Broken Ankle Diary

Silly Season blog game

2006-12-21T09:59:00.000Z

No mention of ankles this time. Oops!

This came to me from Robert Helling, who tells me that this game of blog-tag has been doing the rounds of the string theory blogosphere, and it is time for it to break into the wild. So here are the instructions:

1. Grab the book closest to you. 2. Open to page 123, go down to the fifth sentence. 3. Post the text of next 3 sentences on your blog. 4. Name of the book and the author. 5. Tag three people.

So here's what I found:

This means that the central server is not actively checking services on its own. But what about host checks? You still need to do them, so how?

The book is a printout of the Nagios Version 2.0 Documentation by Ethan Galstad, which reflects the fact that I'm at my desk at work. I'm pleased to be able to claim that were I at my kitchen table or lying in bed, that the choice may have been of more general interest. Actually, that may not be true. If I were lying in bed, it could have been from the "Collins Pocket German-English, English-German dictionary". Which may have been interesting.

So now it's over to Emma , John, Eleanor.

All the best for the silly-season!

Anna

Now more than a year

2006-10-01T11:23:00.000+01:00

Well, it's now over a year since the break, and the ankle is much better and the stiffness and aching are still there but much diminshed.

This year there have been lots of changes for me. I've become single again in January, and bought Izzy out of her share of the house. It was touch and go for a while, fearing that I might not be able to afford it. I've also been renting out one of my bedrooms to help get my finances into balance, which has been a great help... though that's not been without some interesting moments! And I've been making a lot of progress with my German and with my lute playing.

Later this month I'm off to Berlin again to visit my friends Annette and Robert, and I'm trying to organise to go to Frankfurt in December to see Kimi. So that will be four trips to Germany in 2006. Which pleases me greatly!

I'm still getting the occasional email from people who've broken their ankle and have found this blog. To all those reading while recovering from fractures, I wish you a speedy and complete recovery! May you be pampered by your loved ones until long after you get better :-)

Update

2006-05-10T21:58:00.000+01:00

It's been a long time since my last post, and there's been a great improvement in my ankle since. It is now quite pretty well fully functional, and only occasionally gives me aches and pains. And with the spring weather finally getting off the ground it is even better.

It is rather stiff first thing in the morning, and since Casper decrees that my first action of the morning must be to go to the kitchen and give him his breakfast (or else face a barage of irate meows), I use my walking stick just to help me get down that once.

But in the last weeks, I've been getting an odd warm sensation in my foot, like blood has been pooling there. I'm getting it checked out tomorrow morning. Hopefully it will be nothing worth bothering about!

On Saturday morning, I'm off to sunny Germany for nine days, seeing friends in Darmstadt and Berlin. Yay!

Fracture Clinic

2005-12-01T11:12:00.000Z

I went to the FC yesterday afternoon, and explained the pain I'd been experiencing. The consultant decided to take another X-ray to see how it was going. He felt that it was all going as it should be, and hadn't been re-injured (my worst nightmare!), but that it was still a month or so too early to be going down stairs very much. So I'm going to avoid going down the stairs at work as much as possible. Going up is OK, I just need to use the lift to go down. At home, and when I can't avoid it, I'll use the half-speed technique where I bring both feet together on each step. That way I avoid the forward bend that causes the problem. He also suggested swimming again. So I'll take that as a reminder to get myself a new swiming costume and get cracking. Metaphorically, you understand.

Good but could be better

2005-11-28T14:30:00.000Z

It's been a while hasn't it! Not been much to report for a while. It's not far off six weeks since my cast was removed, and although I've improved enormously since then, I'm still having some trouble with walking and with going down stairs. Mostly it is pain in lifting my heel off the ground, and not being able to stretch forward (which makes it hard to go down stairs). I went out a couple of times on the weekend and found getting about quite difficult and painful. Which has prompted me to make an appointment to go to the Fracture Clinic on Wednesday to see what they suggest. Wish me luck!

Recovery progress

2005-11-15T21:17:00.000Z

It's been over a week since my last update. And things have been steadily improving. Today I went to work without my walking stick, and I can now walk more or less normally downstairs.

I've charted my recovery progress with the attached graph.

As you can see, there has been the expected drop in the level of broken ankleness, and a corresponding increase in the level of non-hurtingness. This is typical of a proper recovery. I predict a further drop of 15.674% in broken ankleness over the coming month, and for non-hurtingness to increase by 34.1569%.

Sunday stroll

2005-11-07T08:34:00.000Z

I was quite exhausted from my trip to town, and decided to stay at home on Sunday instead. I did get some exercise by walking to the shop and back in the afternoon. The same shops I took myself to on the wheelchair some time back.

I set off when the rain had cleared a bit, but wore my wet weather jacket just in case. The heavens opened up just after I left, but I pressed on.

This time the round trip time was 55 minutes. By wheelchair it was 1 hour 50, before the accident it took me 20 minutes on foot. Clearly, if you want a brisk walk, I'm not the one to ask along at present!

Anyway, I believe that at 2km for the round trip, that's my longest walk so far. And I did manage to get my ankle contributing a bit to my stride, rather than just being plonked down then lifted to the next place.

More recovery

2005-11-05T07:26:00.000Z

Saturday morning. Very happy not to have to get ready and go out this morning, and that for the first time my first steps of the day were quite comfortable and didn't require assistance from my stick. That's very positive.

I'm hoping to go to a concert that Gordon is organising in Hackney tomorrow morning, but haven't decided whether I'm up to it yet. Will see how I feel about it after I go into town this afternoon for a haircut. While in town, I'm going to look for a new swimming costume so I can start using the Parkside Pool for some enjoyable exercise.

I've survived a week at work, three days in the lab, and two at a course at Lucy Cavendish College. I only bottled it and took a cab on Thursday, after the torrential downpours of Wednesday evening made it look like cycling on Thursday was going to be too difficult for me. Well done me I say! ;-)

I survived

2005-10-31T20:53:00.000Z

I made it through my first day back at work without too many problems from reality inversion fields. I also managed to go to Tesco on the way home and pick up a bit of shopping. So a good result, but I shall be taking it easy for the rest of the evening!

Congratulations to Claire who had her cast off today and is doing very well!

Back to work

2005-10-31T08:03:00.000Z

You may remember that I mentioned that I'd had a email from a fellow traveller called Claire. Claire is having her cast taken off today, and I'm sure you'll all join me in wishing her the best of luck for a speedy recovery from here on!

