Carer falls asleep

'nuff said

Robert came to visit and we had an outing

It was a lovely sunny day and I actually crutched it down to the village! Had to get a push back up the hill as it was my first foray out of the house which didn't involve the hospital and a cab.

 So its now looking like at some point in the futuer I may actually get over this.  Also note that lovely pink cheek with no stitches.  Hope that swelling goes down

It was so lovely out we just paused at the corner and soaked up some sun.

Meanwhile.... 

After the push up the hill - my carer overreacts

OK, maybe not but still. Always the actor, Robert takes a break

Stitches out of my face

District nurse cam eout today and removed the stitches in my face from the BCC biopsy.  Of course, it looks a lot better than I had thought it would a week ago.  It is still a scar and its still in the middle of my face - right cheek close to my nose - and I will need to watch out carefully for others in the future.

I am so relieved that this week is over.  I didn't really need another thing to worry about while I am still trying to get over the motorcycle accident.  Technically I still have to wait for the results from the biopsy to make sure all the edges are clear and they got everything; but I am happy to be on my way to smiling and laughing again with out worrying that I am pulling on those stitches.

Six week X-ray for my broken leg

Enjoying the first London Pride out of house since the accident.  Note the lovely bandage covering up the site of the biopsy - does one woman deserve all this medical attention? Thanks to Kirsty for pushing me up the hill to the pub and then getting me back to the flat.

Today - its six weeks and three days since the surgery (ORIF - Open reduction, internal, fixation  with hardware, since you asked) on my fractured leg.  I have been back to the Royal Free for yet another Xray.  This will be the gazillionth since I was knocked off the lovely vespa on 2 October.  In this one they are looking to see if all the hardware remains where it should be and if there has been any bone growth. 


I think I was a little to optimistic about what happens after six weeks. I think I thought I would be at least getting to be off my crutches but no partial weight bearing just means you get to put your foot down and then work your way slowly back to walking but still with crutches....


Augh.  At least I md arrangements for Kirsty to come to the hospital to meet me so we could get a cab back together.  She talked me into a walk/push home with her doing all the work.  We made it up the hill to Haverstock then decided we needed a beer before going any further - so we nipped into The George, a local.  The London Pride was so good, I had to have dinner.


After a pint and dinner, we rolled home - well I rolled and Kirsty pushed.  Then we attacked the front steps - there has to be a way to get up those **blinking** four steps at the front of my building.  After much hilarity I ended up scooting up on my backside and wriggling onto the emergency stool kept just inside the door. Its scary that this much later I still cannot get back int othe flat by myself and therefore I cannot leave the flat unless I have a back up plan ready to receive me.  

Plus - how ridiculous do I look crawling up the steps on my behind (it always rains here) and wriggling up onto a stool.  Good think I'm not too hung up on my reputation for suavity.  Jeez.  


Anyway, Thanks Kirsty for the night out and lets see what the physio says now that he can come back and work with me.  


Tomorrow, sutures our from the BCC and continuing to get better

Basel Cell Carcinoma

When it rains it pours they say and so it is with our intrepid writer.  Before getting run over by Mr. Wong the Ford driver -- who it turns out is the dude who hit me on 2 October 2010. I went to the GP to have her check out a spot on my face.  Hmmm, better get that looked out by a dermatologist.

Two weeks later I am at the Royal Free awaiting the verdict.  Yes, indeed, Its a Basel Cell Carcinoma (aka BCC or delightfully here in jolly olde England a rodent ulcer).  Bad news, good news. Bad news - that spot on my face is actually a cancer but good news - its a milder form of skin cancer.  However its nothing to sneeze at and should be taken very seriously.  So I was scheduled for a biopsy and after several delays, today is the day.

I thought it would be a small incision - but it turned out to be a pretty big hole right on my cheek; several layers of stitches and the top layer looked pretty bad.  I am depressed but what the heck compared to the massive and still healing scar on my leg from the crash and the otehr scar on my face also from teh crash - this is really not that bad.

Gotta say, its been tough this last couple of weeks.  In seven days the stitches come out and we will see. 

Mum leaves! no no no

But before she goes, here's a picture of her in her foraging outfit.  She did a fabulous job of running around for me while I laid around the flat. 

Together we have worked on the flat so I can handle it on my own but I will still miss her. 

Wouldn't you?

My bedroom, with Laundry and bandaged leg

Here's the view from my bed. Its night time and there are clothes hanging to dry because this is Britain and for some reason they refuse to adopt decent dryer technology, therefore if you launder at home you end of with clothes draying all over the home.  Foot still has the mark on it so the surgeons wouldn't accidentally reconstruct the wrong leg.

Getting better. but its still a long way off.

A ramp means I can climb mount kitchen!

Note the excitement on my face.  I can now scale the Olympian heights of Mount Kitchen and begin to take care of myself. 

Not that I will until Mum leaves on the 8th but its all in the preparation. 

new chair to help getting around for the short term

isn't it breezy?

