So, I hurt my knee when I was a kid, and over the years, I’ve had more and more pain. It started hurting after high school (when I wasn’t active and doing sport-style exercise regularly anymore), but was intermittent - I hurt when I did a lot of jumping and running around. Nowadays, it hurts with the weather and pretty much anytime I do any kind of extended activity - even walking.
Which is why I went to the doctor. When your knee swells just from going up and down stairs and walking the dog, there’s an issue.
Long appointment summarized: I probably have some small tears in the cartilage below my kneecap, and as I’ve gotten less active and heavier (I don’t chase kids anymore - I work at a computer), the muscles are weaker and the knee is getting more irritated. Oh yeah, and the kinds of exercise I’ve been trying to do more of (DDR - because it’s FUN - and bike riding) are going to make the pain worse.
The good news is that I’m not deformed (any more than the rest of you freaks) like my doctor told me I might be, but the bad news I’m going to have to do some physical therapy to strengthen the muscles around my knee to take some of the pressure off of the cartilage. That’s not bad, per se - just time consuming, expensive, and uncomfortable. But hey - if it’ll keep my “early onset arthritis” at bay, I’m game. =)
Oh, and check out the fancy pants I had to change into! Yeah, that’s paper:
Here are some random (and I’m not kidding when I say random) photos from the few days it’s been since I blogged. (sorry, no fun stories this time)
David got a few things done around the house. He fixed the trash can. It’s one of those with a pedal, and the pedal hasn’t been lifting the lid. It’s been like this for a month or so, and I was STILL stepping on that pedal. He finally fixed it for me and it works like a dream. Yeah, coat hangers and electrical tape:
He also mowed. It was time:
We’re trying to teach Jake to fetch (consistently). He’s got the idea - we throw, he retrieves - but he gets tired of it after two throws. On the third, he settles down to chew whatever it is we’ve thrown:
We went to Elayne’s second wedding (to the same guy). They were married quickly and rather privately in March because his visa was expiring and he didn’t want to leave her to go back to Colombia. They had their [already planned] and big wedding this past weekend. Elayne and her dad:
On the way home, the clouds were crazy interesting:
And… the ongoing saga of the bathrooms. So, here’s what the paint looked like when we moved in (it’s HORRIBLE):
And here’s David mixing paint just before we painted the room a solid, non-barf-inducing color:
I never realized how pretty this little town is. I’ve spent years thanking my lucky stars that I escaped small town life… but there’s something to say for the quaint. Nothing in my neighborhood is… quaint. It’s ghetto. Some pictures (I know, they don’t really show the town):
Dave at the window, originally uploaded by tara.aukerman.
I’m visiting my parents in Waynesboro, and I’ve left my husband home alone for a week. Hopefully, David will spend some time in this particular location while I’m in PA. =)
(hint, hint, D!)
short, originally uploaded by tara.aukerman.
Oh, yeah. I didn’t post that I got a haircut! It’s pretty dramatic. I’ve had really long hair for a long time - now I don’t.
It’s a bizarre photo of me - I don’t look much like myself - but you can see my haircut. I have to blow dry and curl my hair every day with this cut. *sigh* I get about 20 minutes less sleep than I used to.
fast, originally uploaded by tara.aukerman.
Dave’s got fast feet. =)
sniff, originally uploaded by tara.aukerman.
My dog never just lets me take his picture… This is what I see every time I get close enough to him to take a close-up picture.
roar, originally uploaded by tara.aukerman.
Bethany (my best girlfriend and ex-roomie) gave this bowl to me. It’s where I keep the chocolate (every girl has a stash somewhere). Every time the supply runs out, I smile - this is what I see when there’s no more chocolate.
Today, we ran out of chocolate.
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