I'm going back to work today, on this very autumnal morning, made slightly more poignant by our lack of hot water. Caused no doubt by our brash decision to turn the heating on for about half an hour on Saturday. The hubris! Now I've made sure that the hot water is turned on but not the heating, the radiators are hot and the water is coming luke warm from the tap.

I hope the rest of my day is not cloaked in a similar reality inversion field. What am I saying? I'm going in to work!

We went to the cinema yesterday afternoon. Don't think I was quite ready. We were standing in the queue to be let in ("Nanny McPhee" was the choice), eventually when I'd been standing beyond my capacity and there were lots of people crowded around I started to feel faint. So I bolted (in slow motion) for some stairs up to one of the other screens, and sat down with my head between my knees for a few minutes until I felt better. By then Izzy had gone in and saved me a seat. Fortunately, I felt fine after that.

Further progress post cast

2005-10-29T17:44:00.000+01:00

Here's some of the things that I've done for the first time in two months, over the past couple of days:

Friday:

first walk to the river (with Annette & Robert)
first trip to the pub on my bike, unfortunately some b*****d nicked my lights

Saturday:

first standup shower
first trip into town on my bike
first shuffle around the shops with Izzy (wasn't much of a shopping trip for her but it was all I could manage)

On the way home from the shops I stopped off at a bike shop and got some new lights fitted, including a very bright 4 LED front light. Which means that I'm ready to go back in to work on Monday. With British Summer Time ending tonight, it's going to be dark coming home from now on.

I've been performing a painful upgrade of my computer the last few days too, which is why I haven't posted for a little while.

The day after

2005-10-27T17:12:00.000+01:00

After feeling pretty good yesterday I had a terrible night's sleep. After bending and flexing for the first time in two months my ankle was aching, and I couldn't find a comfortable position to sleep in. When I got up, the ankle was very stiff again. After some ibuprofen and moving around a bit more while getting breakfast it improved. Izzy was even worse. She was having some pain last night and hardly slept at all. In any case she kindly retrieved my bike from our decrepit garden shed. Before lunchtime, I tried it out up and down the street at a slow steady pace. I decided to go back in, fetch my purse and try going to the shop and back. That went pretty well. After lunch there was some more aching sorted out with more ibuprofen. I've noticed that the skin around the fracture and up along the damaged bone feels hot compared to the surrounding skin and the same place on the other leg. I trust that is healing in action! I plan to try taking the bike a bit further tomorrow, and subsequent days so I can work up to the 4.7 km distance to the lab.

Free at last!

2005-10-26T18:21:00.000+01:00

The cast came off this afternoon. And the news is all good.

No moon boot. I can walk, very slowly, with just my walking stick. And I'm cleared to start using my bike as soon as I feel ready.

It's a very odd sensation at first when the cast was removed, all the layers of dry dead skin made it feel as though it was still in a shell. But the sensation of cool air on the skin was a real treat.

I've had a soak in a hot bath and sloughed off most of the dead skin (which smelled like a tramp, not having been washed for two months). It came off in sheets! There's still some more to come, so I'll probably repeat the exercise before I go to bed tonight.

I'm planning to try cycling a little bit tomorrow, and a little bit more each day on the weekend. Hopefully, I'll be confident enough to make the distance into work next week. Cunningly, I bought a folding walking stick so that I can take it with me when I cycle to places.

Off to the clinic shortly

2005-10-26T12:45:00.000+01:00

It's now about an hour before my cab comes to take me to the clinic, where I expect to be freed from my cast. I've got my camera charged ready, so that you, gentle reader can share the spectacle.

I've been undecided until this morning about whether to keep the wheelchair or take it back today. I've decided to keep it just a bit longer. I have friends coming at the weekend, and if we want to go out and I'm not up to walking it would still come in useful. After that, I intend to take it back at the first opportunity. That will make some more room and give me no alternative but to get on my feet.

And at some point I will need to think about getting the crutches back to the Royal Hallamshire in Sheffield...

Last night of the cast

2005-10-25T22:31:00.000+01:00

Assuming all goes well tomorrow, tonight is my last night with the cast on. I realise that I haven't given you a photo of the black one, so I've taken one while I still had the chance.

The last few nights have been free from aches, but I had one earlier this evening. Fortunately a couple of pain killers saw it off.

Walking stick

2005-10-25T11:04:00.000+01:00

It's now starting to sink in that the cast is coming off tomorrow... assuming all goes according to plan. I'm looking forward to it, but as I've said before somewhat anxious about what comes after that.

It has become hard to imagine being able to walk normally again, I have to keep reminding myself that sometime soon I'll be able to go for walks and all rest of it. I picture myself walking along the towpath, then suddenly I feel a fear that I won't be able to move and will be stranded. I expect that as my confidence improves, this will all go away.

On the practical side of things my walking stick arrived this morning. In a small enough package that the postman could push it through the letter flap. It folds into four pieces, down to about 20 cm long. When assembled (all you have to do is let it go and it springs into shape) it is incredibly rigid. Should do me nicely. I got the plain black version, not one of the elaborate floral ones that you can get. More me.

Gordon stayed the night last night, and we had a good luting session. He's become a grandfather as of last week. Baby Calvert was born on Friday.

Swans

2005-10-23T15:36:00.000+01:00

Izzy has just taken me down to the river, where we were lucky enough to see the swans again. Sadly we only saw four cygnets this time, where before there had been five. We're hoping that the reason for the discrepancy is that one has already flown away!

It's getting a bit cold now, so good to be back indoors with the mandatory cup of tea!

Uncertainty

2005-10-23T11:57:00.000+01:00

I'm pleased to say that the weekend has so far been free of ankle aches, though I've still had a little of the cramps in my right leg. And I'm pleased that it's nearly time to have the cast removed.

Izzy has been trying to talk me into going into town today, but I really don't want to. Next time I go into town, I want to be able to walk by myself. And I don't want the expense of another taxi fare both ways if I don't have to.

I'm also feeling very uncertain about what happens after Wednesday. It's hard to make any plans for the next few weeks, when I don't know how mobile I'll be.

What I haven't so far managed to do is get my bike serviced so it is all ready to go when I'm ready to ride it. Must get that done...

Deutschunterricht

2005-10-21T09:17:00.000+01:00

I booked a taxi each way, and set off yesterday afternoon to my first German lesson for the year (Intermediate II of the Cambridge University Language Programme). I enjoyed it very much, and am looking forward to making a lot of progress over the next months. As usually my confidence was both boosted and battered. Nice that my vocabulary seems to be very good (all that time watching German telly with the dictionary close to hand continues to pay off), but I'm not confident with speaking, and haven't been paying attention to some of the basics. Sorting this stuff out is the advantage of having guidance.

