Situation IS getting better:)

[tez27]

Hey folks I hope everyone has had a good and pain free weekend, the weather here has been miserable it feels more like November rather than June, I need some sunshine and heat but I dont think I will be able to fit a holiday in before my op cos I have my pre op assessment on the 4th July and that was the week I had thought I may be able to have off cos its the only week no one in work is taking, and I dont really want to start trying to  change the appointment  after waiting so long to get a date, so we are thinking about maybe a long weekend in Edinburgh or something like that instead, though I don't expect any sunshine there right enough lol.

W good news on the early surgery date and the fact you dont have to pay for it is wonderful the 27th June is a good date cos its also my birthday so you and RK4 will be fine cos nothing bad is allowed to happen on my birthday, and having a couple of days of R&R in Vancouver before the op will be lots of fun I expect photos of everything you crowd get up to on FB.

Snowy I saw the photos of you soaking wet on FB earlier today it looked like you are having the same kind of weather we are just now, all I can say in good for you you really dont let anything get in the way of your adventures even pouring rain.

Brams sorry about the whole rowing thing, I know how much you enjoyed it, I hope you manage to get back to it eventually, apart from that I hope you and the knees are having a good Sunday.

Nick I had a look at the house your interested in it looks really lovely, I hope it all works out for you I think your being very brave changing your life the way you are....good for you.

A sorry your still going through it with the knee it sure aint pleasant to be in pain with no end in sight, I guess its just a matter of going back to the doctor untill some one finds out what is causing it.
The convertible has not had much chance to be topless the last few weeks cos we have had horrible weather, but i am optimistic that we will have ome good weather before the summers out to get out and about in it, as for the op I know exactly what you mean we dont look forward to the surgery but just the fact with luck we are on the road to getting back to normal.

Robin I hope you have had a good weekend and you have been out and about on the new bike, I can just see you tearing around at top speed with your poor husband trying to keep up, you and your bionic knee..

Lottie so what did you do to deserve the flowers?? they were lovely, you do have a very romatic husband but so does Brams by the sound of things, I must be doing something wrong I dont remember the last time D bought me flowers, he's a typical big hairy Scotsman, and not really in to the whole flower thing, oh well cant have everything I suppose

Rat looks like you will be meeting up with another knee geek this time, you should all have a fab time together. I hope the ankle is feeling a bit better now.

RK4 my fellow insomniac how are the preparations for your op going? will you be kept in overnight or is it day surgery? whatever I guess you will need to be ready for having some time away from your day to day life, I hope you have the kids ready to do all the stuff you usually do around the house etc.     

I hope I didnt miss anyone out if I did sorry my memory aint what it used to be lol
Take care Tez 

 

[seerobinbike]

Hey Gang!

Just wanted to say a quick how de do and let you know that I am still alive.  I will post properly tomorrow.  In the meantime, hugs to all joints and various body parts around the globe.  Sleep well.

Robin xx

[Rknees4]

OUCH!!!!!!!!!!!
Rk4

[Brambledog]

Oh dear Rk4...  roll on that surgery day. Hope it eased off and you managed to get a bit of sleep...x

Hi Robin, glad you are still firkling (my mum's word) about the planet - and the world of KGs! - with us all!!  be good to get some more details when you can. Hope that hardware is still keeping up with you and the bike!

Well this morning when I got up the sky was blue, the sun shone defiantly as though it did this every day, and the day was ripe with promise. I got up enthusiastically, put on shorts and a t-shirt, and made plans to get all the damp laundry out on the line....

I know you're all on the edge of your seats with this dramatic tale....well....

The sun has gone back inside his cloud-lair and is sulking like a teenager. It's cold. My feet are freezing cold. Big black clouds are now looming threateningly outside. The laundry is hanging over the radiators. I've put the heating on to attempt to dry some of it. I'm going upstairs to change back into my winter garb and tell myself off for being such a plonker. Bloody weather, bloody hell! Feet were awful again last night with the needle stabs in my toes. Good to know the higher dosage is controlling the crips again....

