Magneto & Titanium Man or Not for the Squeamish or Son of Frankenstein

Doctor Update: Kirt is scarred. Yes, those are metal staples. And now they are gone (a slightly scary and "bee sting feeling" event), but I came through it. I'm sure there will be a scar. If you look closely at the X-rays, you can see the staples. Good news is I can put some "walking weight" (about 10-15 lbs) on the leg and can walk with along with the crutch. I have this brace that will allow me to bend 90 degrees for now, and may expand that in a couple of weeks. So, I can bend it enough to get into the front seat of the car and that means driving is next. Good things are coming. I may be limited in what I can do, but I'm still going to go to San Diego with the kids in May. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

It's not because I'm old . . . I'm not arrogant!

When we told our neighbor we were only now going to put hand rails in our shower we just remodeled last Fall, but didn't put hand rails in, she accused us of being so arrogant. Did we really think an accident wouldn't happen and one of us might not ever slip in the shower? Just as a safety precaution, we should have put them in. We had the reinforcements built in, but now with my limitations, we figured it was time to install. Nick, our contractor who did our remodel had tried to convince me back then to also install a "tall throne" toilet, but I hesitated. He said the high level makes it an easy sit, and the super flush eliminates all sized small animals with one "swoosh." Nick has these in his house, and his toddlers just have to climb higher, he says. With an immobile left leg, he had my attention now. And, let me tell you, I know why they call it a throne. I feel like royalty. Luckily, Lorrie has long enough legs to reach the floor or she might be relegated to the guest bath. We can now sell the house to an old couple . . . oops, that is us . . . (an older couple)!

The coolest thing about the toilet lid is it is safety hinged. So, when you start it closing, it slowly closes like the auto-door closers in buildings. No slamming the lid, nor getting your fingers caught. Some thought photos were too much. So, we pulled them to spare your tender concerns.

Thanks!

I just want to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers and expressions of concern. This has truly been quite an ordeal but I think everyone has weathered this well, and we shall see how it has grounded our faith, and given us new understanding about those things that are most meaningful in life. It has taught us patience, perserverence, and perspective.

I am sure you all are aware that the event that has changed our marriage forever is the ride down from Bogus Basin, with Lorrie at the wheel, while Kirt (suffering excruciating physical pain) managed to allow her to drive in peace. (Well, almost.) But it truly was revelatory.

But seriously folks, thanks for all your thoughtfulness. Dad built me a ramp to make getting in and out of the house much easier. Others have brought me delicious eats or equally important thoughtful expressions of interest. To all, I say, Thank You.

The Surgery was a Success!

My ACL was not blown, and so that is good news. My surgeon was really good and he seems positive on my recovery. I'll need to be on crutches for 8 weeks. After the first 10 days, I"ll get a soft cast that will allow me to bend my knee. But these first 10 days, not only will I have a straight immobilizer, but I have to give myself shots in the stomach as a blood thinner to prevent blood clots. I'm also supposed to do ankle twists as often as I can to keep the blood flowing. Malorie is concerned about blood clots, so she'll be glad I'm working on that.

Here are some pictures of the xrays during the surgery. I ended up with one plate and all those screws. I don't know if I'll set off metal detectors, but I'll have to check this out.

Right now, I'm pretty loopy from drugs, so good luck trying to make sense of anything I'm doing. Needless to say, I'm not driving (because of the narcotics) and because my leg won't fit in the front seat. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

Here's my Tag Team

O.K. I'm into the simple things of life lately: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff . . . and it's all small stuff: page 123: "If you attend a gathering and listen to all the criticism that is typically levied against others, and then go home and consider how much good all that criticism actually does to make our world a better place, you'll probably come up with the same answer that I do: Zero!"

I'll tag:

Mackenzie
Leslie
Erin
Meredith
Janalee

Does anyone else read my blog?

Tag? I'm it?

