Fubar ankle

I have a couple additional images to post. I figured I would do my readers a favor by posting on the weekend, so you don't unexpectedly view these at work in the morning and toss your breakfast bagel.  I finally could bear to look at the pre-op photos Cathy took with her cell phone. I have messaging blocked on our cell phones (way too much unsolicited junk), so I had to get the block removed before I could email the photos to myself. I hate how these tech companies hold your own personal data hostage, and you have to pay extra to do anything with it. It should be as simple as USB download.

This first photo is hard to understand what you are looking at. I am lying on my back, legs slightly spread, both held the same way with knee caps pointing straight up. Yet my left foot grotesquely flops over to the side.  The medial malleolus is fractured and nearly perforates the skin in the center of the image. This the prominent bump on the inside of your ankle. I believe the orthopedist put the X's on my body for the x-ray tech. The X shown is on top center of my foot.

Side view of left leg, X marks top of foot,

where it should never ever be relative to leg.

This next photo is easier to figure out. It shows the magnitude of displacement in the ankle joint. My foot should be point straight up off the bottom of my leg. Instead, it flops over, displaced by almost the diamter of my leg at the ankle.  These photos were taken just before the doctor restored some structure to the joint, which exceeded the next most painful thing I've experienced in 47 years by a factor of 1000.

Looking down left leg.

My level of pain has made a marked improvement Saturday.  This means I can now let my leg hang down for several minutes without it immediately swelling up and throbbing. I can also find more leg positions in which I am semi-comfortable. Six days of healing brought me this much progress. Doesn't seem like much.  I have no reference to know if this is typical or what. I get a detailed scoop when I visit the orthopedist on Monday. The good news is I've thus far avoid infection and excessive swelling that would have necessitated going back to the hospital. Six days straight now without going above 50bpm. I'm starting to go stir crazy.  I did order a Concept2 SkiErg. It should arrive early next week. I hope I get approval to start working out with it right away. No doubt an elevated heart rate will cause my leg to throb some, but if I continue to improve at the rate today for a few more days, I think I will be ready.

Regarding the Italian trip, Brett fully committed to going without me. Looks like they began digging out Passo Stelvio too. The photos he'll send back are sure to kill me. There was another snag in us going, one that provided an additional challenge to Brett but was a huge score for me. Workers for British Air are going on strike next week, and half the flights through Heathrow have been cancelled, including ours. I was able to secure a full refund. Brett had to rebook on multiple other airlines to salvage the trip. Brett and I have not found my replacement. Thomson Tours is working on this too. They will work with me on some level of refund or applying the fee to a trip next year.

Thanks for reading, and be careful out there folks.