On the plus side, last night we had the family over for tea as it was Fathers Day, and my dad had requested fish and chips from the chippy for tea instead of the usual roast...lol, bless him! I asked my husband how he felt or if he'd prefer a roast, and he said no, chippy was great! Bizarre... Being gluten-free I can't have chippy stuff (I know, makes me want to howl like a child watching people eat it!), and my youngest is GF at the moment as an experiment as she's been having stomach issues recently, so at her request, I made us chicken kievs from scratch! They were really nice actually, so I'll do those again now, but the whole house just reeeeeeeeks of garlic this morning!!!!! Time to find a few smelly candles and open a window or two!

Hugs to all the gang out there and take care of yourselves.

Brams 

[seerobinbike]

Hey Gang o Geeks,

Good God you all can chat!  I’m off for one weekend and, phew.  I had a lot of catching up to do before posting.

W…Well, it sounds like you are good to go!  You’ve got your surgery date, your airplane tickets and a sweet aunt for a chaperone.  You must be so looking forward to putting this all behind you.  Hope you had a good weekend.  Part of Canada had some nice weather; I hope you got the chance to do something fun. Are you staying busy?

Lottie…Wow.  Portugal. That sounds fabulous. I’ve really got to get out more.  I’ve been across the U.S. twice but have only been out of the country once in my 50-something years and that was only to Bermuda.  I hope that your weekend was decent in spite of the crappy weather.  How is Reggie treating you?  He’d better be nice.

Brams…Thanks for the story about the cello!  That’s wonderful that you’ve had the opportunity to play so many beautiful instruments.  I love the sound of the flute and the trumpet is so very cool.  You’ve practically conquered the world of woodwind instruments!  I think the trumpet is next on my list of instruments to try.  I’ve played quite a few in my lifetime….well, if you can call it playing!  I’ve played alto sax, drums, guitar, harmonica and piano for about 5 minutes.  Mosty just play guitar now.  The other instruments send the cats into a tizzy!  Sorry to read that your knee is acting up and you’ve had to (temporarily) stop the rowing. 

Tez…LOL.  OMG, Tez.  I was reading these posts just before bedtime last night and was sure I’d dream of a big, hairy Scotsman.  You are too funny.  Does D. know you call him this?  Well, you are off today I think.  I hope that the weather is fabu and allows you to get out and enjoy yourself.  I’m happy that you might have just a wee bit of time away before the cutting takes place.  That would be sweet. 

A…Hey, did you get your bike ride in?  The weather was pretty nice around here although it was a bit on the chilly side.  Man, your knee pain is such a mystery.  It must drive you crazy.  I think you’ve got it right in trying to figure out the problem before the children come along.  They will keep you running for sure.  What an exciting time in your life, however!  Thanks for questioning the use of machines in knee rehab.  My doctor never said I couldn’t but now that I read more about it, it looks like the machines would be much harder on the joints.  Maybe I’ll just continue to do squats and lunges but add some free weights. 

Rk…How are you holding out?  It’s just a few weeks away now!  I hope you are envisioning all good things for the knees.  The body/mind connection is so very strong!  How’s Tika?  Oh, and how are the kids? 

Snowy…Well, good to see you here again.  You’ve been such a busy gal but I guess that’s nothing new!  Hope that the knee is being good through all your crazy endeavors.  Kiss all the sweet kitties for me!

Nick…Hey, thanks for sharing the beautiful pics!  That’s awesome.  You’ve got many new changes going on in your life and I’m hoping that they are all good for your head.

Super…Hope you are well and are getting ready for another KG visit!

I had a super busy weekend.  A couple friends and I had a huge yard sale here on Saturday.  Blah.  I hate ‘em.  We put tons of work into it and barely made enough for a pizza.  Had some good laughs however so all in all it was a good day.  After the clean up, I got to give a few massages and then head out to dinner with the sibs and in-laws.  Yesterday, M. and I spent the bulk of the day trying to clean the house.  I spent about two hours studying and then headed out with M. for a rewarding latte.  The only bike riding I managed to do was on the trainer.  Poor Jake.  He will be taking another trip to the Cape with us this coming weekend so we will get a couple nice long rides in.  I’ve got to run and get my hair cut now so be well all!  Enjoy your day and big hugs all around.