Unfortunately, after I got home I had some aching in my ankle. Probably from having sat for two hours without it being elevated. And I'm getting a little of that burning sensation around the knobbly bit of the ankle. Hopefully that will not increase so I can make it to "cast off day" next Wednesday.

Cramps again

2005-10-20T13:23:00.000+01:00

Forgot to mention, I had another bad case of the cramps again yesterday. Much better today, largely thanks to Izzy giving it a good Bowen treatment. But yesterday it had me in a lot of pain and at the point of tears most of the day. Roll on recovery!

I wonder if other sufferers get this?

Outings

2005-10-20T13:07:00.000+01:00

I've been getting about a bit more this week. First my cousin James came up from London on Monday night, and we met for dinner at the Free Press (first time I've been there PBA: post broken ankle). He's off next week to start a new job in Oslo. The youth of today are so adventurous!

Last night Jeremy and Nicola came up from London, and we went first to see Mozart's Requiem at King's College Chapel, then to dinner at Restaurant 22. A very nice evening was had. Must go to some more concerts at King's.

And tonight I'm off to my first German class of the year. Looking forward to getting back to it. I try to keep improving by myself, with the occasional study, and watching German TV by satellite, but going to a class really kicks things along. But for the time being I'll spare myself the embarrassment by keeping the blog in English.

Yesterday I received a lovely email from Claire, who broke her left ankle on 18th September. Much worse break than mine, but she was playing rugby! Poor girl has had a time of it! She found me through this blog, so a big warm hello to Claire if you're reading this!

Weekend update

2005-10-17T11:10:00.000+01:00

Well it was an eventful weekend. Before I start on what I got up to, I'll detail the ankle related news. Although I'm getting some aching still, I'm able to put a bit more weight on it, and so am getting up and down stairs much faster now.

On Saturday, John Buckman came over to play lute duets, which was a lot of fun as always. I coerced John into having a try at playing a couple of trebles. My playing has benefited so much from playing trebles over the years, so I hope John gets into them too. Chatting later, about business and geekery, John inspired Izzy to rebrand her businesses, and me to try out "Ruby on Rails" for web development. A really enjoyable visit.

Yesterday we went to see the new Wallace & Gromit film. No need to give you a review of the film, as if you like W&G you'll doubtless see it for yourself very soon. Suffice it to say that we enjoyed it very much. We saw it at the Vue at the Grafton Centre. The wheelchair access there was a lot easier than the Arts Picturehouse.

Not so invulnerable

2005-10-15T11:21:00.000+01:00

If you follow the link from the title of this post, you'll be taken to an article in this morning's Guardian. I might never have come across it if Theresa hadn't phoned this morning to tell me about it.

The writer, Anne Karpf, describes how life has been since breaking her leg in a fall in her kitchen. Her theme is the fine line between our lives as fully able bodied people and how easily we can cross that line. My fall was so ordinary and commonplace, who knows how many times I've ever fallen over. And from such a fall, I've had this experience of dependence, frustration and incapacity. People are actually surprised that in a way, I'm grateful to have experienced (well, it will be past tense soon) it.

Anne Karpf says that she's learned about kindness through her experience. I shouldn't be surprised if in a way she too is grateful for her experience. I know that I'm learning from this experience too, though it's too early to know what the main thing will be.

I don't want to break another bone, but I'm glad in a way that I've done it once.

Too long at the computer

2005-10-11T23:16:00.000+01:00

Late this afternoon I got sick of being stuck up in my study, so I printed some things out and took my work down to the radically different scenery of the kitchen table.

It definitely shows that I've been stuck at the computer too long, that when I was writing something in pencil I momentarily worried if I had spelled a word correctly, then thought to myself "it must be right because it didn't change colour"! Aaarggghhh!!!!

Stretching

2005-10-11T17:52:00.000+01:00

I've bored you all the last couple of posts about the cramps and tight tendons in my right leg. They're not gone yet, but I think yesterday's theory was correct. I've got their number and am getting the better of them.

My exercises to stretch that leg are making an improvement, even though they were a bit painful to begin with. I wouldn't normally push myself like that, but this couldn't be allowed to continue. Shortly I'm planning to go to the end of the street and back on my crutches for the exercise and stretching.

Also yesterday, there was a party at work to welcome the new postgrads to the lab. I was firmly, but gently persuaded to come by Janet. Glad I went. It was good to catch up with everybody, though I did feel a bit like a broken record telling everybody how it happened over and over. Aside from that it was good to reconnect with the place. Working from home all this time has made it all feel a bit abstract. And doing a lot of standing, as one does at parties, gave my right leg some relief, and convinced me that this was the way forward.

On another note, my plans to get the Guardian delivered came to nothing. It turns out that they won't deliver to our street because the delivery person was bitten here once. I don't know what they were bitten by, a werewolf probably, or maybe a hedgehog. All I can say is that if this is going to deprive me of my daily Grauniad/Kakuro/Crossword then it better have been an interesting bite!

Right leg pain

2005-10-10T09:19:00.000+01:00

My somewhat defective powers of reasoning have finally worked out where the problems with my "good" leg are coming from. Because it isn't getting stood on and walked on as much as normal, the tendons are shortening.

I'm going to try doing some gentle stretches over the next few days. If this doesn't put it right, I'll seek some help.

Apart from being quite uncomfortable at night sometimes, my left ankle doesn't usually bother me. I'm now putting a little bit of weight on it, and using it to steady myself most of the time. Sometimes this leads to the walking instinct to kick in, but a dose of pain usually snaps me out of it.

Using my left foot to steady myself has allowed me to go up and down the stairs in a standing position. It's possibly a bit slower progress than doing it on my backside, but it doesn't have the sitting down and getting up time at each end of the journey.

Slow Sunday, with random thoughts

2005-10-09T17:01:00.000+01:00

I've just got back from a "walk" with Izzy. We've been down to the shop and back via the towpath along the river. Good to get out of the house, it's been a week! Well, apart from going to the "Saigon City" last night for supper. I'm still getting these cramps in my backside, and since my last post, they've spread all down my right (good, well, supposedly) leg. Not a lot of fun.

It's made me take it easy this weekend. So I've watched a couple of films...

"Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei" (English title: "The Edukators"): Terrific film with Julia Jentsch and Daniel Brühl (who starred in "Goodbye Lenin", another favourite of mine)
The Bourne Identity: Pretty good action film, which I'd chosen to see Franka Potente, who starred in "Lola Rennt" (English title: "Run Lola, Run").

I've got the satellite dish chap coming on Wednesday. He's going to point my dish at the other Astra constellation so that I can pick up channels from the continent. So I expect to be watching Lindenstrasse regularly from next Sunday!

