Yay-Toast: another day in the life of me...

I left My Wallet in El Segundo.

Yup thats right... I'll be an El Segundo Resident as of 12/15.
That's all for tonight... boo ya...

A Mile a Minute

I was asked to do the following over the past few days:

-Find a new place to move to from my current place
-Be the captain and figure out and organize our centipede team in the electric run this Friday
-Organize a Christmas party and Bachelor/Bachelorette party
-Schedule my appointment with physical therapy
-Schedule an appointment to get an MRI for my right knee
-Babysit my nephew
-Organize all of my clothes, shoes, accessories, and sports related equipment to donate to Goodwill
-Figure out what to buy for the Bride and Groom for their wedding gift
-Book a hotel room for the night of the December wedding
-Babysit my Nephew
-Plan and figure out our CrossFit Christmas Party
-Write all FB invitations to the Box Jump happening in the OC
-Write a blog about the box jump
-Figure out what I'm coaching tomorrow/this week in CF
-Figure out Christmas presents for my family (went shopping today and found nothing)
-Buy and Write Christmas cards
-Do laundry
-Decorate a Christmas Tree

The only thing of my concern now, (as I did get a majority of this stuff accomplished by 9:30pm today)
is that I get okay to move into the Studio apartment that I applied for on December 15th. (And that the apartment that I walked into earlier which was dirty and not cleaned, is now spic n span clean and fixtures fixed)--> I hope I LOVE it!

I also hope my 9-5 job just keeps getting better and better. I've hand some challenges, but I feel like it has become much better... I just hope that it continues to go that way.

okay... now i just need need to thank God for the blessings that I do have and live gratefully tomorrow!

I have to take it day by day...

While I was texting some friends today, I just realized how much I have going on and sometimes everything seems to just go off at once in my head. I'm going a mile a minute.

What really made me think.. was when I got the response of "okay you're overloading me right now." When I looked back at several texts, I didn't realize how much I needed to slow myself down.

btw, to the friend who told me this today.. Thanks. I needed to hear it. I really need to take some time out for myself and know that I shouldn't be expected to do everything, nor should I think that I'm only a success if I finish everything on that list, or that I'm only a success if I can organize an event and it goes off without a hitch.

I guess it's my bedtime now..... time to try and relaaaaaaax...

Attention Please!

"Wow, you injured yourself doing CrossFit huh? I hear there is a high rate of injury in that sport."

I get a lot of the comments above when they ask about what happened, what's up with the knee brace and why I walk the pimp walk.

(Hmm maybe I should walk with a chalice and have a cane as well hehe)

Just so I am clear, this injury was not due to CrossFit. Mine was due to me not taking care of a problem I had for quite some time. With me being pretty active my entire life, it was never an issue. The pain that we endure in our workouts and when we "tweak" something, is USUALLY pretty temporary and goes away after a certain period of time.

For me, it was clear that I had sustained a grade 4 chondromalacia, (in short arthritis) and a pretty severe one at that. A piece from the surface of the femur bone had chipped away after a trauma that occurred years ago. Now, about that trauma that happened? Not really sure when that was, but it seems as though it involved the tearing of the lateral meniscus, possibly while snowboarding and running, and just living life. I didn't know about it or rather never paid attention to it and now I have a knee of an 80 year old oba-chan (that's japanese for grandma).

Now my knee isn't like an ACL, MCL, or even PCL tear and hopefully will heal quickly, but here's what I have to preach. And preach I must because I think it's really important.

Maybe it's really 2 points that I need to make:

1. CrossFit is a sport of fitness. In any sport where you move your body, people get injured. It just happens. There are a ton of football, basketball, soccer, tennis, you name it, injuries that happen on a regular basis. I know more than a few people who tore their ACL because they stepped down on their foot incorrectly, or there was a dip in the sidewalk and their knee just gave out. All because they were WALKING. Am I going to tell someone to stop walking?

I hate people automatically just assuming that CF causes injury and harm to the body. But this also brings me to point #2.

2. Pay attention to your body. Listen to what it's feeling and react accordingly. Maybe it's not even to be reactive, but be proactive about it. And I don't want to sound like I know what I'm sayin,' but in my experience, I know that I should have paid more attention to what my body was telling me.

