Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Broken


 

We were just starting to get into a groove..... Cally started school, we were getting used to the morning routine, drop offs, pick ups, etc.  I was coming up for air and actually finding time to run or exercise and John was feeling like he was going to be able to train for and ride the Vermont 50 Mountain Bike Race/Ride at the end of September.  But, as luck would have it, our boat got rocked.... John hit a hidden stump while biking on his own and broke his scapula:


It happened on a Friday morning and I got a call in the middle of teaching a class.  He thought he dislocated his shoulder, but an x-ray at the walk-in clinic revealed the break in his scapula.  Apparently, it's a rare bone to break.  He had to wait until at least Monday to see meet with an orthopedic surgeon to see if surgery would be necessary.  And so, being the trooper that he is, he went ahead with our weekend plans-- watching my cousin Hendy's son, Jackson, play in a UVM soccer game, art hopping in Burlington, and he even was game for camping up in the Northeast Kingdom.


We had planned the camping trip with our friends, the Waites, for a weekend in June, but it poured rain, so we rescheduled.  We had actually already packed on Thursday night, so getting up and ready to go on Saturday morning, didn't take much.  However, the pain of John's break had settled in and he was sort of miserable.  I recommended that he stay home, but he said he'd prefer the distraction of being around other people.  So, I loaded the car and we set off.  John took his diaudid (pain killer) and we were off.  Unfortunately, the medication made him extremely dizzy, so by the time we got to East Burke, John was so car sick :o( 


A few hours of sleep set him straight and I was lucky to have the Mahoney Family arrive right after we did-- to help me set up a bomber campsite.


The kids had a ball.  We hiked, we ate well, and had a great time with friends. 


We woke up to pouring rain, so decided to try to get back for another UVM soccer game.  The weather was gorgeous in Burlington, the Catamounts won, and we got to catch up with Hendy, Jon, and Jackson.



The good news is that John isn't going to go under the knife.  The first doctor at Fletcher Allen looked at his x-ray and scheduled him for surgery this Monday.  However, a second opinion, from a highly reputable doctor up at Copley Hospital was not eager to operate.  He mentioned a lot of risks and felt confident that John's scapula would heal all right on his own.  He goes back in two weeks to see if it's all healing as it should.  At that point, it won't be too late to do surgery if he has to.