Since the walk Izzy has gone back to bed. She's very tired and has had a long week.

Cramps

2005-10-06T14:38:00.000+01:00

Don't laugh. My right buttock is cramping. I told you not to laugh!

I think it is finally saying "enough!", after being forced to take up all the work of my bad leg. I've got a work phone meeting shortly, then after that I'm going to lie down and give it a good rest. I'm feeling generally pretty tired too.

3... 2... 1... cast off!

2005-10-05T16:13:00.000+01:00

Three more weeks of this cast. I'm quite over it, but what can you do. I've been using my left leg to steady myself when walking and putting a tiny bit of weight on it. I'm also now almost always going up and down the stairs in a standing position. I hold on as much as I can, to minimise the risk of falling down the stairs, which would be both counterproductive and painful.

Oxford adventure

2005-10-03T12:51:00.000+01:00

This weekend just gone we went over to Oxford to celebrate Theresa's birthday (can't say which one...). In order to manage it we had to take the most direct route possible, as I couldn't manage getting on and off trains and going on the London underground to get from King's Cross to Victoria.

So we took the X5 coach from Cambridge to Oxford, which takes just under four dull hours, occasionally interrupted by stops that take in the splendour of St Neots, Bedford and Milton Keynes.

I don't want to offend any gentle readers who happen to be Miltonian Keynsians, but the place is not one in which I feel inclined to spend time. I like an organic sort of town, which looks like it has grown and changed over time. MK on the other hand, appears to have been deliberately created, by an obsessive control freak. The kind who would be entirely at home in Pyongyang, or even a New Labour party conference.

For nearly four hours on this coach I sat with my left leg on the seat next to me to keep it elevated. In order to do this, I had to twist around to the left and sit with the arm rest sticking into my back.

On arrival in Oxford, Theresa kindly picked us up and drove us back to Watlington. We had lots of plotting and scheming to do, and had to try to keep it all secret from Theresa.

On Saturday afternoon, we sent her off for the afternoon with Sarah Slocombe to leave us to prepare the hall for her party. Being immobile I landed the job of blowing up all the baloons and stringing them together so James could hang them up.

Anyway the party went well (there are, or soon will be photos at http://www.secret60.org). That night though, my ankle ached and ached 'til morning.

We arrived back in Cambridge last night at around 9 o'clock, had a little bit of supper then flopped exhausted into bed. I think that will be enough of the big adventures until the cast comes off!

Light at the end of the tunnel... but still a lot of tunnel to go!

2005-09-26T11:56:00.000+01:00

Just received a letter from Addenbrooke's with my appointment for having my plaster off... October 26th at 14:30. It's an understatement to say that I'm looking forward to it!

We've organised for a cleaner to come once a fortnight from this afternoon. We've been wanting to do this for some time, but with me unable to do my bit, and Izzy skivvying all the time, our hand is forced. It's going to be nice to have a clean floor!

On the town

2005-09-25T09:42:00.000+01:00

We took a cab into town just after three yesterday afternoon. I just took my wheelchair, as it can be a real pain having to hold onto crutches the whole time. It also means that I completely lose my independence as my hands aren't free to propel myself.

We did a pretty thorough browse of Borders... all three floors. Without buying anything. Wheelchair based book browsing is pretty good, so long as you're not interested in anything on the higher shelves. Being in the chair means you can take a book of the shelf and browse in comfort right where you are. I have previously commented on the positive features of top shopping at M&S in a wheelchair.

After we went to Starbucks in the Market Street, amazingly finding a free table outside, which I occupied very convincingly in my wheelchair while Izzy went in to buy the coffees. A couple of people asked to share the table, I replied "that's fine on the condition that you don't smoke". The first one went to another table and poisoned someone else. The second was a nice young chap, who admitted that he did smoke but agreed not to while we were there. In any case, we'd just about finished by the time his friend showed up, so there was not problem for any of us.

By then it was time to hit the cinema. Fortunately the Arts Picturehouse does have lifts (which I'd never noticed in my old, leg using days), and a spot in the cinema itself for wheelchair users (seat number "WA"). "Pride & Prejudice" was pretty good. I'd recommend it, though being only two hours instead of the glorious six that the BBC could devote to it in a series, it moved at a cracking pace.

After the film, we went to Pizza Express on Regent Street. Which was heaving with new arrivals from P&P, but quickly returned to normal, as we presumed a batch of diners had paid their bills and were off to the Picturehouse for the next screening.

Getting out of the cab when we got home, I hopped up onto the footpath and steadied myself with my right hand on the arm rest of the wheelchair, and tried to hop around to seat myself while Izzy fetched my crutches from indoors. Unfortunately, I missed grasping the chair with my left hand (a) falling over, and (b) bending my left thumbnail backwards in the process, immediately producing an impressive quantity of blood. I pushed the nail back to normal right away. Then the cab driver, strong bloke, picked me straight up onto my feet (well, foot). Izzy came out with the crutches, and I got myself in ASAP, and washed the blood off under the tap in the kitchen. It hurt. A lot. (Emma, I know, I'm a stoic, but this had me in tears from the pain.) The nail is pretty bruised, and it all feels very tender still.

Dreams of swimming

2005-09-24T12:03:00.000+01:00

We're going to have another outing into town this afternoon, some shopping, a film (Pride and Prejudice) and then a meal.

Izzy is working this morning, and I'm doing my tax return (how exciting!!!). She's coming home at lunchtime, we'll have some of the soup I made last night and head out.

I've been doing a lot more exercise to try to arrest the muscle detioration. I think I can feel a difference, but I could just be kidding myself.

It's also four weeks today since I broke my ankle, which makes me just about half way through the first part of the recovery process (the part where the bone heals). The next stage from the end of the next month is the physiotherapy to try to get everything working properly again.

I've been reading some other people's experiences here in the blogosphere, and it seems that this can be a difficult stage. I think I'm going to try to do some swimming, in addition to the inevitable cycling.

As I've been lying in the bath with my left leg floating in it's "LimbO" plastic bag, I've been thinking about how lovely it will be to swim again, being entirely supported by the water. Can't wait!

Lunch

2005-09-23T15:33:00.000+01:00

Just had a nice lunch with Patrick at the Green Dragon. Had a try of their new guest ale "Autumn Breeze", very nice and smooth, and a good nose on it too. Nice to have a bit of an outing too.

We sat outside first, but then it started to drizzle so a move indoors was called for. Sadly, since lunch it's been pissing down. I suppose it is now autumn after all.

