Judging by the title of this post you can guess that I saw my surgeon for a two-week update yesterday. And that it wasn't really a comforting visit. In the five minutes that he saw me (maybe it was more like 4:53 or so) he said all is well with my knee and to keep working on my physio, which is all good and what I expected to hear. Although I wasn't really looking for more than that, I started to think more about it and all of my previous dealings with him. This wasn't the first time I thought about this, but I had a good chunk of time to ponder it further on the 75 minute rush-hour drive downtown, 30 minute wait past my appointment time and then the 45 minute drive home.

In all my meetings with him he's been what most would liken to a robotic machine who sweeps into the tiny examination room, asks the same questions he asked you the last dozen times and then tells you to come back in a few months to do it all over again. Don't get me wrong though, this surgeon is the best at my particular surgery and that's why I waited to have him operate on me and he's always answered all my questions. I know he's a super busy man who doesn't get time to breathe and he probably barely knows what office or hospital he's in at any given moment. I know his time is in more demand than a Tim Horton's worker at 8 a.m., always looking at me like he's meeting me for the first time, asking the same few questions that I've answered dozens of times. Is that really a good thing?

I'm not asking him to cuddle me or even like me, but some clue as to who I am and acknowledgment that he's in fact listening to what I tell him. From people who've had bad experiences at hospitals or just a visit to the doctor, it seems that in most cases that I've heard it stems from the doctor or nurse not treating them with respect whether it's in their actions, inactions or verbally. This seems to be a common frayed thread in our health care system here in Ontario.

I'm not trying to bash doctors or nurses or anyone in the healthcare field because I know there are many factors that attribute to this, the most common being in more demand but being underfunded and understaffed, not to mention being disrespected by those who abuse our system. This is a huge subject that I don't want to get too far into in my lowly blog :-) but it's one that I've experienced on numerous occasions for my two surgeries and that many others I'm sure have shared. Whether it's a symptom of the other issues I mentioned or not, it is happening and it's affecting the mental health and quite possibly the physical health of patients as well.

Of course not all healthcare workers are like this. His assistant has been personable and nice as I have with her and so were most of the hospital staff on my visits. I guess maybe it's these people who set the bar high and not everyone can live up to that. I guess not everyone can be like our favourite Dr. Huxtable. Maybe I just need a Jello puddin' pop.

Unless you live under a rock (or a cave, but even that guy probably knows), you heard that Barrack Obama is the next President of the United States. And yes, I dressed up like a dork to show my support to our friendly neighbours to the south (and family in my case).

You couldn't miss the coverage of the election on TV because it was everywhere...for the last year! But last night the biggest election extravaganza was by far put on by CNN. They went all out with touchscreen stats galore, blabbering experts from all facets and an all-out red, white and blue decorated set. But the best had to be the hologram technology they used! The hologram of Will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas was awesome, straight outta Star Trek (although the video here misses his cool arm waving exit). They also had a hologram of the US Senate too which just emerged from a table. Very cool, but it helps you make start to understand why the US is in such financial shambles maybe?

Okay, maybe it's not the CNN hologram, but I'm sure that set wasn't cheap, nor were the overall campaigns and election itself. I mean Canada's election cost taxpayers $300 million and we're the little guy (not to mention that our election was worthless as it didn't change much). Some reports say this is the most expensive in US history topping $5.3 billion! But I'll leave my political comments out of this since this is supposed to be a fun blog about my knee and its shenanigans :-)

On that note, I just wanted to mention that I'm not sure if you noticed in the photo of me wearing the USA hockey jersey, redneck cowboy hat and holding a red, white and blue bowl of popcorn, that my knee bears a strange resemblance to James Carville. All it needs is the glasses!

Although my favourite dress-up day is gone and past, there still seems to be some scary things creeping around my house. Or I should say scarry! I'm of course making a sad attempt at a joke in referring to the surgical scars on my knee.

