I have surprised myself

I am actually glad that I had the labral tear fixed. I have had many days since the surgery where I can mostly walk well. It has been less than thirty days and the benefits of the surgery are obvious. For example: I can get out of my office chair and walk like the biped I am! Before it was an ordeal just to get out of my office chair and navigate the obstacles in my office.

People take this walking shit way too casually. Sure, it's something you do every day and you pay absolutely no mind to it. Until you can't walk, then the shit hits the proverbial fan I say! Yeah, I can see you are impressed. Try not being able to move because it felt like your butt tendons are tied too tight. Say, try that for about a year. Then, magically, some thing loosens said bun strings and voila! you can walk.

Now I am in physical therapy twice a week and the therapist I got this time was a lucky draw. He's great! Say that like Tony the Tiger! He stretches my hips and pelvis out (sounds dirty but it ain't) every visit and has begun adding balancing and strength exercises to my home practice.

At the same time as I was lame, my puppy went lame as well. She is only 14 months old but has barely been able to use her front leg now for 4 months. That's nearly 1/3 of her life. So my limp has nothing on hers. It's all very mysterious, this limp. We found a jagged hole in the third metatarsal of the lame leg. We have run every test possible on this dog, short of anesthetizing her and sending her into the MRI tube. During these four months the foot has occasionally developed an abscess between the affected and adjoining toes. Last week we sedated her, flushed out the abscess and x-rayed the leg again. No real improvement. In desperation, I finally asked my cats's homeopathic vet for a "Hail Mary" remedy. Can't hurt, might help.

The homeopath also asked me to re-evaluate what I am feeding my dogs. She suggested substituting 50% of their commercial diet with real home cooked food. First up, they started getting scrambled eggs and spinach for dinner. This weekend I will be making my first people-edible happy-dog stew. My husband loves beef stew. I myself don't care much for it. The husband says he will eat all of the stew himself before the dogs even get a bite. I am cooking a gallon or more, so he has his work cut out for him.

Soon I will be able to bike and hike again. Soon I will be able to paddle. Soon I hope my Kona Bean will be able to ramble on long walks with me (my favorite!) But for right now I will spend my time reading, crafting, researching, and cooking. It is really no surprise I have gained 15 pounds and she has gained 5. We will lose it together when we are healed. Finger crossed!