Settling in to the new plaster

2005-09-23T09:12:00.000+01:00

Since the new cast went on, I've had two not very good night's sleep (partly down to getting used to the new cast, and partly because Izzy has a rotten cold and isn't sleeping well herself), and roughly two days of greater comfort.

The old cast which was done when my ankle was rather swollen was getting loose around my ankle, and so could get painful at times. The new one is a much firmer fit, which is more comfortable. It also has my foot at closer to a right angle with my leg, so that the tendons don't shorten so much. The first times I lay or sat with my leg straight out, I could really feel the stretch in my tendons. That's getting better now.

There's never been a more fashionable time to break a limb. Do it now!

2005-09-21T21:49:00.000+01:00

White plaster casts are soooo five minutes ago. Up to the minute types such as myself, gentle reader, would not be seen about the place in one. These days modern fibre-glass casts come in a variety of designer colours.

To share this dazzling variety with you, I took a photograph of the colour swatches today in the plaster room.

Nearly as colourful, are the remaining bruises on my foot, in a very seasonal plum. Autumnal shades always were my thing.

I can't actually keep up the pretence any longer, gentle reader. Everyone knows that fashion and I are barely on speaking terms, so I shall drop the act and get down to business.

This afternoon was my third visit to the Fracture Clinic. First on the agenda was to replace my cast, I chose the "goes with everything" black, this time. Despite the urgings of Izzy, and one of the two student nurses there at the time.

Next stop: X-Ray. Then back to the clinic. After 1.5 "difficult" sudokus, I was called into an examination room and asked to take a seat on the bed. I nearly managed to fall asleep, when the consultant came to have a look (a different one this time, as Mr Owen was away). He said that everything was progressing as it should be, and now I could start to put a tiny bit of weight on it, no more than about 5%. First up was to reacquaint it with the idea that it would, under normal circumstances, touch the floor.

Then, that's it. I expect to see them in another five weeks to have the plaster off, then move into a moon-boot instead. These are a kind of weight bearing inflatable cast, that you can take off yourself.

The joys of talcum powder

2005-09-21T09:00:00.000+01:00

My cast gently pushes my toes together, so over the course of the day they tend to feel a bit clammy and like they're stuck together. I finally thought to ask Izzy to pick up some talcum powder for me yesterday. What a relief! They can wiggle about independently again. It feels much more comfortable when they don't feel like they're stuck together.

Hurrah! New plaster today!

2005-09-21T06:41:00.000+01:00

I must have been feeling below par on Monday - "nasty" twice in the same sentence. I was tempted to edit it, but I think I'll let it stand as a reminder.

As the swelling has gone down, there's been more room in the plaster around my ankle, so it has been moving around in there much more. So the bulging bit at the side has been rubbing against the side. I've found that by trying to keep my heel pressed firmly into the bottom of the cast, I could minimise the contact. Between that and increasing my consumption of pain killers, it's been better. And knowing that the cast is about to be changed has helped. My ankle is looking forward to its short spell of freedom this afternoon too.

Ratty!

2005-09-19T10:50:00.000+01:00

Spoke to the plaster room at Addenbrooke's about the pain I was feeling in my ankle. They tell me that it might be a blister forming, particularly as it is a kind of burning pain. There's no nasty smell coming out, so it hasn't gone nasty.

We agreed that I'd keep going with the current plaster, as it is getting replaced on Wednesday afternoon anyway, unless the pain gets worse. It is giving me a headache and making me feel quite ratty.

Pain

2005-09-19T07:34:00.000+01:00

Fortunately the pain I was feeling in my ankle has gone away overnight. Though it did take me a while to get off to sleep until the pain killers kicked in. When I lay down, the ache in my ankle where the break is, was joined by some sharp pains on the other side of the ankle. No idea what that was all about!

Anyway, it feels better now and that's what counts.

Another outing

2005-09-18T22:28:00.000+01:00

Izzy came back from her weekend away with her aunt and uncle in Lowestoft this afternoon. After we'd both had a nap, she took me out in the wheelchair down to the Green Dragon via the towpath along the river Cam.

We'd taken some bread just in case we saw some ducks or swans. We were very lucky in that as soon as we reached the river, the swan family were there (the pair and their five cygnets, as mentioned in a previous post). They're all coming along very well.

Izzy found the going tough pushing me along on some portions of the footpath.

Anyway, bed time, and my ankle is aching. Have just taken some ibuprofen. Hopefully, the pain will ease off when I'm in bed.

Saturday night

2005-09-18T09:21:00.000+01:00

After my exertions yesterday I was feeling absolutely cream crackered. I lay down on the sofa and started watching "Sprited Away", and eventually started dozing off (not something I make a habit of when watching Miyazaki films I can assure you). I woke up a few hours later, and Andrew knocked on the door bearing a bottle of red. We tucked into the wine, ordered a couple of pizzas and put a film on. Good to have some nice company!

I've done what I said in my last post, and invited my three ward councillors to try out our local footpaths in my wheelchair. I'll keep you posted, dear reader, on whether they accept my invitation.

I'm now clearing the desk in my study to do my tax return. Several years now of no longer being a high rate tax payer have not deterred the Revenue from obliging me to perform this annual ritual. Hopefully, yet another boring tax return from me this year might convince them otherwise.

Now it's time for Casper and I to have some breakfast. Not the same thing obviously.

Why can't footpaths be level?

2005-09-17T14:36:00.000+01:00

I tried my first outing alone today. I went to the shops to buy the Times and the Guardian. This involved getting the wheelchair out the back door and through the conservatory, into the garden, before adding the leg rest thingies onto it and setting off.

There's no ramps from the foot path to the road at the end of our street. So I had to stand on my good foot and manoeuvre the wheelchair onto the road, and take advantage that the gates had come down at the level crossing to get to the other side of the road.

Once back on the footpath, there is the constant problem of the path being constructed to slope slightly towards the road. So one has to constantly correct for this. You are in effect, always going uphill to compensate. And don't get me started about the bloody driveways! They're a nightmare.

It's about 1 km to the shop from here, give or take 50 m or so. On a bike it's a few minutes each way. About 10 on foot. I guessed before I set out that it would take maybe an hour for the round trip. I didn't wear a watch, but noted that I'd left at 11am. It was 12:50 when I made it through the back door, arms and palms aching from the effort, most of which would be completely unnecessary if the pavements were designed with a bit of thought.

After a few minutes of the journey, it occurred to me to invite whoever on the council is responsible for these things to duplicate my journey, unassisted, and see what they think. While I'm not an olympic athlete, I'm no weakling either. To have so many physical obstacles in the way that I can't do better than under 1 km/h is absolute rubbish!

