Easily Amused

Finally!!! Physical therapy starts Thursday. I really can’t wait to start. I think I may try some knitting with needles this week. I’ve been doing exercises and think that I can hold the needles.

I finished another wash cloth. I’m going to go in search of some other loom knitting patterns – I’m bored with them already. I have some wool left over from projects so I was thinking of doing hats for charity. In other news: I can make yarn out of wool! I have to pull off skinny strips and then predraft like crazy. Essentially, I’m just holding the wool and the wheel is doing its thing. It takes forever to prep and I can’t spin for long, but I can do it. It’s the process.

I have gone completely NUTS with yarn and wool purchases. As they come in, I’ll post pics. Speaking of pics, I made a slide show of things that amused me today – including the spinning.

Get Your Own! View Slideshow

Bloglines Ate My Post

It's on my blog, but the feeds never updated bloglines.

And there is actually knitting content.

This is a test to see if bloglines updates me now

Narcissistic and Rude II

It was bound to happen. Since this temporarily became the "broken arm blog", I have lost subscribers. (What!?! You don't subscribe to your own feed? It is all about me you know.)

That's ok. For those of you who stuck around, I present a genuine, certified F.O.

How you like me now?

Yeah, it's a wash cloth. Yeah, the project sheet said it should take an hour to complete and it took me 2 days. But I MADE FABRIC OUT OF YARN!!!

I borrowed a friend's kid's knifty knitter. After not using it for months, as soon as she saw me with it, she had a royal hissy fit. I struck a deal and walked outta there with the blue and the yellow one. Yes, I steal candy from babies, kick dogs and knock over old ladies that are in my way. You got a problem wit dat?

Why a wash cloth? It's small and completed relatively quickly completed and I could try out loom knitting with cheap cotton. I also finally used the other one I made and I love it!

Thoughts on knifty knitting - I wish the spaces were smaller. You have to use bulky or two strands of worsted. I have yarn I could use, but not enough if I have to double it. When Isela gets back from NY, I'm going to ask her about her looms. She (and her husband) have so many choices, I wouldn't know where to begin. Check out all the great tutorials she's done for loom knitting. Amazing!

In arm news - I can take my first unencumbered shower today. No bags, no tape, no slings - well I still need to rig a sling that I can get wet...but you get the idea. I guess the incision is healed enough that if the tape falls off, my arm won't fall out. I can't wait to see the incision - yeah I'm sick.

I've been doing some of the things the doc said to do and I have a little more movement in my hand. I can't wait for Pt. The pinky and ring are still numb, but they're moving. The freaky deaky - random muscle spasms and the nerve pain (think hot, burning flashes of pain). OY!!

I was trying to figure out what was wrong with my computer when I realized the time changed last night - whoops!

Released from bondage

This was my arm this morning - mini special dark candy bar used for size comparison. The cast/wrapping was HUGE!!










This is my arm now. Doesn't look that bad. Still some swelling.












Here's the money shot - kind of. They took the staples out and taped it shut. I had my mom take a picture so I could see it. Somewhere in the middle of the swelling and tape is my elbow. Really. I swear. I can't wait to see what it looks like.


My hand and arm don't do what I want them to.

Put your hand flat on the table. Now stand it up so it is resting on the pinky side with your thumb up in the air.

The doc asked me to do that - and it wouldn't move. I thought it, I wished it, I screamed at it to "freakin move already" (in my head of course) - nothing. He said it would get better with physical therapy.

I'm scared.

OWM on a Tuesday

dispirited

Eye candy

From a stash sale Noro Kureyon, All Things HeatherHandpainted 100% merino superwash self-striping sock yarn- color: "Neapolitan"and some Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock

I will knit again...I think. I was severely morphined up but what I remember being told was: ulna fixed, ulnar nerve crushed, picked out, repaired and moved, muscle ripped and cartilage torn off. Could cause mobility problems. Trying not to think about it until I can talk to the doc at the follow up next week. With a clear head.

Right now - not so clear, vicodan and lyrica (I think that's the name) are my friends.

Thursday

and



OWWWW!

Surgery Day

At 4 p.m. PST, please send do good vibes to the doc and bone healing ones to me

Prior to that, send non-freakout ones...cause I'm really gonna need all the help I can get to stay sane and rational.

It ain't knitting

But it is fiber...and I can do it one handed and by myself. My mom has to separate the strands. I came up with a threading process, the back is sloppy since the I'm just letting the strands hang when I'm done...but I'm doing it. Picture of spinning attempts later.

A moment of weakness

Neither the coffee nor the vicogoodness has kicked in yet. This is the hardest part of the day. When it's just me, myself and the floppy paw. No fortifications.

It's funny - I'm gauging my days by how long I can go before I need the magic pills. On average, I can now make it about 10 hours.

