Week 5 - Rice Krispies Knee

A couple of weeks ago, I was lamenting the problem with my left knee. Little did I know that it was just the tip of the iceberg! I had continued to baby my knee but on Wednesday things went from bad to worse I walked over to CBA at lunch to feed the campus cats (that's less than a block away) and by the time I got back, I was using the wall to hold myself up. Putting any weight on my knee hurt like hell. I started calling around looking for crutches (Campus Rec came through) and made an appointment with Lincoln Orthopedic for the next day. I had to see the PA but at least there was an appointment available. Fast forward to the next morning.

Here's your orthopedic tip for the day - if you have a bum knee, lead with the bad leg going down the stairs and with the good leg going up. I learned this the hard way. When attempting to get out of my house the next morning, I lead with the good leg causing the bad knee to pop audibly. The pain was instantaneous and horrible! I couldn't catch my breath and was immediately in tears. I could not miss the appointment though so got in my car and headed south, pulling my leg up by my pants to work the clutch. I called Cheryl from work to meet me on the north side of town and drive me to my appointment since there was no way I could handle all the shifting required for city driving.

Long story short, they said I have arthritis in my knee so they could only give me a cortisone injection and would evaluate any further problem next month. They sent me home with a pain prescription (I didn't fill it) and I spent 2 days sitting with my leg elevated, bored to tears. Normally I'd love nothing more than sitting on my butt watching TV or reading but since that wasn't a choice but a necessity, I spent all day Friday with a bad attitude. There were a few bright spots in my day - a 2-1/2 hour phone call with Auntie Margaret, the realization mid afternoon that the shot had kicked in and I wasn't in pain anymore and a visit from Helen, who dropped off a knee brace that she'd picked up for me in Lincoln. It was this last that gave me the courage to uncancel my birthday plans with Connie.

I called Connie and asked if she'd be willing to pick me up in North Lincoln, thereby limiting the city driving again, so we could still have our play day. She agreed and brought her husband's handicapped parking tag (yay!) so we had a nice lunch at Texas Roadhouse and then went to Frost Nixon. It felt SO good to get out of the house. Add that to the excellent company and beautiful weather and the bad attitude was gone, gone, gone. After the movie, it was so gorgeous that we got a mocha and went to Hazel Abel Park to sit in the sun (that's where the picture was taken.) It was so warm that I didn't even need a coat. What a wonderful way to celebrate my birthday and a nice end to a pretty crappy week. Despite the snap, crackle and pop in my knee, life is still good. : )