Irish Festival

Big Irish Festival here this weekend. — at Clement Park.  I had a waffle and scrambled egg sandwich (really good!) at Le Peep this morning, then we walked around the lake at Clement Park, adjacent to the festival site, apparently before it started. Lots of huge Killians Stout ads attached to the chain link fences around the area. We stopped at Boulder Running Company by the lake, and I picked up new walking shoes and a dual water bottle belt for future warm walks with the pup. Big day. ;-) The really good news, is that I never even thought to consider what pain level my ankle was at. Then went home and made lunch for K.

Le Tour

We've been watching the NBCSP coverage of Le Tour De France, as we get ready for bed each night this week. Very fun. Sometimes I have to stop, and catch my breath, as my adrenaline starts pumping, while watching them juggle for position in the last few kilometers, and then sprint for the finish.

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to us! We had no special plans, so I stopped at Tony's Deli for some anniversary treats for dinner. A ham and Swiss sandwich for K, made just the way she loves it. BBQ brisket. Watergate salad. Some cupcakes. And a stuffed pepper. Yum! Oh, and some nice looking and smelling flowers.

Generally good morning

K's wounds all look like they're healing up nicely. Big sigh of relief. Ken and I went for breakfast at The Egg & I this morning. I'm so glad to find another place that has shady patio seating, so Mandy can hang with us. Then we went for a walk along the South Platte River, which went really well. It's a welcome treat, when every step isn't accompanied by a significant pain spike. It was a beautiful (cool moist) day for a walk. I caught some fun bird pics, too. Click on the little picture icons on the RunKeeper page for that walk. We saw Canadian Geese standing in the river on a barely submerged bar, a white Heron, a Black Crowned Night Heron, a Blue Heron, and the ubiquitous (in Spring) families of ducks with their ducklings.

Not the best start

I decided to save that day of vacation (everyone else was doing the "take a day of vacation, get a 5-day weekend" thing), and work today. It was a bit like a tomb there, so I got lots done. I got home, hoping to start my long weekend by doing something fun with K, like going out to a movie, but she's miserable and tired tonight. She says she tried to use her crutches today, but stumbled and fell on top of them, bruising herself in the process. Heavy sigh...

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Independence Day to everyone! Ken and I had a nice (hot) walk with the dog along the river after a delicious Wisconsin Scramble and raisin toast breakfast at Egg & I. We're heading over to their house, to enjoy a quick holiday hot dog, then K and I are off to drop her at dialysis for the evening. And that's our big holiday, in a nutshell. Maybe if somebody has a public fireworks display (most are canceled), we'll get to listen to that, or maybe see one from the deck, if the haze clears up a little.

Wounds

Kristan was doing her regular foot check Friday morning after showering, and noticed several wounds on her left foot. Looks like there's a blister on her ankle from the orthotic boot, and two wounds on the side of the foot, probably from the compression stocking. She saw her new podiatrist on Tuesday and he's not too concerned, but we're a bit freaked out. She needs to watch them closely.

Leap Second?

I hope everyone got a lot of productivity out of their free "leap second" on Saturday night! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leap_second

Progress

I just accomplished walk #4, along the South Platte River, in a regular sneaker. Progress! — at Mary Carter Greenway Trail.

DeKoevend Park

This place is an nice walking alternative to Willow Spring Open Space, especially considering that Willow Spring is submerged today, under several feet of water, from the big storms over the last few days! — with Freddie Dempster at DeKoevend Park.

Looking good

Ortho doc says the ankle looks really good. I can start using a low shoe! :-) Not sure why it's still draining. :-/ But he says it's not deep. Use a little triple antibiotic on it for awhile. See what the ID doc says at the next appointment.

Garage rearranged

Thanks to Ken and Amy, for helping me rearrange the contents of the garage this evening, in preparation for tomorrow morning's garage door replacement. We had a little "event" awhile back on a snow day, when someone was getting a running start to back up onto our slippery driveway, and they overshot and rammed the little door. Doesn't look or work too good any more, and not repairable, and they can't replace just one and have them match. So we're replacing both with new doors tomorrow, and while we're at it, we're adding some extra gadgetry...

Walking the South Platte

We had a bagel at Panera Bread, then headed off up the South Platte River trail. We're halfway... One mile down, outbound, one to go back. — at South Platte Park Weber Rest Area.