WEBS catalog came yesterday and it made me sad - and angry. There are so many great patterns and yarn that I want to fondle.

I want my hand to be ok. I'm hoping the stuff going on is just related to swelling or something....that magically, everything will go back to normal once the surgeon does his magic.

Ok.. off the pity pot!

Go on over to JenLa and give La some good karma for the wedding she's planning. Oh..and I hear there's a step grandchild in her future that will be wearing the family jewels and not thinking with them!

Cindylou recently had a birthday and could use some healing thoughts sent her way.

Go here and check out all the good things this knitter does. Just from reading her blog, it sounds like almost all of her knitting is charity (ok, so maybe that's an exaggeration - she only knits charity 92% of the time). Go on, help her out and give her some time to knit for herself too.

Go wish Dave a happy birthday and buy some of his scrumptious yarn.

more later about teaching an old dog new tricks a.k.a. mom drove (I'm using that term loosely)a stick

It's a go

psssst... I took a shower all by myself this morning. YEAH!!

Monday is the day. 4 p.m. at the ultra swanky USC medical center. Supposedly, I could be released as early as Tuesday. I like the doc and his staff. Apparently he is one of the top 4 ortho Dr's in the U.S.

There was a lady there who came all the way from Idaho to have him operate. IDAHO!

Got my arm repositioned because some bones were rubbing inside. Got a new cast that allows me to have fingers - and be able to wash said fingers. NO MORE STINKY CAST FINGERS!!!! But...all sore and cranky now. My pinky is numb and doesn't move well. He hopes he can fix it. Physical therapy will start the day after I get released - sadist. Oh and i have swollen sausage fingers :(

First time ever doing worker's comp - so this is interesting. Luckily my raise went through and I'm going off my new salary. All dr's covered and approved.

Teaching mom to drive stick tomorrow - wish me (and my clutch) luck!

big day

Tomorrow's the day. I'm heading down to USC to meet with the surgeon. I'm kind of hoping he says "let's do the surgery right away". Let's get this over with. The pain and swelling is going away and the surgery is going to start it all over again.

Cross stitching is going great. Spinning - not so much. It has potential, so I'm going to keep at it. A single treadle would be easier - not so jarring - maybe I'll get a kit to convert it while I'm laid up.

In company news - the onsite office is being great - corporate, not so much. UMMMM hello... even given that you are on the East coast, you still had a report of the injury Thursday morning. Oh...and my raise that was effective Oct 1 - better be what you report as my salary.

I REALLY love my co-workers - great acts of kindness to report later.

x-ray vision

I know it's not that clear, but the white cloud in the circle, that's the part of the bone that is now unattached. It's actually bigger than that, but my scanner didn't do such a good job scanning an x-ray. I have CT films too, but they make no sense to me.

It may take me a little while, but I'll write back to everyone who commented

Thank God for Netflix

and vico-dreamy pill things and wonderful co-workers that are picking up scripts and groceries and hauling my butt around.


Oh, and that I throw myself full force into crafty pursuits. I had this hiding in my closet and think (if my mom threads the needles) that I should be able to do some cross stitching and embroidery.

still bored

one word

bored

broke

yep, surgery

get to go to USC

doc here doesn't want to risk it

ugh

one handed typing

thanks for well wishes

let's start by saying i work in a safety office.

defective desk drawer that slides out on its own - slid out

i was backing up and fell backwards over it

felt bones moving when i hit

started out as dislocation - dr broke it when he popped it back in - oh and dr was fresh out of med school and this was the first elbow dislocation he fixed

saw orthopod today - sent for ct - find out tomorrow about surgery

will post as i can

broke arm

just got home.

doping up and going to bed

Forest Canopy

Pattern: Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl

Yarn: Claudia Handpainted - 2 skeins with some left

Needles: Denise

Start:9/4/06

Finish:10/1/06

FABULOUS PATTERN - go... buy it... I'll wait. Wow - lace made easy. The picture doesn't show the colors well. I was going to take sunny pictures today, but I woke up to rain - this is as good as it gets. If I could knit regularly, it would not have taken a month to do. I'm telling you - great pattern. Not only do you get clear written instructions, but charts and a primer on lace. I was worried about the size, but through the wonders of blocking, it turned out perfectly. The center point reaches my butt.

When I put it on to show my mom, her reaction was "Wow, that's an heirloom".

On to:

Yes, I joined again this year. I love Lolly's KAL's. No pressure - here's a theme - go, knit, enjoy.
I want to finish the pair of cotton blend anklets that I've been working on forever. I have some Trekking that I want to crack open and my DYE-O-RAMA yarn. Geeez, this wonderful person dyed me yarn and there it sits in my stash.