Robin  xx

[emergRN]

Robin...another trip to the Cape...wow!  Gotta love summer.  I am sure Jake will be quite happy to burn off the energy that he has built up this week.  I bet he will go really, really fast!!  OMG..I read Tez's post, but I didn't clue in to the big hairy Scotsman!  I now have visions of this big dude with red hair, and a full beard with kilt on!  I know her husband does NOT look like that.  That is the mental picture though!!

Our weather has been fabulous!!  Actually, it is really dry here right now.  We "might" get rain on Thursday!  Thank goodness we are not getting the crazy humidity levels that central Canada is getting.  I cannot imagine the humidex(heat index) making 33 degree weather feel like 43 degrees.  We'd die here with that.  Nobody has A/C in their houses.  We don't normally need it, except for maybe 10 days a year!

Brams...it sounds like you had a really nice father's day.  My father is out of town, so he had to suffice with a phone call.  Thankfully, he is one of those guys that thinks that cards, flowers...etc is a complete waste of money.  He really doesn't like getting cards for what he considers a card company money making ploy.  I just go with it!

Tez..So, July 4th is the pre op appt?  Sorry that you aren't going to get to take a little vacay!  But, I agree with you.  You have been waiting a long time for this, and I don't think it would be wise to reschedule.  Get 'er done and over with!!

A...I hope all is going OK.  I know you are having a hard time, and I really, really hope things get better for you soon.

Rk4...10 more days!

Supperat and Snowy..do you know that Nickleback is playing at Roger's arena while I am there...and there are tickets left...but a bit too pricey for this trip...boo hoo!!  It is pre surgery as well.  Oh well!  You can't do everything!

Hi Nick!

I am going crazy here today.  I am trying on all of my summer capris and stuff.  I am trying to figure out what to pack.  I haven't put on enough weight to go up a size, BUT I was pretty toned when I bought it all, and my clothes are NOT fitting me right.  I am actually in a bit of a panic about it!!  I am half tempted to wash it all out, put it on wet, stretch it and then let it dry...lol!  I am NOT happy about this!  On the upside, I am sure that post op, I will be in my lulu exercise pants and my summer skirts and dresses.  It will be much easier with the knee wrapped up..Gosh I hope the weather is good.

I guess I am going to have to adopt my suck it up buttercup mantra again, and deal with that when I am able to effectively exercise again.  Man, it is going to be hard to get back in shape with the massive quad loss that I have.  I actually don't even know how I am going to do this!  Eight months of not being able to effectively to quad exercises is really, really bad.  My PT told me that some of the muscle loss is likely going to be permanent!  He figures I am going lose about 10 percent for good!  I think I want to try to prove him wrong.

Well, I must go put some clothes on my mother's line.  I am going to dress like a slob all week..lol!

W

[Lottiefox]

You lot are so chatty!! W, I have to smile at your solution to "slightly tight clothing!!" I have visions of you wandering around with wet clothing on stretching things madly and then turning the hair dryer on yourself or sitting in the sunshine! A week today and you'll be en route - or there? Whoop! I am sure you will prove the PTs wrong after this op and get that quad back but yes it is going to be hard...I am still amazed that even after just two weeks on the sticks last year my right leg isn't quite the same as my left. And my left was always the smaller one!!

Brams, your home made chicken kiev sounds delish. I think I would have preferred that to the chip shop meal any day! I like fish and chips but the portions from chip shops always leave me bloated and wishing I hadn't bothered! Chicken kiev with loads of garlic...yummy. I may have to make one too! Glad you had a nice Fathers Day - sorry the toes are being pains. As said via facebook......this crips is crap. Looking forward to the 28th for our next adventure!! 

Tez, sorry you can't get away before the op but better to get this all out of the way and then book something up....I bet that roof is stuck upwards at the moment, so much rain about. Edinburgh could be a nice break - my friend stayed there over marathon weekend at a really gorgeous place called Tiger Lily. If you wanted a treat it is right in the centre and looks VERY swish, I reckon you deserve a little treat before chopping. 