The end of the cat period in my life - for now

It has been beyond tough for the last month, what with the motorcycle accident on 2 October and now six weeks (minimum) at home>  Thank my lucky stars, Mum could come and stay with me for almost four of those weeks as I am now almost able to take care of myself in my flat. 

Sadly, today I had to put Dylan to sleep.  Morgana passed away this summer after a short illness which was a big surprise. I had been worrying about Dylan as he was at least 2 years older.  Finally, it just became too much to watch him get skinnier and skinnier and have more trouble getting around.  He was at least 21 years old to Morgana's 19.  This picture is from his San Francisco days - when he was a mere 14 years old.  He did have a good life. 

Saved from a vet in Knoxville in 1992, I took him in because Jen and Shannon and Susanne and Ross all thought I needed cats. He joined me in residence in Atlanta. Then boyfriend-at-the-time convinced me that two cats were easier than one, so Morgana joined our happy band.  Both moved with me to SF in 203 and then on to London, where they have been international cats of mystery for four years now. 

I will miss them both dearly.

My baby is total-ed

Well, if you look here you can see her when I first took possession of the bike in May.  Here you see the same side of the bike post-accident.  The insurance engineer decided it wasn't worth repairing. 

Right now I'm not sure what I am going to do about getting another one.  I have another several weeks before I can leave the house so I'll deal with that later.

Mum keeps timorous beastie at bay

lovely shiner

This was probably day 3 in hospital  - so round about 5 October.  Probably just before surgery on my leg.  The shiner was still pretty large and the cut on my nose from my glasses still healing.  Thank goodness for helmets.  At this point most of the body bruising hasn't even come to the surface yet and I didn't really take photos of that as it was just to gross.

Boy, did I want to have my hair washed.  Not sure which bits of hospital are worse dirty hair or bed pains of course there is also the endless round of needles.  

Some of the lovely flowers

Thanks to all of my friends who visited me and sent me flowers while I was in the hospital.  They really brightened up the ward - this was a particularly beautiful bouquet sent from my friends in San Fran.  At least I remembered to take a picture of these - they were so cheery.

Thanks

its been a pretty crappy couple of weeks

On 3 October, I was knocked off my scooter by a car that "didn't see" me. Incredibly painful broke two bones in my lower left leg.  Had to wait four days in hospital for surgery then another week before I could get out.  My Mother flew in from FLA to help me through the first weeks of recovery.  No wieght on my right leg for 6-9 weeks.  To say I have been a physical and emotional basket case is putting it mildly.

How ever on the plus side (I am very optimistic) I have had a lot of time to think and while not struck by any incredible insight, I have managed to not be my usual pissy self (though I have my moments) and found some moments of real laughter in the ward with the other patients, mostly women in the 70+ category getting knees and hips replaced.

Once I got over the whole bedpan things - why oh why hasn't someone designed something better for that function!! - and got through the surgery, then got home with Mum helping me out things began to look up.

So I thought I would spend the time I have stuck at home on getting a few things sorted out that I never did before.  1) get someone in to look at the garden.  2) get the flipping plumbing sorted out and 3) re carpet the really grotty bits of the flat.

So something to do/direct along with my physio for the next couple of weeks. 

big ole swollen leg with exoskeletan brace

couple of days after surgery

Here he is - my new baby

You may not have known but Cream Puff is no more. She was spirited away on one Sunday evening in April by bad men. Actually they were probably boys because who else would hotwire, steal, joyride and them dump trashed a 12 year old crapped out (but loved) vespa?

Anyway after hours on the phone and a measely check from my insurance company, I decided to spring for something from this century and even this decade. He's a 2004 GT in silver (grey?) with "Grantourismo" elegantly scrawled on the right hand side. I'm not showing the left or front as he was clearly dropped on the left and bumped into something on the front. But the newer and slightly larger frame with a nicer engine does feel pretty cushy. Interestingly he has over twice the mileage of cream puff.

what shall we name him?

Laura Lee's sweater is finally assembled!

Started this sweater two years ago on holiday in South Carolina. the actual knitting finished months ago,but assembly has been waiting for yonks. Mainly because its cotton and therefore a pain. Actually had to be blocked which required a big flat surface and even then it took several hours and a trip to my upstairs neighbor to see it on someone! The sweater is from Sally Melville's book The Knit Stitch, Its called "where's the opaque? sweater"

This is hard to picture and the photo doesn't show it well, but the top front, back and sleeves are all slightly see through and the main front is opaque. The opaque bit wraps around the back a bit so the sleeves have a lot of shaping and joining the opaque to the non-opaque took some serious attention ans the rows and fabric all all very different. I also forgot until I starting piecing it together that I had mad it a bit longer as LLG not short. Therefor as I am blocking the pieces out puzzled about how I managed to miss the measurements by over an inch, then I found my original notes. I should take better notes - especially as I take YEARS to knit things for adults.

Anyway over all I am happy and I hope she will be too when she gets it. Why did I finally manage to get it together? It's her birthday this weekend - so happy BDay LLG!

Here's where I frogged big portions of the sweater last summer

finally blocking LLG's sweater