Last night my scars made their first emergence from behind the steri-strip bandages that have been masking them since my surgery. They were basically peeling away and falling off so I made a decision to finish it off myself and take them totally off. Playing the role of Dr. Frankenstein, I slowly peeled back the mask of bandages to see what creature lay beneath. As I pulled the last strip off the beast a bolt of lightening struck down from my bathroom ceiling and the knee began to rise up almost mechanically. I screamed, "It's alive! It's alive!"

Okay, so my knee wasn't a green monster constructed of cadaver parts with plugs in its neck, but it did frighten Julie quite a bit. So much so that she fears it and won't go near it. This is hours of amusement for me. I learned this with my first knee. Actually, that's where the Frankenstein reference sort of comes from. Julie dubbed my right knee "Frankenknee" after my first surgery and this one has been dubbed the same. In honour of Frankenknee, I've included some pics of him, but only as links as I know some of you may not want to see him at all (or my legs at any time). Don't worry though, he's not all gorry or anything as my surgeon is a Picasso with the knife as you'll see because you can barely see the old scar on my right knee and this one is even better! I also didn't include my toes because they seem to freak some of you out too (you know who you are!).

>Click here to see Frankenknee Right & Frankenknee Left together
>Click here to see Frankenknee close up

Halloween is one of my favourite times of the year not for any other reason than I can get away with dressing up in women's clothing...usually. I wanted to make an appearance a friend's party on Friday night where a costume was a must (didn't have to convince me), however with me still sort of hobbling around on crutches, I was more limited in my costume choices.

As you can see in the photos of me, it's not an obvious costume for most upon first glance. But for diehard fans of the US version of the TV show The Office (I must be clear about this because there are UK version snobs out there as I discovered at the party), it was obvious that I was Michael Scott (played by Steve Carrell) in the Season 2 episode #211 entitled "The Injury." Apparently there were only two people out of a couple dozen at the party who are diehard fans of the show and knew that Michael burned his foot on his George Foreman Grill while cooking bacon as he slept and then came into work on crutches with bubble wrap on his injured foot. Just to make the leap for the rest of you, I've included a pic of Michael Scott from "The Injury" episode.

I should have known how bad my costume was when I went into the LCBO to pick up a quick gift for the hosts. Most people stared at me and wondered if I was in costume or not because of the crutches. Several actually asked me if the crutches were fake or not. When I said that I needed them and that I was in costume I think they thought I was joking...about being in costume. No fans there either I guess. I mean, come on, I even put fake stickers on the crutches saying "Property of Scranton Hospital" and made a "World's Best Boss" mug like the character's to sell the look.

Oh well, guess I should have went with the "injured Britney Spears" costume I thought of too. Next year I'm ramping it up for sure and going back into my comfort zone since I'll be more mobile and flexible and will be able to get into a bikini or leotard for sure!

Knee Update: I've since stopped using the crutches and even the leg splint and am trying to walk as normal as possible as per my physio's instructions. It's hard to bend all the way which is normal at this period after the surgery and I'm about 100 degrees in bending. There's still swelling around the kneecap area and especially just above the knee where the tourniquet was tightly tied around my leg during surgery. Still some nice colours on the inside of leg and foot. Stairs are still tricky and standing and sitting for long periods really swell my leg up and are a bit painful so most of the day I'm lying down with ice off and on between exercises. My exercises have progressed greatly and I do them 3 times a day or more for about 40 minutes and follow up with ice for 20 mins. with my leg elevated. It's pretty tiring on the body since it's still trying to heal itself at the same time. I don't sleep during the day so I've been sleeping well at night. I see my doctor this Thursday for an update so I'll see what he says then.

Although most of the leaves are on the ground around my place, there are trees that seem to want to hang on till the bitter end...and they all happen to be on my property. Guess I'll be getting an extra workout this year shoveling snow and soggy, wet leaves. But the colours are very nice, even the leaves on the ground. There's bright oranges, deep reds, shiny yellows and even a few green ones. I took a pic of the only tree I could get to easily from my backyard deck yesterday it was so nice. It doesn't really do it justice in the pic, but when the sun shines through the leaves they really look cool.

