Haiku Happenings #5

Goodbye hard blue cast

Hello magical CAM boot

To walk with both feet

Poetry playing #2: Weak

Every day, I fight back tears
Why didn't I hold on longer
Why did I let go, falling
Every day, I question myself

A non-haiku haiku

6-8-6 (vs. 5-7-5)

At once independent. 

Free and able. Now dependent. 

Imprisoned by my leg.

Inner Artist #2

Channeling my inner artist and passing time with some coloring fun. I call this piece Grumpy Lichtenstein.

Free Write #4: Living life like a cat...

Life through Chloe's eyes

Like my cat... I sit. The couch. The bed. The kitchen chair. The patio lounge. The toilet.

Like my cat... I stare. Outside. My iPhone. My iPad. At the TV. At my elevated foot.

Like my cat... I sleep. No reason to get up. Afternoon naps. Dozing off at any time.

Like my cat... I do not shower. Water scares me. Fearful to get my cast wet. 

Like my cat... I do not serve myself. My parents serve me. They feed me. The clean up after me.

Like my cat... I do not leave the house. Confined to the indoors. Only allowed out for the doctors.

Poetry playing #1: Wishful Reminiscing

It's the simple things I miss 

Walking the streets of NY 

Strolling the neighborhood blocks 

My beloved Brooklyn 

It's the simple things I yearn 

Sunday brunch with my friends 

Evening dining al fresco 

Coffee on Vanderbilt 

It's the simple things I long 

Happy hour drinks outside 

Boutique shopping on weekends 

Sitting on my rooftop 

It's the simple things...

Free Write #3: I am strong

I will run again. 

5Ks, 10Ks, half marathons.

Prospect Park, West Side Highway, and beyond. 

I will bike again. 

On the road and in the classroom.

Rockaways, Coney, and beyond.

I will ski again. 

Green circles to black diamonds. 

Northeast, out west, and beyond.

Not so sure I'll climb again...

Free Write #2: My injury by the numbers...

1 the angle my foot is raised, ~1 foot above my heart

2 plates in my ankle 

3 hospitals visited since "the fall"

4 hours, the time period before I can take another Percocet 

5 days since I had the surgery

6 the approximate number of pillows needed in bed, mostly for my leg

7 casts/splints so far

8-9 fractures in my ankle

10 digits/toes all still in tact and unscathed

11 days till my post op appointment

12 feet, the approximate height I fell from

13 days since "the fall"

14 the approx. number of hours I spend laying on the couch (the other 10 in bed)

15 screws in my ankle

Haiku Happenings #4

Exhausted. Out of tears. 

Sadness washes over me.

Eyes well up, I weep.

Free Write #1: Seven Casts and Counting

At this point, I feel like I should qualify as a cast expert. Fiberglass, plaster, cotton stuffing...I've got it down. You know what's never been done though...faux fur casts! Imagine how fuzzy soft and faux-fur-tastic! I would want to snuggle my own face into my fuzz-fabulous casted leg. Hello Shark Tank!

My faux fur free casts to date....

Leg/ankle dressing 1-3: The Fall, Memorial Day, 5/25
Fiberglass cast, Lutheran, Brooklyn NY
Drug up, reset, cast, x-ray, repeat

Leg/ankle dressing 4: Meet My Doctor Day, Wednesday, 5/27
Hybrid half cast half splint (fiberglass plaster mix), HSS, New York NY

Leg/ankle dressing 5: Surgery Day, Tuesday, 6/2
Super size splint (cotton stuffing and gauze with plaster support wrapped in a massive ace bandage, allowing for swelling), HSS, New York NY

Leg/ankle dressing 6: Post Surgery Fright, Wednesday, 6/3
Sloppy splint (fiberglass, gauze, ace bandage wrap mix), RWJ ER, New Brunswick NJ
A pulsating thigh sent me to the ER, but thankfully after an ultrasound (and breaking my splint off), no blood clots were found. Just muscle spasms....

Leg/ankle dressing 7: Return to HSS, Friday, 6/5
Super size splint 2.0 (cotton stuffing and gauze with plaster support wrapped in a massive ace bandage, allowing for swelling), HSS, New York NY

What the future holds...

Next, I'll be in a fiberglass cast. Since faux fur isn't an option, I do get a choice of color, with some design options as well. Given the upcoming 4th of July holiday, I can choose to go patriotic and do red, white, and blue with stars and stripes...or I can go rainbow hippy...or just go more basic with a solid color.  Oh the choices...

And then from there, I get a soft boot! So instead of looking forward to a European vacation or my next half marathon, I will be counting down to the day I get my soft boot...and it's not even couture!

Haiku Happenings #3

Night. Eyes closed. My head
running wild, tormented, tired, the
fall runs on repeat.

Inner Artist #1

Thanks to my BFF for the Grumpy Cat coloring book to help me fight boredom. I may be an involuntary, temporary couch potatoe, but that doesn't mean I have to be a TV slave...

Grumpy Cat #1

Haiku Happenings #2

A twinge. Sharpness. Pain.
I squirm. Forehead scrunched. Teeth clinched.
Vicodin. Thank you.

Haiku Happenings #1

Falling from the sky

Crashing, screaming, there I lie

Broken, but alive

FAQs - what, why, when...

Q: What happened?

A: It was Memorial Day, and I was climbing at a place called Brooklyn Boulders. I was climbing a wall and while I made it to the top, on the climb down, I lost my footing and my grip, and came crashing down...falling 10-15 feet, landing on my ankle. I was immediately taken to the ER at Lutheran Hospital where they confirmed I had multiple fractures and would need surgery. All in all, I had fractured my ankle in 8-9 places. 

Q: Why no harness?

A: A climbing novice, the week before I had done a class focused on harnessed climbing. The night of my fall, I was taking a bouldering class, climbing in a harness free area. 

Q: What was done surgery wise?

A: After 2.5 hours of surgery, I woke up to find out I had 2 plates and 15 screws in my ankle...and I didn't even have to make the trip to Home Depot.

Q: What's the doctor saying in terms of recovery?

A: My first post op appointment is scheduled for two weeks post surgery, at which time I wii be put into a fiberglass cast. To learn more in terms of the post surgical timeline, see ORIF Ankle Fracture here: http://www.markdrakosmd.com/surgical-protocols.html