Month: April 2010

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The best-laid plans of mice and men…

Don’t mean jack when you’re experiencing flu-like symptoms.

I could go into detail about napping during the day, restless sleep at night, hot showers, waking up in a cold sweat and what not—thankfully, nothing exploding forcefully from either end of my digestive system—but the important part is the symptoms.

Not only does it take time away from writing my next blog entry about pre-knee surgery, but it puts said surgery in jeopardy. If I’ve got cold- or flu-like symptoms on Saturday, I get to call the hospital and they get to call it off until I get better. How long the delay will last… I’d rather not have to deal with that.

Consequently, I’m wishing for best health for family and friends. And me, of course. Is that so much for a mouse to ask?

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We’re going to pump *CLAP* you up!

I don’t want to say I’m lacking in inspiration, but for lack of a better subject, I’m going to provide a history lesson about what led up to my impending surgery. In a way, I’m glad it’s happening two weeks from now, because the back story could take several entries. Whether that’s because I want to provide a natural break between topics or because I’m lazy… I ain’t gonna tell you.

Suffice it to say that if you want to read the whole epic saga in one sitting, you may want to wait for a few days, then drop by the blog with some popcorn and a Coke. It may not last as long as Titanic and the soundtrack isn’t as good, but at least this story was cheaper to produce. Plus my acting isn’t as overrated.

The most likely beginning of the story spans back to last summer. That’s right, last summer. Ooh, the plot is thickening already… Continue reading “We’re going to pump *CLAP* you up!”

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Technology will (still) be the death of me

This is a test post to see if some new coding will help Twitter and my blog live together in perfect harmony. Or at least tolerate each others’ presence during the holidays. (Many thanks to Marie regardless of the results, ’cause she put lots of work into trying to turn random websites’ vague instructions into actual code.)

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Technology will be the death of me

Especially if I walk into the street while staring at my cell phone and I get hit by a bus.

This is primarily due to peer pressure—I’m not sure why I cave easily in these situations… maybe I’m hypnotized by shiny objects… like cell phones… Anyway, I created a Twitter account (@shawnbakken) for no good reason. Given how infrequently I write blog entries, I’m not sure how often the muse be flowing through my fingers for 140 characters or less. Maybe I’m just a glutton for punishment: I’ll get to feel guilty for never updating two things at any given time.

So I’m adding yet another link to the right-hand column that you can click when you’re feeling bored and want to read little nuggets of lack-of-wisdom from yours truly. Perhaps it’s best that I don’t have free Internet access on my phone—it means I’ll have to add said nuggets using my computer. If staring at a computer screen leads to my getting hit by a bus, maybe technology wasn’t the problem after all.

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RICE, RICE, baby…

I can’t believe I didn’t write any blog entries in March. God, I feel unclean… You all have my sincerest apologies, but unfortunately, I have an excuse.

This entry is going to be the short version because the full story could end up being… well, it’s not short. Lots of details, so here’s the summary: I was playing soccer on March 14th and someone kicked me just below my right kneecap. Very hard. It hurt, so I limped off the field and spent the rest of the game on the sideline. That in itself was not a big deal.

When my knee swelled up to the point where you could barely see my kneecap at all, that was a big deal. I spent the next week and a half Resting, Icing, Compressing and Elevating (and for some ungodly reason, I keep hearing Vanilla Ice’s voice in my head telling me to “RICE, RICE, baby…”). In that time span, I went to the doctor, then a knee specialist, had an MRI and eventually learned that the guy who kicked me in the knee sprained my MCL and tore my ACL. (Here’s a picture to show where the damage is.)

That throws the proverbial monkey wrench into my summer plans, but like I said, this is the short version. The most important detail is that along with all the RICEing I’ve been doing since the 14th, I’m scheduled to have knee surgery on April 26th. I don’t have much trouble with my knee while I’m walking, but sometimes I can feel it wobble a little bit. Trust me, it’s not a cool enough sensation to justify destroying your knee ligaments.

I know what you’re thinking. “He can’t play soccer and spends a lot of time Resting, so he’ll have more time to write blog entries from now on!” That’s a pretty solid theory, but if I don’t, I may have another excuse: I’ll be too busy banging my head against a wall to get Vanilla Ice to stop singing.