Well, now, I only heard about this game after reading Lesley's blog today (and Les, I would have figured out what you were talking about, given your hints. We saw the Unity Church!) Dad read aloud to me that I'd been tagged, so here's my closest book--"Whole Wheat Baking"! ( I was in the kitchen at the time--too bad I wasn't near my nightstand!)

Here's the 5th line from Page 123--TO MAKE THE TOPPING: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in the brown sugar and cook... (Yummy!) The recipe is for Cherry-Almond Bread Pudding (Yucky!) if, perchance you LIKE bread pudding, and want the recipe, let me know--I'll send it to you.

I tag: ( I used your middle names in case you think I'm talking to another Jonathan, etc.)
Jonathan Micheal
Tyler Roland
Kristie June
Mark Curtis
Steven James


Here are the rules:
1. Grab the book closest to you (has to be at least 123 pages)
2. Turn to page 123
3. Find the 5th sentence
4. Post the 5th sentence on your blog
5. Tag 5 people

Fun! I'll be watching your blogs!

Surgery Blues

Kirt saw the surgeon yesteday, and is scheduled for surgery tomorrow afternoon. Yikes! This is a little more complicated than we first thought. It involves scopes, extenders, bone graft and staples. Double yikes!

The tibial plateau is flat, and the femor about it is like an arched bridge. When Kirt hit, the left side of the femoral bridge hit the flat plateau, cracking one side of the "t" off, and making a divot in the top of the flat plateau. It could heal on it's own, but Kirt would have major trouble in 5 years. We were hoping this would be an outpatient thing, but our surgeon will go in, open the leg, and do all the repairs, including filling in all the cracks and holes. It will take about 2 1/2 hours, so as you can see, it won't be an outpatient thing.

What is good news is this--the ER doc had told Kirt that he would probably be in a hard fiberglass cast for 8 weeks, but he won't! He'll be in a stiff brace for 12 days, then a brace that will allow the knee to move. He'll start physical therapy at that point, riding a stationary bike with no tension every day. He'll also be able to ride in the front seat of the car again. In our last few car rides, he has truly been a "backseat driver." I appreciate his tips, hints, and directions.
Of course, that's as soon as he's no longer taking pain medication!

He will ski again, although tennis for the summer is more than likely out!

Kirt's Toboggan Ride!

Skiing isn't enough winter sports for me. I wanted to do some sledding. So, on the last run before we stopped for lunch, I was in some light powder next to the groomed run and I turned to the left. Unfortunately, I caught my left ski edge, which spun me around 360 degrees, slamming me into the snow on my left side. I'm sure it was a spectacular wipe out to witness. I only remember spinning around and I heard something "pop" on my left leg, and then my body located the hard ground. . . with emphasis on the word "HARD." The impact knocked the air out and I couldn't breathe for quite a time. A couple skied up to see if I was o.k. and I couldn't even talk, because I couldn't breathe. The guy seemed anxious to get going, and announced, "Good to see you'll be fine," and they skied off. My skis were still on, but I couldn't stand up. My left leg just wouldn't work. As I sat there, another skier, named Jon came up to see if he could help. I was only about 50 feet from the bottom of the hill, and Lorrie had skied down to take off her skis for lunch. I asked him to tell her where I was. He did, and when Lorrie looked up the hill, she asked if the "clump" was me, and he said yes. She then knew I had not been playing with her.

Ski Patrol arrived, and strapped me in the toboggan and off we went to the medical shed. I had slammed down on my left side so hard my ribs on that sid were hurting. Other than my knee, which was swelling by the minute, and my ribs, I was fine. Ski Patrolman Keith recommended that I see a doctor, since it seemed like it was serious. They helped me get into the car, and Lorrie drove down the mountain. For those of you who have driven the road to Bogus Basin or driven with Kirt in the passenger seat, you know how nerve racking both experiences are. Now, add to that an injured and delirous-with-pain Kirt, and I'm sure you all are now more sympathetic to the plight of Lorrie than the injuries of Kirt. After a few minutes, Lorrie ignored me, and I realized she was ignoring me. So, we made it down fine.

