• Kavi brought me cheesy potatoes in bed last night because she felt sorry for me, and they were delicious (to be clear, she was already planning to make them for herself, but she did let me eat more of them because of my busted ankle)
• I woke up this morning not in pain, unless I try to actually move my ankle, so that’s a definite improvement over last night. I took some more ibuprofen just in case, since I imagine there will be some inevitable movement and I’d prefer not to feel my ankle throbbing.
• moving it in any direction hurts, and there are sore points all around the ankle if I press on it. The worst is on the outside, where the big swelling was. They have it wrapped up so much now, I can’t really tell if the swelling has gone down at all — I think maybe? This is called a ‘roll’ injury, I think, and is apparently common in soccer players. I wish I was doing something sporty like playing soccer when I got it, instead of just missing a step on my own stairs. Sigh.
• Anand was my feet this morning — I got myself downstairs (scooting on my butt) and to the living room (on my crutches), but then sent him to get my laptop from upstairs, and a scrunchie that I’d forgotten, and a power cord. Then I talked him through making me breakfast — toasting an English muffin with butter, which he hadn’t had himself before — he tried it and pronounced it good, and promptly made one for himself. Also talked him through brewing my tea — Kevin and Kavi usually make it for me, I think this was Anand’s first time. And he brought me my meds. So I’m all set for the next little bit at least, and I didn’t need to wake Kevin up to help me. (He’s an owl, not a lark!)
• I’ve decided not to try to teach in person today; a doctor friend saw my plan to do so, and told me that I really ought to keep my foot elevated all day. For the first 24-48 hours after the injury, that’s apparently important for reducing swelling. One of my classrooms is so crowded I don’t think we even have an extra chair I could use to elevate the foot, so I’m reluctantly going to teach remotely today. The only plus side is that we’re doing story critiques in both of my classes, so I’d only be talking for 3-5 minutes / class anyway; the students do most of the talking when we’re doing critiques. I can listen just fine on Zoom. And then I’ll go back on Friday to teach in person. It’ll be fine.
• I’m a little unclear on the ‘keep it elevated’ thing. Initially, I was trying to keep it elevated above my heart, to decrease blood flow. Am I supposed to continue to have it raised that much? That means lying down all day, which is sub-optimal for all the e-mail work I really do need to get through. Can I be sitting up and have the ankle at 90 degrees elevation, as pictured? Maybe most of the time lying down and elevated above the heart, with just a few hours at 90 degrees, maybe spaced out in 30-minute chunks? Inquiring minds want to know.
• UPDATE: talked to doctor friend, and she says 90 degrees is fine, that today I just don’t want it dependent (hanging down), because there’s likely to be swelling today, and the compression from the splint is compromising the blood movement, blood return from my toes, etc. So that’s good!
• I am realizing that I really want to have some handwork near me, because it makes me a little crazy to not have my hands busy, but Anand needs to run to school now, so I’ll wait on Kevin getting up for that.
• I just finished reading The Watchmaker of Filigree Street (pictured), by Natasha Pulley, and I really liked it. If you’re in the mood for a subtle, complex, slow historical read with a lovely speculative element, well-handled and well-written, take a look.
• I’ve bought the next book in the series, but will likely go back to reading Sugi Ganeshananthan’s Brotherless Night first — that one is very good, but I have to take it in chunks, because it’s emotionally difficult for me to read. I’ve read too many news accounts of what happened in Sri Lanka, had too many family members affected, etc.
Okay, I think that’s the update. (For those who missed the saga so far, scroll back in my feed.)