Things you never knew you wanted until you broke your ankle

2005-09-16T10:53:00.000+01:00

I haven't yet mentioned the various bits of kit available to help the acutely broken ankled... and of course those with other broken bits. So here goes.

First there's the "toe cap". It's like the front bit of a sock, to keep your toesies warm, with an elastic strap that goes back around your heel to keep it on. Does occasionally annoy with the elsastic tending to compress the toes, but generally good when it gets a bit nippy. Available in a variety of exciting colours and patterns!

Then we have the "LimbO" which is like a tough, slightly opaque plastic bag with a rubber seal like a big washer at the opening. You slip this on over the cast, and the seal makes a watertight join with your skin, so you can bathe without having to worry about getting your cast wet (which is a hanging offence). Available in a variety of sizes. Submersible (excellent for injured submariners).

I've also hired a wheelchair from Addenbrooke's, very reasonable rates. Free from the Red Cross, but I think there's needier people than me that should get first dibs on them. Mine was handling a bit squishily, until I managed to manoeuvre it into the conservatory yesterday and attack it with our mighty floor standing bicycle pump. The tyres are now up to the recommended 4 bar, and it has much less rolling resistance, and doesn't make a squelching sound when I turn corners anymore.

And the bleedin' obvious... crutches. Free from the Royal Hallamshire, with a big notice to return them ASAP. Nice light aluminium thingies, very adjustable. Couldn't get by without them!

Fracture Clinic: Part II

2005-09-14T22:27:00.000+01:00

I had my second visit to the Fracture Clinic this afternoon. The news is that surgery isn't called for and the expectation is that I can expect a further six weeks in non-weight-bearing plaster. So it will be as it has been for some time more.

I go back again next week for another X-ray, a check up, and a new plaster, as the swelling and bruising (still there) should have gone down by then.

I felt rather flat and irritable when I got home, also a tiny bit upset. Probably from having to rely on others every time I step (hah) outside the house. Also because of having it spelled out exactly how much longer this is going to take, and that's just to get out of plaster. I've been comforting myself with ideas of weight-bearing plasters (luxury!), and they're a way off. So there's to be no improvement to my mobility for a while yet.

In perspective, of course I'm fortunate that my stint of not being able to walk is relatively brief and temporary.

Anyway. I've managed to find a way to get the wheelchair out through the back door by myself. Not easily, but achievable. I managed to get to the end of Moss Bank and back to survey the access situation. Not brilliant, as there's not a ramp down to the road on our side of the street, nor back up again on the other side. The only way would be to go on the road from a couple of doors down, all the way down Moss Bank, then across busy Fen Road. I might try this tomorrow. I will have to build up my distance over a few days, as I doubt that I could currently manage to push myself to the shop and back (1km each way).

Ed rang to see if I wanted to go to the pub, so I met him, Tim and Susan at the Green Dragon for a meal, a few drinks and a lovely chat! Sadly, Izzy's been busy on the phone all evening. She's still on a conference call as I write this, poor thing!

Monday night

2005-09-13T12:32:00.000+01:00

After feeling a bit sick of it all yesterday, and wasn't especially looking forward to a night alone with Izzy being down in London. So I was delighted when Gabe called saying that he was going by Tesco on his way home, and was there anything I needed. We agreed that if he bought a bottle of wine we could share it. Anyway, I managed to whip up a salad and some pasta and we had a lovely time chatting. So much so that I forgot to tape "Spooks" for Izzy, earning myself a threat of the doghouse. Thanks for coming around Gabe, it was a treat!

Muscle wastage

2005-09-12T13:52:00.000+01:00

The difference in muscle size between my legs is now starting to show, with my left calf visibly smaller than the right. And my plaster is getting looser around the top half. Must do some more exercises!

I'm feeling a bit hacked off about it all today. Nothing serious, so I expect I'll be better about it later.

Cambridge Blue

2005-09-12T08:02:00.000+01:00

We had a nice pub trip yesterday, the only problem being that the kitchen was run off its feet (they should try it with broken ankles!) and so our meals took about an hour to arrive. Fortunately, they were very tasty.

Afterwards we dropped Fi off at the station so she could get a train back to Birmingham. Then Theresa drove us to Lensfield Road, by the big church on the corner, that way she was pointing in the right direction to get back home. I then got into my wheelchair and had my first in town outing since the accident.

Never before had I realised how crappy the pavement is along Regent Street, feeling, as I was everything through the seat of my pants. Another thing I noticed is that almost nobody met my eyes. As much as I was seen differently, I saw differently. The experience is a bit like being in a country where you don't speak the language, it isn't hostile, just more difficult than normal because the environment is built around other people's needs and convenience.

For instance we went to M&S clothes shopping (result: 2 tops, 1 denim skirt), when they hang tops above a skirt, it's very hard from a wheelchair to get the top down to have a look at. On the other hand, in fairness and in general, shopping for tops from a wheelchair is much better. This is because your eyes are at the right height to look at the tops square on. And the chair itself stakes your place, so you don't have other shoppers rubber-necking around you or vice-versa.

Izzy wheeled me just into the Green Street entrance of Borders (no ramp there you see) so we could get my stock of German magazines. So I wound up loudly calling titles to Izzy and the shop assistant. Normally, I pick up what I want and take it to the counter without saying anything. When they see I have only German titles, they usually conduct the transaction silently. I presume, not sure whether I speak English. Always gives me a kick to say a nice plummy "cheers!" when they hand me my change.

I managed to maintain my dignity in Sainsbury's not waving my finger vaguely in the direction of the shelves and saying "I want that one"...

For the record, I must add (without any pressure from her whatsoever) that Izzy's wheelchair pushing was very good, and didn't have me feeling like I was about to go base over apex at any time.

Fortnightiversary

2005-09-10T11:42:00.000+01:00

Forgot to add in my previous post, that it is now two weeks since the fracture today!

Tidying

2005-09-10T11:34:00.000+01:00

We've just done some tidying up... well Izzy has. I volunteered to sweep the stairs. I felt since I was going up and down them on my backside, it was something I had the responsibility for, interest in, and capability to do! All this prompted by Izzy's mum and sister coming over tomorrow, to take us out to lunch. Good idea, I say! We've settled on going to the Cambridge Blue (a non-smoking pub in Gwydir Street). Unfortunately, they don't take bookings, so we'll just have to get there early and take our chances.

Wheelchair

2005-09-09T09:52:00.000+01:00

I picked up the wheelchair from Addenbrooke's yesterday afternoon. It has an extension on the left side so that I can keep my left leg elevated, to keep the swelling down.