Lorrie's most inspired moment came when she suggested that I call my GP Doctor, who got us in. I'll now hit the high lights only: Doctor says looks like a tendon strain, but to be safe, need x-rays. Likely nothing serious, but if it is, the radiologist will call doctor. Radiology tech says the radiologist won't get reading to doctor until Monday, unless it is serious. After images developed, tech announces I have a "significant” injury, so I’ll have to go upstairs to ER. My doctor is talking with the ER doctor. ER doctor shows me on x-ray that I have a Tibial Plateau Fracture. If you look closely at my x-rays, on the right side of the Tibia, you can see a piece that is cracked. He orders a CT scan to see if it is displaced, and it is by about 1/4 inch. Which means I need to meet the surgeon Monday to figure out what kinds of screws, plates, bolts, nuts or other hardware may need to be inserted to fix it. It seemed that every step of this process just brought more bad news. The only good news was the doc sent me home with Vicodin.

So, I'm now at home, immobilized with this splint do-hickey that keep my leg straight. Oh, did I tell you my left ribs still feel like a Sumo Wrestler sat on me? I don't know what I will do, since with the immobilzer, I can't sit in the front seat of the car, let alone drive. LORRIE IS SO NICE TO ME. She takes care of me, and is so willing to help me. I would be lost without her.

Hope the surgeon has better news next week.

DUTCH OVEN EXTRAVAGANZA to the Fifth Power

We held the Fifth Annual Naylor Conference Weekend Extravaganza on Friday. We had the Families Wagner, Naylor, Colvin, Hallmark, Morris, Sasser and Hall. We ate, golfed balls at Kirt taking pictures, played with babies, ate, talked, flew kites, ate, and just had a great time. Though it was a bit windy/cool, we still had a great time. It is so fun to get altogether. We're sad some will be gone by October, and we missed Jake & Lindsay (and Reese). Thanks to all for coming!

Max in Bloom

One of the prettiest places in my gardens is the one pictured above. It marks the final resting place of Max, our dog for 16 years. The forsythia is just now blooming. Max's "guys" keep a silent vigil over his stone, never to squeak again. April 2 marks the date that Max left us, but I think of it today, because it happened the date after we returned to Boise from Salt Lake City, after attending conference.

Max is a good dog. I miss him. He was my daytime pal, he always listened to me, and never talked back. In his earlier years, before he lost his hearing, he would always meet me at the door after hearing the garage door go up, tail wagging. Whenever I made scrambled eggs for breakfast, he would come wandering out to the kitchen, a little sleepy, but with his tail still wagging. How could he tell the difference between a tuna can, which would bring him running, and any other can? (Maybe it was the smell!) He didn't like thunderstorms, and would try to jump up into bed with us at the first crash. How could he tell the difference between Mackenzie and Malorie? (maybe it was the smell!) I have to vacuum the kitchen a lot more now that he's not around.

He was brave, and kept trying to be a good dog right up to the very end. I'm sure he's happy now, with his hearing intact, and vision clear!

Acrophobia Anonymous

You might be surprised to learn that I am afraid of heights. Yes, I have someone else get on my roof to put up Christmas lights, or destroy the wasp nests hanging under the eaves. Surprisingly, I can look out my 6th floor office with windows that go to the floor. I wasn't ever sure why I had this phobia, but today it all came back to me.