Rk4 sorry there are endless ouchie nights at the moment. I am crossing fingers that your op goes smoothly next week too. hang in there! How is Tika growing and coming along?!

Robin, you are a busy bee. Look how far you've come! You get envious of Portugal but boy I'd love to pop down to the Cape and do some biking and sight seeing. I am sad to say I have never been to the US or Canada....but next year I hope all that could change. How is your study coming along? I have just found that our local college runs a personal trainer course starting in September one evening a week and with the home coursework etc. It is very reasonably priced and you can pay in 3 batches. I am quite tempted. It is still something I am really interested in doing, although not sure how/where I would practice...but I guess that would come along.....

Rat and Snowy - hope you're looking forward to your catching up - i am envious of the Noodle feeding time. Rat how is the ankle feeling? Snowy - how wet was that pic on facebook?!! I had to laugh! I am also adoring the tinycat pics, how are yours all so integrated?!!

Nick, good luck with your new adventures. Definitely get your eyes tested if you are having headaches and so on. Much better to get some funky glasses for things like driving and computer work if you need them. I am blind as a bat without my contacts or specs!

A, I hope that the knee can be looked at and something identified. This must suck, as the whole PFJR is a big deal designed to get you out of the cycle. I can understand the worry of being pregnant and then having a wee one to deal with when you're in pain and with restrictions. I would feel the same. I hope you can move forwards soon...

Well, me....another pretty busy week workwise coming up - Cambridge tomorrow, Hull on Thursday. I have been really tired over the weekend. It seems I can manage to be busy all week with work and travel and reports and gym and then I crash. I slept for hours on Sunday. I am sure the meds do not help with the fatigue but what can I do...Reggie is calmish, looks a bit red, pain has settled down although when I am tired he seems to ache more. Honestly I just find it is normal now for him not to feel normal - if that makes sense. I am sure the knee situations on here mirror that line of thought! I am on an eat clean regime for a fortnight or so...not that I ever really eat badly but now I'm off refined sugars, alcohol, high GI carbs, etc etc.....lots of fish, greens, chicken, berries, and so on. My trainer wanted me to drop coffee too but no chance...I'd be homicidal.

Well, must go sort out some washing and some food.....not at the same time....

Hugs to all body parts xxxxx

[Rknees4]

Thanks Gang.
Here is a picture of the little Tika kitty.
What ever I have done to my knee I have done a good job it contiues to swell and hurt like mad. I think someone transplanted a basket ball in my knee last night while I was sleeping.
Rk4

[Brambledog]

Now that is one sweet kitty kat Rk4!!

Hope you have a good day and the knee calms down a bit for you. I'm off to bed now, the husband is snoring on the other sofa...

Hugs to all,

Brams 

[iamsuperrat]

Chilling out.. and thankful some sunshine here. The weather is suppose to be sunny but cool at night this week. Looking to noodle box pig out. I'm going to get the Kungpao chicken. Ha...

[Rknees4]

Well Gang,
Stupid o'clock and I am still up.
9 more days W,,, Not sure I can wait that long.
Rat you and W better send some of those noodles express postage, I would love some...
Brams, Lottie, Robin, looks as if you are all very busy with life what ever that may be for you. Which is a good thing.
Snowy take good care of W for us..
Tez hope you are sleeping not up reading this quite yet.
Well better go to bed my ice is now cold again.
Take care all and have a good day.
Rk4 and the torture twin lefty

[seerobinbike]

Oh, Rk!  That is one cute kitty. Looks like she's got the double paw thing going on.  Please send one my way would you?  Baker needs another playmate and M. won't oblige unless we are given one. 

Back later after massages and coffee!

[emergRN]

Hey Rat!!  I have been thinking about the huge amount of carbs we are going to consume.  Maybe I'll ask for double veggies and chicken, and half the noodles..lol....yeah right!  It will be teriayki for me with the skinny noodles, instead of the think noodles.  I am sure Snowy will have the sea food one...Hot, hot , hot!!

RK4..That sure is a cute kitty.  The pic is too small though!  Yup..9 days.  I guess unless you are going to break our a chain saw, you have no choice but to wait!