It takes some getting used to. I should say it is taking some getting used to.

Being in possession of a wheelchair makes the house look different. I now see a whole lot of obstacles I would have been indifferent to before. The chair will give me mobility outside the house... but only if I can get it outside the house first. And with three steps at the front door, and a long, obstacle ridden way through the back, that is not going to be easy! It's daunting.

I take my hat off, and prostrate myself in deference to those who find they must live with this permanently.

Green Dragon

2005-09-07T22:07:00.000+01:00

I just got back from a very nice trip to our local, the Green Dragon. I met Ed from the Lab there at 7pm, and Izzy turned up a bit later, having been given time off for good behaviour (who knows how?) from her work. Jolly nice to get out of the house for a bit. Until I went out I didn't realise how much I've been getting cabin fever!

I arrived a few minutes before Ed, and pitched up to the least populated table in the garden by the river. Cheeky buggers told me that there wasn't enough room for them. I responded that I could hit them with my sticks. Nice people, if a little too used being cheeky to people on crutches. Their nine year old daughter was at Addenbrooke's and had just had an operation on her spine. She would soon have her whole torso in plaster for two months! Poor kid. Apparently she's taking it very well. For the couple it was the first night off hospital visiting they'd had for a while. May all go well for their daughter and them.

Ed's kindly lent me some DVDs to keep me amused. Looking forward to watching them.

Another nice feature of going to the pub tonight was seeing the five cygnets who I've been watching (along with just about everybody else in Chesterton) for the last few months. They're looking beautiful, are nearly full size, and are starting to get their adult feathers. What a treat it is to see them growing up! And they're a boost to the local swan population.

I called up today to rent a wheelchair from Addenbrooke's Hospital. £25 per month. So I'm probably looking at £50 in total. But that at least should enable me to at least get out of the house a bit to take in the air, or go to the shops or the pub without shelling out for a taxi. I'm going to pick up the wheelchair tomorrow.

Purple and yellow

2005-09-06T09:33:00.000+01:00

No post yesterday, things were not much changed. But I did some serious coding from home. Hacking away in Python on a program for work to extract information from a backup server and make it visible on the internal web so people can see when their files have been backed up.

The swelling in my calf is going down, either that or the muscle wastage is more than making up for it. It is certainly a lot looser towards the top of the cast.

Meanwhile the visible bruising has concentrated itself on the two smallest toes, which are distinctly purple. The centimetre or so of foot I can see above the toes had a distinctly yellow cast.

Izzy kindly gave me some Bowen treatment yesterday, and she commented on the already noticeable difference in muscle tone between my two legs. So this morning, after a dose of the morning essentials (tea, muesli, sudoku and Radio 4), I got out Izzy's exercise mat and utilized it for its intended purpose as best I could.

If I can maintain the muscle that I have, or at least get it to waste at a slower rate, then hopefully I can recover it quicker when I'm able to use my leg again.

Adjusting

2005-09-02T10:06:00.000+01:00

I've learned my lesson to make sure I take some ibuprofen before I go to bed. Yesterday morning I woke with what felt like cramp in my calf muscles under the cast, and with it feeling very tight. It settled down shortly after I took some ibuprofen in the morning. Last night I took some before I went to bed, and slept much better, and it felt much better when I woke up. I had only a little bit of the cramped feeling. I wonder if it is the tendon shortening?

The bruising has spread to the tops of my toes. They just look grey and dirty. Fortunately they're not too painful or tender. Just not particularly lovely. I expect that will pass quite quickly.

I'm also getting a bit better at hauling myself around, not pausing at the top or the bottom of the stairs. I'm getting the movements to do the stairs much better rehearsed. I still find moving about difficult. I've realised that I can do more in the kitchen as there is a lot to hold on to, so I can get about in there with one crutch.

Fracture Clinic

2005-09-01T11:33:00.000+01:00

I went to the Fracture Clinic yesterday afternoon. It was a hot, sunny day, which made the exertion of getting to the clinic from the taxi quite exhausting. The waiting room was hot and humid too.

After about an hour of reading (Stephen Baxter: "Exultant") I saw the consultant, Mr Owen. He took a look at the X-Rays that the Royal Hallamshire had made and asked a few questions. He thought that it was better to take a look at it with the cast off before deciding what to do next, as he wanted to check the state of the tendon on the other side of the ankle.

I was then sent to the plaster room which seemed to be able to accommodate at least four patients at once, and a gentleman there got me to lie down and then he cut the old cast off. It had been made by wrapping plaster around the back of the calf, and so the plaster didn't meet in the middle at the front. So it was simply a matter of snipping the bandaging down the middle then bending it away.

It was obvious that the bruising had spread since I last saw my foot. It was now all over the top of the foot, and a bit on the toes too. The other side of the ankle had swollen outwards as well.

Mr Owen took a look at it pressing on the newly swollen side. He couldn't be sure from that whether it would need surgery to insert a plate. So I was given a new non-weight-bearing cast, and told to come back in two weeks time, when a new X-ray would be taken to check the progress. At that time he'll determine if there's a need for surgery, and possibly if I can have a weight bearing cast. Until then, I still have to keep my leg elevated when sitting or lying down.

The new cast is much more rigid than the temporary cast, and possibly a bit lighter. I also learned that it will be six to eight weeks before I'm walking again.

After the plaster room, I made my way out. I still can't go very far at one time, only a few metres. I still find it quite hard. At the clinic there were younger, lighter (and probably stronger) people than me getting about quite well. I made it nearly to the Outpatients Entrance and had to sit down to take a break. I was just by the "Patient Transport Services" desk. I was feeling hot and tired and having a bit of a wobble. I turned around and asked if it was possible to order a cab from there, and the lady said "there are some payphones around the corner". No bloody way! I admit it, I cracked and had a couple of tears. I stayed there for another 10 minutes or so, collecting myself, then headed for the entrance so I could turn on my mobile and call a cab. There was a wheelchair just outside the entrance, so I sat myself in that and called the cab, then called Izzy to let here know how I'd got on.

Fortunately, I got a really nice considerate cabbie, which cheered me up on the way home.

I made supper later as Izzy was working 'til late. In the morning, I'd had her lay out all the ingredients and utensils I'd need for it on the kitchen table so all I had to do was to sit down and get on with it. Turned out nice, marrow with garlic, brocoli and shallots baked in a dish with lemon juice and olive oil.

Swollen toes

2005-08-30T22:51:00.000+01:00

A bit of a wobble this afternoon. I was watching the telly with my foot up, and found that my cast was feeling tight and my toes were feeling stiff and a bit swollen. I took some ibuprofen and went for a lie down with my cast propped up on a pillow. When I got up it felt the same.

