Busy, busy and surgery

I really need to start scheduling blog time at least once a week, if not more.    I'm not sure I can remember everything that has gone on since my last post.  Let's see what I can remember -

I finally got my seeds started.  I need to come up with a way to do them inside earlier in the late winter.

Greenhouse Bookcase

I had to try again with a couple of the seeds. None of the parsley, cilantro and carrots took. I think it got too cold or they got over-watered.

I had some store-purchased baking potatoes sprout while in my pantry so I planted them as well.

Happy Potatoes!

An evergreen tree was growing up against the mailbox and I really didn't want to cut down the tree, so I moved the mailbox.  Only I hit a layer of rock and couldn't get the hole deep enough.  I went with plan B.

Straighter than it looks

I promise that the mailbox is actually straight.  It's survived two storms like this so I think it will work. I'll have to find someone with a small backhoe to put it in the ground permanently.  I've planted marigolds in the bucket since I took this picture.


The drainage trench before and after the driveway culvert was clogged so I had to burn leaves and dig dirt out.  That was fun, fun, fun.

Before the culvert, facing North

After the culvert, facing South and down hill

I spent two days digging this trench. I saved the dirt for other projects.  I was surprised that my lawn mower started so easily but it was a temporary situation.  I finally had the money for lawn mower gas this weekend and wanted to mow before the next storm. I filled the ride-on mower's tank and tried to start it. It wouldn't start. I called AutoZone to find out if I could jump-start/charge my lawn and garden battery with my car (2007 Chevy HHR) battery. They said "Yes."  The battery wouldn't hold the charge and now I have no power steering.  I ended up spending all day Friday and after work Saturday using a push mower to mow as much of the yard as I could get.  The mower used to be self-propelled but that part broke a couple years ago.  I have about 2 acres of yard and I got almost 1/2 of it done over those two days.  Where I didn't get is so over-grown and wild, I'm not sure the ride-on mower will be able to mow it. It will take more than one pass with the mower, that much is certain.

All of this, and more, was done with a bum knee.  I have a medial collateral ligament strain, a small moderate size joint effusion with small popliteal cyst, evidence of mild degenerative joint disease and a small amount of bone marrow edema in the medial tibial plateau.  All this means that my knee hurts due to ligament strain and inflammation/increased water content in bone marrow of the right tibia and arthritis in the knee.  Supposedly all the pain I'm in is the tibia issue, not the ligament. It took a month from time of injury to the time I saw the orthopedic doctor.  He gave me a shot that was a mixture of two local anaesthetics, a pain reliever and a corticosteroid.  It didn't do anything. I'm now scheduled for outpatient surgery tomorrow morning.  The procedure is a subchondroplasty.  Using an x-ray machine, they will find the right place, drill a hole through the tibia to the spot and inject a paste into the edema.  The paste immediately hardens, making the bone stronger and making the pain go away. If it works.  I will have a brace on for the first 72 hours and after that, I don't know. I assume I have to use crutches for a while. The stitches come out on May 15th.  Now I'm kinda glad I didn't get any chickens. I won't be able to move the coop for a while.

I have to be at the hospital by 830 AM for a 930 AM surgery.  It's coming up on midnight and I need to take my regular medicines then nothing - not even a middle of the night glass of water.  I'm a little worried, I think.  I don't think I've thought about it much.  I've been too busy and tired to think about it.  I am trying to get some last minute stuff done - laundry, dishes, etc.  I wasn't able to get my paycheck early so I wasn't able to do a last minute grocery shopping trip. Oh well.  I'll just use one of the motorized carts and try to not run anyone over.  Do you know if those can do wheelies?  'Cause that would be cool and I'd get to feel like a bad ass.