2018 Life Logs, Day 170—Appointments, Appointments
Date: Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Weather: Sunny and Hot; High 81, Low 57 F
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

Hot! Yes, finally the temperature climbed above 80 and it really felt hot today. Not oppressive, just pleasantly warm. I had to open windows for the first time this spring. I love hot, so it was a happy day for me. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to spend the day outside enjoying the weather. I had an appointment in Hyannis to pick up a brace for my left knee. And then two hours later, I had a physical therapy appointment twenty minutes from Hyannis. So, I spent the time in between shopping. I went to a music store to finish up my shopping for Jonah’s birthday. I was able to get a used Fender amplifier for the new electric guitar that I ordered on Amazon. Jonah wants to be a rock star, so we’ll support that. I think anything that gets a child playing musical instruments is a good thing. But I had to laugh when I went to pay for the amplifier. I had to give the guy my name and he put that in the computer. He then asked me if I know Justin Handley. Of course Justin was in his data base. He’s the only person I know who graduated from college with a degree in How to Party Like a Rock Star! And I’m pretty sure Justin has shopped at every music store from Concord, New Hampshire, to here. But back to Jonah, the used amp was half the price of the new one, so that was a good deal. I left the music store and turned my attention to food shopping at Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. Having neither of those options in Falmouth, it is always a must to stop in when in Hyannis. Then I was on to my PT appointment which was an evaluation. There is still much work to be done on my knee, but I asked them to release me for the summer as I just won’t have time to travel back and forth to Sandwich for the appointments. Tom and his assistant Hannah are top notch and they suggested that if in two weeks things are getting worse, I give a call and find a way to resume sessions. But if I am doing okay, I will wait until my next appointment with my orthopedic surgeon in August and reassess at that time. Tom really doesn’t recommend surgery at this point, so I will continue to follow the outlined leg strengthening exercises and hope for the best. Once the brace was fitted today, I wore it while shopping and it really helped. So, I will wear it when gardening or standing for long stints in the kitchen. But as Tom cautioned, you don’t want to wear it all the time. You have to balance it with aggressive muscle strengthening. Tomorrow I have, hopefully, my last appointment with the chiropractor. All of these appointments over the past month have felt like a having a part-time job. But now I need to change my profession from patient to Camp Oma Director. Friday is the last day of school, so Camp Oma begins on Monday morning. Let the fun begin.