Walking Willow Spring Open Space

Beautiful day for a walk around the park. We're just keeping our eyes on some rapidly building cumulus clouds... — at Willow Spring Open Space.

PT Session

I can walk backwards again! Maybe this PT is helping, after all! — at HealthOne Englewood Occupational Medicine.

Freedom Day!

Went to Infectious Diseases for my sixth weekly appointment, after taking my last dose of IV antibiotic this morning. My labs from last week were normal. And, they pulled out the PICC line. Woo hoo!

Blood Draw

Saw my new Neurologist about my numb toes. Then I stopped at a nearby lab, and (it seems!) had almost all my blood drained, so they can screen for what's causing the neuropathy. I've never waited so long, to serve a Vampire before. The lab tech was really apologetic about how many vials of blood she took, so I stopped at the drugstore on the way out, for a bottle of orange juice. — at LabCorp.

Visited David

Visited with my old friend David, for a few hours. We're both having tough times right now, but we both enjoyed seeing each other. I think he enjoyed the slide show I gave him, of dozens of pictures on my iPhone...

Memorial Day

Silently thanking everyone who served and didn't make it back. Our Memorial Day walk around the park started with a rousing set of bagpipe music, as the pipers warmed up for today's ceremony. — at Ketring Park. As we got halfway around the park, the bagpipers across the park were playing "God Bless America" ... and then my heart started to ache. — at Ketring Lake. The unexpected bonus today, was the flyover of a couple of F-15 jets from Buckley Air Base nearby. They went exactly over our heads, as we stood in the parking lot, listening to the end of the Memorial ceremony nearby. Stirring.

Just a few more IVs

All setup for my afternoon IV. Only four more days of this... 12 more doses, every 8 hours... 96 more hours... until my IV freedom day!

Walking the Platte

Venturing farther than ever! Two miles round trip. Only a few stabs of pain, when I happen to move my ankle a certain way. — at South Platte River.

K&S at Ted's

I took K for a welcome K&S dinner out this evening, after her "girl's day out" with a friend. No waiting on Saturday evening. Go figure! And now nice. — at Ted's Montana Grill.

Walk at Clement Park

Got a nice walk, mostly around the lake at Clement Park. Looking forward to getting all the way around sometime soon.

First PT session

OK, so let's see what this prescription for Physical Therapy can do for all my pain. — at HealthOne Englewood Occupational Medicine. Update: PT was... Fun?! She didn't push me too hard, but my ankle, and all the muscles and ligaments around it, definitely had a workout. Oh, and I had it completely wrong about it helping with the pain. PT is about mobility... apparently. The pain's worse than ever today, but there are some nearly pain-free moments, which I trust will increase, as my foot gets used to being walked on again.

Leaving the walker home

Took my first fairly long walk, without the rolling walker. Pain is clearly a bigger factor, during this second recovery period. I guess I've just been off my right leg too long, and it's complaining about everything, from the toes to the knee. — with Mikele Hushing-Kline at DeKoevend Park.

Happy Mom's Day!

Wishing all my Mom friends out there a very special Mother's Day! Thanks for all those special moments you took to help out your kids (any everyone else), when nobody else even noticed that things weren't perfect.

Denny's

Denny's is a nice, easy, place to stop for lunch, after a good checkup at South Denver Infectious Disease Specialists (SDIDS) nearby on Old Hampden Ave.

Back to the boot

Saw the Ortho doc this morning. Mikele came too, since she was visiting. Well, the good news is, I'm out of the splint, and the same old Ace bandage that's been holding it on for the past two weeks. And most of the stitches are out. And I'm allowed to resume putting weight on it, as long as I use the klunky black Ortho-friendly boot with 5 Velcro straps. "Listen to the pain," he said... Huzzah! And the pain says, "Ow! Ow! Ow! Get that weight off me!!!" Dang. Well, we'll hope to see some improvement over the next 3 weeks, until I see the doc again.

Walk at Clement Park

Gliding on the walker, on the trail around the lake at Clement Park. Well, at least my left leg is getting a workout these days.

AEHF-2 Launched!

Today we launched AV-031, an Atlas V carrying AEHF-2, from Cape Canaveral LC-41