Doctor's visit, and a New Bracelet

And the two have NOTHING to do with each other.

But 1st, the weather. We are having the MOTHER of all thunderstorms right now. Big booming thunder, pouring rain (that sideways kinda rain), low rumbling thunder, and lots of lightning. So far, the power has only gone out once, and that was brief.  It has been very overcast all day (but still 96 degrees, of course) - but at 4:30 I noticed that there was suddenly no light at all in the bedroom except from the bedside lamp (and the computer, and the TV...) - I looked at the windows, and it was just pitch black outside. And one minute later, the storm just seemingly came out of nowhere, full blast. Naturally, Bailey is now in hiding in my closet.

OK - Now the story about the new bracelet:

Future bracelet, 10 AM, Sunday, 7/11/10 - these are 16 gauge sterling silver rings made from square wire:

Bracelet, 3PM, Sunday, 7/11/10. This is the tryzantine (trizantine) pattern, a variation of the more well-known Byzantine pattern, using 3 rings at a time instead of 2 (that's a fairly basic over-simplification). I love how just changing from rings made from round wire to those made from square wire can completely change the look of the finished piece. And those of you who know me well know that my motto (for almost everything) is "the bigger the better" - so I am always going for the heavier gauge rings, and the wider weaves.

Different view of my new bracelet: There is no clasp yet, because I forgot to bring any home with me from the shop. So I will add a clasp tomorrow, and tumble it, and as they say on Etsy, "wallah!"**  I will have a shiny new bracelet!

I learned this weave in school last month - but it was a really quickie lesson, and I only made up one tryzantine unit, and packed it away with the rings, waiting for the opportunity to start in on it when I felt a little better. And I had left the handout directions at the shop - because who needed them? Well, I'll tell you who: ME. Because I am no longer 22 years old, and evidently can't remember what I had for lunch yesterday, much less directions to a new chainmaille weave I briefly worked on 5 weeks ago. So I spent about 2 hours on the computer yesterday trying to find a free tutorial, and finally, "wallah"! And I was able to make the bracelet.

Oh - and speaking of Etsy - I have many, many new listings in my shop - things I have made over the past 2 years and never gotten around to photographing (ugh) and listing. I spent all day last Saturday (7/3) photographing the stuff, and most of 7/4 and 7/5 doing the listings, and I have been gradually adding 1-3 items a day to my shop. Still have about 40 things to add!

I saw the THHS (Tall, hot, handsome surgeon) for my first post-op visit this AM (cue the tiny violins: he was in Cancun, lying by the pool, last week. And yes, I was eavesdropping as he was telling one of the nurses about his vacation as he was running between rooms, seeing patients. What of it?)

THHS says I am healing wonderfully, but he is very concerned about my persistent laryngitis/hoarseness. On the day after surgery, as he was discharging me from the hospital and explaining stuff, and telling me he would be putting off my normal 1-wk post-op visit until 7/12 because he was going to be "on vacation" blah blah blah He told me that I would be hoarse for up until 3 weeks, and not to worry. So, I haven't been worrying, because the 3 weeks isn't  up until 7/15.

But upon hearing, or NOT hearing, as the case may be, my voice this AM, he told me that he was concerned, and that in all the years he has been doing this surgery, he has only had 2 patients who had ultimately required cortisone injections INTO THEIR VOCAL CHORDS to restore their voice.

Excuse me - into their vocal chords? And as he is telling me this, he is miming a giant needle going in through the front of the neck - so I guess it is done under fluoroscopy? Who knows...

Then he says, and I am NOT making this up: "Why does everything weird always happen to YOU?"

Gee,.. THHS thinks I'm special! ♥

So he started me on high dose steroids to try to reduce the inflammation (woo-hoo - here comes the mania again!), before we start driving needles into my neck, and is standing up to leave -- because he is so far behind because of having been on vacation last week, boo hoo hoo ... and I told him that I had a few questions -

So he sits back down, and answers all my questions - one of which was about returning to my daily walks. Because Bailey and I had been walking 3 miles a day every day up until the day of surgery - and while I am not ready to do 3 miles tomorrow, I wanted to know if I could start walking again.  Except that last week, I suddenly developed this killer pain in both my heels - it's there when I get out of bed in the morning, but only when I step on the heel, and goes away after I have been up and walking for about an hour. But OMG, it is some bad pain - and stairs are the worst.

So he diagnoses plantar fasciitis. Great - that little devil can be a real bitch.

But he tells me that I developed it because I had been really working out my feet on those long walks, and the inactivity for the last 2 weeks is the cause, and that we have caught it early, and that the high dose steroids he prescribed for my voice will also fix the plantar fasciitis. And that I should wait one week, and then very gradually start building up my walking again.

And I am to call him in 2 weeks if I still have either the hoarseness OR the heel pain.

THE END.

**Yes, I know how to spell "voila".