Many years ago, as a boy, I was skiing at what was then called Park City West in Salt Lake City. My brother Mike and I were riding the Iron Horse chair lift. This was back in the day when the chairlift consisted of a 2-seater, with a center pole dividing the 2 riders, and a wrap around "guardrail" about 4 inches off the seat. That's all there was. No protective arm coming down to lock you into place; no foot rest. The Iron Horse was a mile long, and just before you get to the top, it crossed a massively wide valley, which couldn't support a lift pole. So, right as we were traveling over the widest part of the valley, and suspended hundreds of feet off the snowy ground, the lift abruptly stops. For those of you non-skiers, let me explain to you the laws of physics about what happens at that precise moment: the chair you are riding on stops and starts bouncing up and down, because your supporting stability poles are far away. At that moment, as the 4x2 foot slab called a chair bounced down and up, Kirt did not stay cemented to the seat. I thought it was going to bounce me off the chair, and I grabbed the center pole as fast as I could. (Even as I am retelling this event, my blood pressure is raising.) Luckily, Mike talked me down off the chair once it got going again and we had to disembark. Note: "Acrophobia can be dangerous, as sufferers can experience a panic attack in a high place and become too agitated to get themselves down safely." Wikipedia

So, today when we went to Solitude Ski Resort in Utah, Lorrie and I had a wonderful day. . . until the Apex chair lift. Mid-afternoon, we skied up to it, and Lorrie's pole got stuck in the fencing for a second and so she didn't make it on the chair with me. I suddenly realized that I wasn't on some high speed chair with safety rail and foot rest. No, I was sitting on the vintage 1970's era chair with a 4 inch rail around it and a pole in the middle. I was fine until I realized the steep grade we were climbing. And then as I passed one of the support poles, I looked up and to my sudden fear, I didn't see another support pole for what seemed to be 1/2 mile. In between, I would be passing over a valley with the snowy floor what seemed to be about 15 building stories, at least. At that moment (and for the next seemingly endless period of time until I reached the top) the panic attack described above came in full force upon me. I couldn't look down, or I knew I would pass out. I couldn't look up to where I was traveling, because that looked endless as we climbed higher and higher. I couldn't look behind to where I had been, because that would show just how far up I was. I was stuck. All I could do was close my eyes and think of myself somewhere else. "There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Since Lorrie's mishap had caused the lift to slow down, I just knew someone would fall getting on the lift, and it would come to a bouncing, swinging stop just as I passed over the middle of the valley of death. I seriously was freaking out. I had a death grip on the fake side rail, and the other hand firmly planted on the back of the chair. I was frozen. As the end of the lift approached, I could barely peel my poles out from under my leg, because I couldn't even lift my leg. As I landed safely on ground, I didn't even want to take any steep ski runs for fear of how high up I might think I was. I did settle down, and even took some more runs on ski lifts. But I have no shame in telling you that I did not, and never will ride on Apex Chair Lift again. Now, can someone help me prune my trees so I don't have to get on a step ladder?

Redemption Judged!

Today, I had an argument in front of the Idaho Supreme Court. This was a case that had already been to supreme court once before. I split my time with co-counsel, and this time, I went FIRST. I may be a fool, but not foolish. It was in Pocatello. The Court travels. I must be jinxed, because the last 5 times I have argued in the supreme court, I have NOT been in their courthouse in Boise. I've been in Idaho Falls and Pocatello. We were scheduled for this case to be in Boise last month, but then an attorney who had a hearing last fall had a heart attack the morning he was scheduled to appear, so they had to postpone his hearing. Since that case was older than ours, it got the March date, and we got moved to Pocatello. I thought about having a heart attack so we could move back to Boise, but decided that was too extreme. Lorrie and I then traveled to Utah for skiing, dutch oven extravaganza with the kids and family, General Conference, and food, food and food. Did I mention, food?

On the way from Pocatello to Utah, we stopped by the Peppridge Farms plant, just outside of Franklin. They have a thrift store with "seconds" including cookies and gold fish. Lorrie was hoping for mint milanos, but they are making those this week on Monday and Friday. So, today they only had Orange Milanos, but that was good enough. We bought a bag of those and a bag of Brussels (hard cookies covering dark chocolate). They sell these by the pound. They are good, and we'll share them. At least drving through Preston and Logan was more scenic than Sagebrush Freeway.