Below that, you can see an aurora borealis of diffused yellows and greens streaking down my inner thigh down to my inner knee where it forms a purple centre as if it it were the eye of the colour explosion. It's perfect timing as I hear the fall can be a good time to spot these "northern lights."



The colours don't end there. Travelling south to the calf region is where the saturation of colour increases with deep maroons, purples and mauves mixed together and spattered in various circular shapes. It ends with a crescendo of hues around a bulging lightning bolt shape comprised of maganificent hues of mulberry, orchid, pomegranate and wine.



Okay, that was my creative writing for today :-) Hope everyone enjoys this last bit of nice weather and especially the last of the fall colours this weekend...in the leaves, that is.

As I was talking to my physio this morning he was telling me the things to be wary of, most of which I already knew from my first surgery as well as from reading the info. sheets the doctor gave to me. However, he really put an emphasis on watching out for blood clots and signs of infection. Because he made such a point of emphasizing them and that he said I could die from either, I thought it might be a good time to ask "How common is an infection?" He replied, "Well, it's slim but you don't want to be that person who gets one and doesn't do anything about it. It can happen to anyone, look at Tom Brady." He told me to look for in terms of an infection other than really swollen and red around the incisions and more pain than usual, so I will.

That got me thinking about the meds I'm on and what they could do to me (both good and bad). I'm on a common anti-inflammatory called Naproxen and Ratio Oxycocet (Percocet) as a pain killer (that I've since stopped using a few days ago as my pain is gone). I decided to do a quick search on these and see if there's anything I should really be aware of like anal leakage or projectile vomitting (not that I have any of these, nor want them!).

I came across this great Province of Ontario resource for looking up drug names and finding out what they do. It's called Healthy Ontario and you just click on "Drugs" at the top menu bar and type in your poison. I typed in mine and found out that these drugs, although rare, may cause just some of the following:

• bloody or black, tarry stools (my bar stools are a natural wood colour so I should be safe)
• spitting up of blood (what if it just drools out of my the corners of my mouth?)
• unexplained nosebleeds (other than your night out at Fight Club?)
• vomiting of blood or material that looks like coffee grounds (Columbian, espresso, or what?)
• bleeding from rectum (with suppositories) (luckily I'm swallowing my suppositories)
• pale stools (I'm already painting my bar stools a gorgeous red oak just to be safe)
• confusion (okay, first you want a dark stool, now you want a light one...this is worst than those home decorating shows!)
• loosening or splitting of fingernails (holy crap, if my nails are falling out then what will I chew on when I'm confused?)
• unexplained, unexpected, or unusually heavy vaginal bleeding (no comment)

Sounds like fun stuff that I've luckily not had to deal with, but it's always good to know. I've included a pic of my med bottles because I think the graphics that accompany the directions are always so funny. I take it that they're supposed to be obvious if you don't speak English, but how does a loaf of bread and a half opened eye say "Take with food" and May cause drowsiness"? Who's going to eat a slice of bread with a pill? That'll wash it down! It's more like they say, "Hide in the bread" and "Take when you're buzzed."

I woke up feeling pretty good today. My knee wasn't bothering me and I had a great sleep (although drug-induced). I did some exercises a few times yesterday and built on that today. My physio also told me to keep working out my whole body where possible just to keep it from being surprised by exercise all at once when I'm more mobile. He told me I can do crunches and leg squats on my good leg as well so I've started doing those.

Julie picked up a stack of movies for me and I have a stack of books that I want to get to. It hasn't been easy reading while taking Percocet as it's hard to focus on things and really makes you sleepy so I've only taken one today and probably won't be taking them anymore. Most of my pain is related to the swelling and it's not unbearable without pain killers. The focus right now is elevating my leg and icing it (so I'm only using the computer briefly and then lying down in between exercising). Thanks to Martin at work who gave a tip to my wife for me to use my crutch between my chair and desk as a bridge to rest my leg on at the computer. Thanks for breaking your leg Martin, that was a helpful insight :-)

There were two other big events today. The first being my nephew Trevor's first birthday. I was able to go around the corner with Julie to see him for a few hours with my leg elevated on their couch. My little niece liked looking at my "owwee" brace but wasn't too concerned about lying on it :-)

The second big event was me having a shower for the first time. Not too bad going 5 days without a shower. I must say it was heaven and felt like I was Survivor Man coming in from the woods after a month away. Have you ever felt like you had to wash yourself twice in the shower? Actually, nevermind that might have been too much info. Anyway, I'm clean!

