Meniscus Chronicles

Leipzig has been reeeeeally cold. Record cold, apparently, but I haven't noticed because I've been sitting inside dealing with a meniscus injury. I have, however, noticed the snow. Snow never stayed more than a few hours last year. But check out these pictures.

The view from my window:











The smoke from the chimney is to be seen even during day (compared to this):













The view driving back to my apartment after a visit to the doctor:












The Elster river, frozen over:












There's nothing like slick streets and sidewalks to keep someone with a bum knee inside. Luckily, I've had lots of loving people to help me. My roommate picked up some medicine and books from the library. Jenny has been taking me to doctor's appointments and seminars, as well as to the grocery store.

Me waiting for Jenny to help me out of the car and over the snow (oh, and one thing I've learned--no matter what anyone thinks, when one leg has to be kept straight, it makes no sense to go bum first because you can't turn and have your leg fit, it has to be legs first):












Jenny (that's my apartment building behind her--my window is about where her purse strap meets up with her scarf, the car was exactly where the car covered in snow is standing in the picture above):












Brother Fingerle picked me up for church. Literally. Can you see me slung over his shoulder?














Aaron took out the garbage. Antje put on my socks, wrapped my leg, and fetched things for me. Oh, and they didn't complain about my freezing apartment, but toughed it out.












The Dixons picked me up for the first week of church, Sister Fingerle took me to a class and the Relief Society president picked me up, and Dani (my visiting teaching partner) is picking me up this Sunday.

I went to the sport injury doctor on Monday. He told me to stop using the brace, to walk as much as possible, to keep taking pain killers, to ice my knee (yeah right, when the weather is already -10 degrees?), and to come back in two weeks if it was still a problem and then he'd be sure the meniscus was torn. That wasn't very reassuring, but I've been trying. At least falling asleep is easier because my leg can be a bit more comfortable, but I wake up when I turn, because it hurts. My knee is really stiff and swollen, but I keep moving it. I can't believe how weak it is after ten or eleven days without use--it wants to collapse every time I walk and just unbending it after sitting for five minutes makes me feel arthritic.

When I take my socks off, my leg is lumpy because of the swelling (no, that is not my knee).















My foot is also looking quite nasty because all the blood from the injured blood vessels has drained down to it, leaving it blue.