Christmas Blues and Bruise

On the Friday before Christmas, I was riding my new winter commuter build to the coffee shop, trying out the new gearing, when I hit a patch of particularly slick ice at about 18 mph. I hit the ground hard, left knee first (closely followed by my ribs on that side). I don't think anything broke, but the knee swelled up pretty big, and I have some bruised ribs for sure.

I hit the ground right at an intersection, and slid to the second house from the next intersection. The ice was hard enough that the bike slid as far as I did; the pedal never even dug in and slowed or stopped it. As I got up, I knew that I was hurt, but I continued on to Kaladi Brothers for my morning coffee.

I stopped on the D.U. campus and took a couple of pictures, then went to the coffee shop. As I sat, I flexed my knee, periodically, in an effort to prevent it from becoming too stiff to ride home. I didn't want to bother anyone, calling for a rescue, and i knew that it was going to be a challenge to ride, even if I kept the knee flexible. Every time I flexed the knee, the pain would make my vision start to go black, and I would feel nauseated, so i would let up and do it again, a fter a few minutes. It was a strange visit to the coffee shop...

But, it worked, and I was able to ride home, in a slow and ouchy sort of way.

I took last week off, at work, in order to recuperate. Eleven days later, the knee is still tender to the touch, and I have a limited range of motion. I can bend it to sit in a chair, or drive, but I can't make a revolution of a bike crank. (And, yes, I have been icing it and taking ibuprofen.)

Needless to say, I didn't get a lot of projects done, since I was trying to stay off of my feet, for the most part. By Thursday, I was able to bend the knee enough that I could install my new anti-gremlin bell on my motorcycle. Carol got it for me, for Christmas, to replace the one I lost when I broke the clutch cable on the Scrambler.

I used a stainless steel zip tie to hold it on. The copper wire, which held the original, is in my tool
bag.

I also got Ted's school-desk tabletop guitar finished...

All I had to do was design and cut the pickguard, and do the final setup on the bridge. It came out really nice.

By Saturday, with the help of an afternoon nap and numerous shots of Wild Turkey as we played, I was able to get through our show at Englewood Tavern with little discomfort. It was a hoot playing there, and we will be returning. I just need to arrange it.

Needless to say, no New Year's Day Bike Ride, this year. I'm hoping to be able to ride within the week. I figure that I will wait until the scab on my knee is gone to worry about the knee joint, itself. I figure it will take at least as long to heal as the skin over my kneecap will take. If it's still a problem after the scab is gone, I will call the doctor.

More, later...

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