Sorry, no pics from me today but I'll leave you with this screenshot of my MRI that the doc read to see that my ACL was torn and I wasn't lying.

And yes, that is my knee in the blog header on every page.

My first day of physio began today. I will be going for physio everyday for the next two weeks thanks to the chauffering of my dad. My therapist, Jason, said it looked pretty good and did some massage. He also did some light laser on it in various places to help speed up the recovery by breaking down the scar tissue and keeping things moving. Not much activity today there.

It was also my first day at home alone without my trusty nurse Julie. I definitely missed her constantly bringing me food and drinks and emptying my bucket :-) But I guess it helped challenge me to get around a bit more on my own since they say that I can put my full weight on my leg if I wish, just no twisting or severe straightening. It's still a little difficult to use the bathroom with one leg permanently in a splint but I've figured it out. I won't go into details here.

I constructed my own little home gym with a yoga mat, exercise bands, ankle weight and hours of pumping music. It's nothing that anyone would pay $50 a month for, but it should get the job done for now.

Look out Arnahld!

Much of the same as yesterday. Watching movies and t.v. :-) Actually, just dealing with controlling the swelling by constantly elevating it with pillows and icing it with my trusty Iceman unit which runs ice water through a line and into a flexible pad that I wrap around my knee. I fill it up, rather Julie fills it up about 2-3 times a day with new ice. My knee is very warm tot he touch because it's trying to heal itself so it feels so good when cold water is pumped around it. I tell you this Iceman is a miracle for anyone going through surgery of any type like this. I've lent this thing out to about 3 other guys and it has served them all well. Better than dealing with frozen peas which don't stay cold for long...and who wants to eat those afterwards anyway?

I didn't take any pics today but I thought you'd enjoy this shot me when I got home and onto the Percocets. I probably still had some morphine in my system too. I pretty much would've listened to anyone in that state and that's why Julie made me pose like this :-)

Look at all the pretty colours...is that the Koolaid guy that just crashed through the wall?

The last of the freezing the doc put in finally wore off and the swelling kicked in around lunchtime. The swelling is what causes the most pain and discomfort in the first week from what I remember, but that's why they prescribed me pills for the inflammation and also pain killers in the way of Percocet. I tell ya, those Percocets are powerful. I wanted to catch up on some reading but after downing two of those I can't seem to concentrate and follow words on a page. Not only that, I'm ready for a nap about 20 minutes after taking them.

Did some exercise today, if you can call it that. I unwrapped my splint, tensor bandages and gauze and tried bending my knee back and forth while sitting on the futon. Not bad, I think I bent it about 45 degrees until the swelling and pain constricted me. I did 3 different exercises with 10 reps, 3 times today just to get things moving. Everyday it will definitely progress. The wound doesn't look too different than my last one as you can see below.

Iodine all over me still.


Not too swollen compared to my good knee.


Not too swollen compared to my good knee.

The day began with my wife and I waking up at 5:30 a.m. to drive down to the hospital in Toronto. My surgery was at 9:30 a.m. but we had to be there by 7:30 a.m. before the ice had thawed off our windshields and the doctor had even thought of getting out of bed.

We got there early at about 6:45 a.m. and I checked in at pre-op admin and filled out a form saying that I didn't have any recent coughing and/or droplets coming out of my mouth or nose. I guess they can tell if people are lying by the spit stains all over the form when they return it.