The forecast for Van doesn't look too bad at the moment, but I know that can change in a moment!!  Hopefully, the weather will be nice for the Canada Day celebrations...oh RAT. I don't own anything red...I guess we had better go shopping and find something!!  I can't wear black to a Canada Day party..lol!  Maybe we can buy a couple pf baseball hats with a big 'ol maple leaf on it..lol!  Not!!

Enjoy the sun...My grass is turning brown on this side of the country.  I really need to get my sprinkler out, but I can't move the hose thingy without hurting the knee.  I can't twist at all!

Well, I must go get a cup of tea.  I just had my eggs and some really weird sprout/grain bread that I bought.  I actually like it.  The slices are super thin, but it is really tasty toasted with peanut butter.  Hey, I have to try to make this weight loss stuff sound good!  I am down again on the scales this morning.  I think I figured out what works for weight loss when you aren't moving.  Oh, I am going to be so sick of baby spinach!!

W

[Clarkey]

Hi All,

My brain is on overload at the moment with so many things going on lately as I keep changing my mind all the time. I now might rent out my flat as I can get £550 a month rent as I would lose out if I sold my flat as it only worth £105,000 max and even that’s too high and would get £100,000 or less and paid £115,000 and it is really nice spacious flat and could easily rent it out.

I could then buy a flat in the centre of Droitwich Spa that are going for cheap prices and think on an interest free mortgage something like that as the guy from the letting agent said it possible as I have paid a large amount off already so have lots of equity and if I wanted to could buy the Flat in Droitwich and have no mortgage on it or just a £5000 mortgage.

Hope to hear back about the support work job and basically can afford two flats and now just need a job. If I found a job and got paid £15,000 plus a year could rent out my flat and have a mortgage on the bungalow I like.

I am way too confused and cannot sleep well at night worrying about my future and what I should do next. Is tempting if I can get a full time job and partly own two flats as it would be a great pension investment and think many landlords take out interest only mortgages?

Sorry not in the mood to reply too much happening right now and hope you are all doing ok.

nickwclarke2012@BhamUK

[seerobinbike]

W...I know you want to look good and be trim for your surgery but be sure that you are eating enough.  Are you taking mulitivitamins?  Look, you've been couped up and basically unable to work out for so many months that I'm sure anyone who has been through this will understand the weight gain.  (I'm off my soap box now.)  Your surgery is a week from this coming Friday, correct?  Just want to be sure that I'm around to wish you a bon voyage! 

Lottie...I think that would be perfect for you to do a class on personal training.  I say go for it!  You spend so much time in training that you may as well be getting paid for it!  You'd be a perfect fit...though maybe a bit too slim.   I really wish this one wasn't self taught!  As I said, I did take this course before but this time I'm really trying to understand things and not just memorize the correct answers.  I'm no dope and I'm sure I will get this eventually but it's not an easy review. I've already paid for the test so I must proceed! Cool that you plan a visit to Canada and maybe the States!  I see you really liking wine country.

Brams...Oh, I forgot to mention that Chicken Kiev that you spoke of in your last post.  Yummy to garlic!  The more, the better!  That's quite an undertaking.  I think I made this in my second year of culinary school and all the butter bled right out of the yard bird.  Hope your knee is playing fair and you are getting along o.k.

Nick...Sounds like you've got a lot of stuff going on in that head of yours.  Just take one thing at a time and try not to overload.  Easier said than done, right?

Hi to everyone else. 

I did a killer workout yesterday and ended up with one swollen knee.  I actually iced it every 20 minutes for most of the day.  Apparently, the knee isn't ready for prime time quite yet.  It's calmed down today so I did a tiny spin and some light weights.  The sorta bad news is that I seem to have developed a somewhat familiar pain along the medial joint line in my 'old' knee.  I'm trying to ignore it but uggg.  Because I've been unable to build up the muscles sufficiently on the new knee, the old knee continues to do most of the work.  I'm trying to isolate the knee with the replacement when doing squats by putting more weight on it.  I'm not complaining here....just trying to plan a strategy.  Any who!  Back to studying.

Hugs, Robin  xx