The Podiatrist

Yesterday I drove over to the podiatrist’s office.  The boss gave me the hundred bucks I needed to be seen ($100 up front, since I’ve got no insurance.  oh joy).  I was supposed to be there by 4:15 for an appointment at 4:30.  I don’t drive much during the daylight hours, so I doubled the time I thought I would need to get to 105th and Glisan, where the podiatrist’s office is located.  I even geve my self a few extra minutes so I could stop and get a pack of smokes.  There have been times when I’ve about lost it, driving around in the daytime – it is very different than driving in the early morning hours… but it is light out, so that’s some compensation.  The reason I say I’d somtimes freak out is that the traffic yesterday was worse than I thought it would be.  I’m sorta surprised by how well I took it, in fact.  (I wish I could feel that way more often, driving…)

Anyway, I had my cell phone with me, so I knew I could call if I needed to, and just kept driving (ok, creeping along at one point, rrrr).  Glisan has it’s own exit off I-205, so I took it and drove east on Glisan, looking out for 105th.  I had thought about doing the Yahoo location finder before I went, but didn’t, so of course the building housing the dr.’s office was on the north side of Glisan and I was in the south lane.

Ok, no problem- turn in this street here and into that driveway and back out onto Glisan and directly accross the surprisingly suddenly empty street.  Hobbled into the building lobby after parking as close as I could (and there was an empty space not too far from the building’s entrance…).  Checked the lobby guide to see if the doc’s name was indeed there (have I ever gone to the wrong bldg before? well…  ) and took the elevator up to the third floor, where my new doc’s office is- right next to and sharing a waiting room with a couple of pediatricians (children’s doctors).  I looked at my watch and it was just 4:16- pretty much right on time!  And, late enough in the day so that no screaming infants were around, just a couple of moms and school-aged kids.  Not really eye candy, but hey, a smile is a smile.

Filled out the paperwork and handed over the hundred bucks the boss had given me for this and waited a while, saw the doc, and got this boot from him:

He was a young doc- not younger than I am, but only like 8-10 years older.  I liked him from the minute we met- always a good sign with health care professionals.  He showed me the X-rays and explained the break to me this way-

At first when I fell, I thought for sure that my ankle had been weak and had turned on itself, spilling me to the ground.  The doc says indeed that’s the way it went, but that the ligaments and tendons on the top of the foot are Strong, and that as my ankle turned, they sought to correct and pulled the other way – and snapped the bone they are connected to, the one that is now fractured.  He says it should heal cleanly, if I’m nice to it (my words, not his) and if I guide it’s regrowth with this brace.

*

8 weeks from now, I’m to go back and get X-rayed to see how the break is refilling.  I’m to wear this brace as much as I can, but I should be ok for work again on Monday.  I asked about that not because I’m such a gung-ho worker, but because I need the money and because I haven’t sat around at home all day for a couple of years.

Yeah, it is my second year of doing the dailies.  I began this job back in January 2004, doing the two editions of the Sunday paper on the weekends and working at the Oregon Zoo other days.  The guy doing the dailies then was a 300 lbs (seriously) guy who had a stroke and so the boss was doing all the work himself (well, him and the afternoon driver).  The zoo job didn’t work out, and the paper routes needed a driver, so I stepped from one iffy job to an everyday-needs-to-be-done kind of job, and have done that since June of 04.  I have not had more than a day off since then, except whe K* came in the summers – I had Tuesday and Friday nights off, but have been working six days a week for two years.

So, it’s kinda wierd to be home for days on end.  I wonder what Blacky Cat thinks?

I slept without the boot on, of course.  I mean, I didn’t think I’d get such good sleep if I knew I was tearing up the bed with this oh so elegant boot, ya know?  I got a good seven plus hours of sleep and was not overly surprised to find that my foot still hurts.  I have four more days of no work.  I need to talk to the boss about some "comp" money because bills are due (and over-due) and it’s the right thing for him to do, since workman’s comp doesn’t cover the self-employed like me.  I’ll be talking to the manager about my reduced pay this next two months- I’m not going back to full time work, just most-of-the-time. (and, I’ll be looking for "better" employment)

I intend to keep working, but at a reduced amount, which will affect my take home pay, but since housing is set at 30% of my gross, my rent will go down too.  Good thing.

I have more calls to make and papers to gather, but today is a mostly un-ordered day for me, thanks be.  I feel like I’ve been busy since this happened (although it ain’t true) so it’s nice to have a day where I don’t Have to do much.  I’ll get caught up on my favs and begin thinking of those memes for some of my favs and will take it easy today.

ICBW