Anyway, this waiting area lasted about 15 mins. before I was treated to a new waiting area 30 feet down the hall. The chairs were older and there was no t.v. here, but there was a window. However it was still dark out so it didn't matter too much. We waited here for about 20 mins. where Julie took some pics of me doing one last dance move and in front of some ancient cell phone sign. I've included those below for your viewing pleasure.

Wow, that's a big cell phone! Or is that a walkie-talkie?


And it's upside down?!?!

One last Old Skool Hip Hop move!
They then called my name to go into the operating waiting room where I would get dressed up in the hospital gown, cap and booties. My wife, Julie, wasn't allowed past this point so I left her at this point to go get a coffee and some breakfast (she was so nice to hold off on the morning coffee for me as I couldn't eat or drink since midnight the night before).

I put on my hospital "uniform." They give you one gown to face backwards and one that faces frontwards (like a robe) so that you don't have any pieces hanging out. This outfit is the ultimate in equality. No matter who you are in the world, a hospital gown equalizes everyone. I saw all ages and all nationalities waiting in the same ugly gowns watching the same horrible infomercial on the 20 year old t.v. hanging from the ceiling in the same cold, dismal waiting room. It was kind of comforting.

I waited in this room for about 2 hours until about 9:15 a.m. During that time I met with a nurse who went over my info. one last time to make sure I was who I said I was and that I knew what was being done to me today. I spent most of the time wondering what everyone was in for. I made up stories for ones that I couldn't figure out, but I think most were in for a routine plumbing job (i.e. colonoscopy).

When the nurse came to get me she walked me down the hall to my large operating room, past my doctor who was typing away on his Blackberry and smiling to himself. While two other nurses laid out the tools of the trade (they had buckets of metal objects on a table around the room that made it look like the next filming of a Saw movie), another laid me down on the operating table. She put my arms out in a cross and proceeded to strap me in. Minutes later the anesthesiologist, my doctor and another nurse came in. Seconds after that I was getting a milky substance stabbed into my arm and relaxing for a nice sleep.

I woke up feeling well rested and pretty high. I looked at the clock and it was just after 10:30 a.m. so the operation took about an hour and since I never saw my doctor again and I'm still alive, it was a success. The only excitement in there happened when a nurse came back from break and put her purse against the "Code Blue" button that summons doctors from everywhere because it basically says that someone is not breathing. After about a dozen doctors and nurses rushed in and they didn't see anyone in the room dying they figured out that the purse wasn't going to make it.

I lied around the immediate post-op waiting room for about an hour and a half until most of the anesthetic wore off. A porter, who was a great driver of that hospital bed I must say, then transferred me down the hall to the last stop waiting room where they start to get me ready to go home. Below are some pics of me there.

Just got a morphine shot about 45 mins. ago.


My second cranberry cocktail already.

All the staff and nurses everywhere were great until I came across one in particular in this room. I called her the Tazmanian Devil because she just whirled around from patient to patient in this crammed little area barking orders and not listening to anyone. She was making everyone miserable in the place and even seemed to be rushing people home before they were ready. On father, whose son had just had back surgery, was extremely worried that his son was being sent home too early but this woman didn't care. The final straw with me came when I finally was able to get a porter to wheel me to my car (hospital law says that you can't walk off hospital property so there was a backlog of patients looking to get out and only one porter). As she wheeled me to the door, the Tazmanian Devil wheeled the back surgery guy past me and then stopped and pulled him backwards into my left leg that was just operated on (it wasn't hard to miss, it had a huge straight blue Velcro splint on it). The porter and myself yelled for her to stop and she did, but didn't drive back away from my leg. I said "Please be careful" and her response was "Oopsy. Oh, you don't need that leg anyway," in a sarcastic, bitchy tone. I wished the back surgery guy good luck and he kind of laughed.

When we were close to home Julie drove by Taco Bell for a feast of kings :-) Those fiesta potatoes, cheese fries and 7-layer burrito were calling my name. I devoured the feast and then fell asleep to enjoy the last bit of morphine and freezing in my leg before the swelling would kick in tomorrow.

Finally eating "food" after 18 hours!


Nobody gets between me and my TB!