We all know that CrossFit is amazing! I love it, and I will always love it for what I've gained from it the past year and 8 months or so. Actually, not only CrossFit, but in all the sports that I participated as a kid---> to the sports that I enjoy playing now.

Our workouts are tough. By tough, I mean that a lot of people would run the opposite way if they were ever asked to do it. You all have experienced the "SUCK" in a workout, where you just don't think you can do one more rep and make it out alive, but you grit your teeth and do it anyway.

Maybe the next day you're sore. Like in my fundamentals class, I totally remember the 2nd day where I literally had to grab the walls to lower myself down onto the toilet to go pee. haha. I think most people have experienced muscle soreness. If that soreness doesn't go away after you've rolled out and stretched out or if there is a high amount of swelling in your ankle, knee, or shoulders, pay attention to it. If you hear something "Pop" in your joints, pay attention to it. Monitor your recovery. If things don't get better, or if it gets worse, go seek a professional.

Never think that you're too good or that you don't want to feel like a wuss because of the pain you are experiencing. Pain is real. It's your body's way of telling you that not everything is functioning correctly or normally.

Maybe if I had paid attention a bit more, this may have been a simpler issue to fix and if it was detected earlier, I possibly would have been able to fix the issue with physical therapy.

Listen to your body, treat it with respect and I promise that it will be good to you!

Let's get CLEAN!

Left Knee:
Complete subtotal menisectomy
(Chondroplasty)
Abrasion Arthroplasty
(Microfracture procedure)
Physical Therapy 3x a week for a month
Have to rest lower body for at least 3 months

Right Knee:
Doc is almost positive that the lateral meniscus is torn
(MRI to confirm findings)

What I'm most happy about?!

I get to take a REAL shower tomorrow after almost 2 weeks.
It's the little things. :D

RECOVERY- STITCHES REMOVED and BRACE OFF!

Like the title, the good news is that they took my out of that gross cumbersome leg immobilizer today. Also, they removed my stitches.

Before: Stitches

After: Stitches Gone!

Now that it's off, the doctor explains exactly what they saw when they scoped my knee...

anyways, the was just a part of the explanation behind what they did surgically.

Owls

I haven't painted for quite some time, but today I finally decided to paint something for my nephew Luca. I had actually sketched it on a canvas a while back, but didn't touch it until today. So after coming back from the wedding in Temecula and after mulling over what I should or should not being doing on a sunday, I started laundry and decided to paint while waiting. I was totally happy with the way it came out, so I may do a few more to fill up Luca's room with brightly colored art! Instead of owls, maybe I'll do different animal pairings. Suggestions?

It only took a few hours, but I took some step by step pics:

It all starts with a sketch

Painting the background

Rough painting of the owls and tree branches

Filling in the details

Finished product on the wall of the new Nishii Residence and above Luca's crib

RECOVERY- FULL DAY 10

This weekend was full of fun events all the way around.

Friday 11/09- Kevin Corrinet's B-day at Gasser Lounge

Saturday 11/10- Mina and Craig's wedding in Temecula.

Sunday 11/11 (Veteran's Day)- Came back from the wedding and chilled/laundry/painted

It was super fun and I was really happy to have finally gone out. Obviously I haven't done anything and have been laying around since the surgery. These are the things that actually make me quite happy; being around family and friends that are supportive and there for you.

RANDOM SIDE NOTE:

By the way, I take showering for granted. I have literally gone a full 11 days without taking a REAL shower. Yup pretty gross I'd say. However, I did think of a way to make it work. I take a trash bag and put a hole in it. I proceed to put my leg in it, then wrap the bag around the brace. I take packing tape and tape the trash bag to my leg on the top and bottom to create a watertight seal.

I hop in the shower and have to stick my leg outside my shower tub. And this whole process takes about 10-15 minutes just for the tape wrapping, etc. Luckily, I'm praying that the doc clears me tomorrow and I will be able to actually wash my filthy little left leg. I JUST HOPE...

Back to the weekend. Here are some pictures!