After a bit of re-reading of my instructions from the Royal Hallamshire, I called a cab and headed off for Addenbrooke's A&E. Fortunately it checked out alright, the doctor who saw me (promptly too I might add) told me that it would be alright until I see the fracture clinic tomorrow afternoon. I need to keep my foot up more, so that means less time at the computer...

Back home in Cambridge

2005-08-29T23:28:00.000+01:00

Pete drove us back to Cambridge tonight. We made good time as he's a faster driver than me and we left around 7 to miss the end-of-bank-holiday tail-backs. It seems that everyone must have hit the road in time to make it home for Eastenders!

I've just had my first good wash since the fall. Washed my hair bent over the bath (have to keep the cast dry, apparently cognoscenti call them "pots", and I'm not up to that level of sophistication yet). Feels great to be clean and in fresh pyjamas too.

On the way into our house I managed to stub one of my toes on the concrete steps at the front door knocking some skin off and making it bleed. Later I discovered that I'd also grazed my other ankle.

I made it up our stairs alright, and worked out fairly easily how to get myself upright again at the top. In the morning I'll see how it is to go down them again.

This morning Pete, Emma & Izzy went off to the Hope Show a short distance from Bradwell. I stayed in and watched "Gegen die Wand" (which means "against the wall" but is distributed in English as "Head On"), a very good film with lots to engage the emotions. Then I had a bit of lunch from the easily accessible cheeses in the fridge (thanks Emma!), and fell asleep on the sofa for I don't know how long!

Casper, our cat, is looking fat and well. Our neighbour, Andrew, has kindly been feeding him while we were away. Seems that Casper's psychological manipulation of Andrew is going well. I suspect that Casper puts him in a trance and makes him forget that he's already put food out, so he'll put out some more. I've had words with Casper about this before, but he is blatantly unrepentant.

Bed beckons. Night all!

Sleeping

2005-08-29T09:49:00.000+01:00

Sleeping last night was a bit easier, knowing what to expect was part of it, and having it not ache as much another. I'm learning a bit more about the use of crutches as well. Getting in and out of chairs is taking me some thought. Sometimes I get a bit scared about getting up or down. It seems that the trick is to use whatever is solid and to hand to propel myself to the standing position before I take up the crutches, as they're too tall to lever myself up with from being seated. Another triumph was making a pot of tea by myself this morning, being the first one up. Then having some nice quiet time reading at the kitchen table. I'm most of the way through "In praise of Slow", which seems appropriate as slowness is something that's going to be a non-negotiable fact of life for the next little while.

Pub!

2005-08-28T20:22:00.000+01:00

Just got back from the pub, where aside from having a couple of pints and a nice supper, we had the pleasure of seeing the final moments of England winning a test match against Australia. Although I'm not a cricket fan, it is still nice to see England win for a change. Emma & Pete's neighbour Bill was at the pub having a drink or two with Pete before the rest of us joined them. I made it to the loo at the pub, up a few stairs without having to shuffle up on my backside. Woo hoo! Triumph!

The ankle breaks...

2005-08-28T15:15:00.000+01:00

It started out well. Yesterday, we parked at a pub in the Peak District to do the first pub walk in the book. Emma, Pete, Izzy and I strode off along the road, then out into the countryside. Up the first hill then onto a rocky outcrop which is called a "tor". The last bit involved clambering over some big, serious looking rocks. Worth it though, because the view was terrific. We could look back and see the pub where we were going to end up, watch the local bus go back and forth, and all was right with the world. In the other direction was a second tor. This one even higher, Emma & Pete led the way in that direction. Oh dear! Still we made it up there too. Izzy had a bit of a wobble about two metres from the top, but we got there, and enjoyed an even better view than before. Down the valley to the west, we could even see Emma & Pete's village Bradwell.

From there the ground sloped down more gently, and we walked easily down a stepped path with lovely purple heather on either side. There were a few black faced sheep about, one of which got quite upset when we dared to look at either her or her two lambs. Just before the path intersected a road, we descended and hopped across the stream running parallel to the path we had left, and joined an easy, more or less level path having now made a u-turn. Now we started to notice climbers on the rocky outcrops above us, doing what climbers do. We were a few hundred metres along when a group of about four people reached us coming the other way. I stepped to the left to make room for them to pass, up onto a slightly raised grassy bit of ground. I could feel that my left foot wasn't making the sure connection with the ground that I'd anticipated. I lost my balance and started to fall, as I went down there was an audible crack from my ankle, and then I was down, blinded by the pain. Emma was a metre or two ahead of me and heard the crack. Izzy and Pete were behind me and saw me go down.

The immediate pain subsided, and the crack though audible wasn't that loud. So maybe it was just badly sprained? After a minute or two I got up onto my right foot, then tried to stand normally... not easy! We conferred for a bit, then decided that Pete would run on ahead to get the car, while the rest of us made our way back to the road, where Pete would pick us up.

The three of us set off with Emma on one side of me and Izzy on the other, and moved step after step toward the road. It must be one of the slowest 500 metres that any of us had ever walked. Eventually we made it, and I sat down on the dry stone wall to wait. Pete turned up about a minute later. We then drove back to Bradwell.

I hopped into the front room and took my shoe off. Then it became clear that the ankle was already pretty swollen. After talking about it for a while, I decided that I'd really rather get it looked at. Emma asked a neighbour about where best to go, and she suggested trying the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield. We all hopped in the car (literally in my case) and set off. The staff in the Minor Injuries Unit were terrific, I was seen very quickly. An hour after we arrived, we were off again, me now wearing scrubs and with my leg in a temporary plaster. As we were leaving there was a young lad arriving, who'd hurt his ankle coming off his bike. We wished him well, and assured him he was in excellent hands, then set off.

Back at Emma & Pete's cottage we had bangers (veggie in my case) and mash washed down with anaesthetic in the form of some Normandy cider we'd bought earlier at the French market in Bakewell (of eponymous tart fame).

Now after going up and downstairs on my bum a few times, and getting to grips with hopping on crutches, it is starting to sink in that the novelty of the situation is going to wear off pretty quickly and I'm going to have to adjust and learn to get about.

We're going home to Cambridge tomorrow, and I'm going to have to get used to the stairs in our house, and how not to trip over the cat. As it's a Bank Holiday, I won't be able to make an appointment with the Fracture Clinic at Addenbrooke's Hospital until Tuesday morning. When they see me, I'll get a new plaster and learn how my recovery is expected to go.