mulberryshoots

In case you’ve ever thought I might have a screw loose, you’re right! The ankle I broke a couple of years ago was mended with two plates attached with thirteen screws. One plate was in the back and another one on the side by the four-inch incision. And a pin that held my tibia and fibula together. I asked for the pin to be removed a year later because it felt like my foot was glued together.

But recently, I felt like my ankle wasn’t holding up – that is, when I stood up in the morning, it felt unstable and that I might teeter over any moment. Plus, there was a noticeable “point” that I could feel with my finger right under the skin. Not a good sign, right?

So I had an x-ray Friday and sure enough, the side plate apparatus will be removed this coming Tuesday. Having major surgery is no fun but it should be more like restorative surgery than adding more metal to the pedal. I don’t look forward to the anesthesia, shots and needles that it will entail, and especially the overdosing of oxycontin the nurses give you when it’s not needed. Last time around, I worried more about the painkiller effects than anything else.

The orthopedic surgeon said I’d be in a splint for 2 weeks and a boot for 6 weeks – which means getting up and down our three flights of stairs to where we live will be an exercise in ingenuity again and of course no driving for 8 weeks since it’s my right foot. We also retrieved my arm crutches and wheelchair to get ready for ambulatory care this coming week.

Yesterday, we cleaned out the freezer completely and stocked it with freshly purchased rib-eye steaks, chicken thighs and shrimp that I can cook easily supplemented with a dozen ears of farmstand corn, squash, salad greens and fresh eggs in the fridge. A large pot of cucumber soup is in progress on the stove this morning. Also plan to make a pot of potato soup that I’ll freeze along with the cucumber soup base – nice and light for the summertime that we can eat later on along with a fresh zucchini frittata or spinach quiche. I was thinking that it might be useful to shop and cook this way for times when we won’t be going to the grocery store every day or so anyhow. Plus, it feels good to know exactly what we have on hand so that I’ll be able to cook from our pantry and fridge even while fresh veggies and fruit are plentiful right now in the middle of the summer.

Knowing myself, I thought about a project (or two) that I might undertake while I have limited mobility for a few weeks: and that is to teach myself how to make homemade pasta. Too bad for the non-gluten folks, but I’ve ordered some Italian “00” flour and some semolina flour to experiment with. Fresh mushrooms of different varieties with some fresh spinach and pine or hazelnuts might be a good combo – and of course tomatoes with fresh basil too.

One of our tenants is taking her Medical Board exams on Friday and I’ll make something simple and tasty to celebrate at our supper together afterwards.

Light and right! That’s a good way to look at it, I suppose. Anyhow, that’s what’s come from a screw coming loose in the wrong place. I’ve always loved fresh noodles and now, I’ll be able to make all kinds of them (fettucine, papperdalle, angel hair) and experiment between reading cookery books and trying them out in our kitchen.

No biggie in the larger scheme of things.