.

My friend took the bathroom first, telling me "We have 40 minutes!"

Being a low maintenance girl, I wasn't worried. I laid down on my bed and rested. The next thing I knew, my immaculately groomed and coiffed friend emerged from the bathroom announcing, "We have 7 minutes!"

My entry states that she looked great at dinner and was awfully composed considering she knew I wanted to fucking kill her.

Friday, June 01, 2007

Waiting for the Storm

Waiting for the storm is something I've done twice today. The first time was this morning. I expected lightning strikes to take out my desktop while I proofed a poster that I had designed. It is being printed (and changed dramatically) by a beer distributor. Phone calls and emails had to be made, another proof looked at... Dial-up is really painful sometimes.

Another storm came through late this afternoon. The radar indicated it was bearing down on me. Weather weenie that I am, I monitor the radar constantly. When I saw this one coming, I shut down the computer and sat on the front stoop and waited for it to hit. It took it's sweet time.

I played with the snot-nosed cat (technically not mine -- like the rabbit). I picked a couple of peonies. And I took photos. The storm was short and sweet.

Teeny Town waits for the storm

Waiting


I have different colored eyes!

Felix, the snot nosed cat


Peonies against the storm

Peonies