So I went in and they cut the cast right off. No twisting and cracking and cursing this time, just zip, zip, and snip, snip. What was underneath is skin-colored and looks like a regular foot. Lots of peeling skin, since industrial pre-op disinfectant kills not only germs but also the top layers of skin. Lots of scabs along the incisions. But still, a foot! And an ankle! It's an ankle that moves back and forth, but only slightly because of the tightened tendons and muscle atrophy. Lots of stretching and physical therapy lie ahead.

I have graduated to a big Darth Vader-eqsue boot, black with blue velcro, to wear for the next six weeks during the return to weight-bearing status. (For those who are counting, this means a total of fourteen weeks in various splints, casts, and boots.) Still, I only have to wear it when I'm up and about, which means my skin can breathe the rest of the time and I don't have to be encumbered during sleep. It also means that I was finally able to shave off two months worth of leg-hair growth this afternoon. I have received many warnings about not moving about too much or putting too much weight on it, since apparently the clinic sees a lot of patients back at three weeks for injuries after they tried to do too much too early.

There is also particularly irksome news. I was talking to Mom on the phone this afternoon while attending to the tedious and disgusting task of removing dead skin. When I twisted the ankle around to see the back of it, I discovered that an entire incision’s worth of staples were never removed five weeks ago during the destapling. They haven’t bothered me, and since the ankle was almost immediately cast after the rest of the staples were pulled, I had no idea that these have been there all these weeks. This particular incision is on the very back of the ankle, and therefore not readily viewed if one isn’t looking for it. But still, the nurse (who does this sort of thing all the time) should have damned well known that there’s a third incision made for open reduction of a trimalleolar ankle fracture. I was not at my most pleasant when I called the surgeon’s office and made another appointment Monday for additional destapling. Thankfully, it doesn’t look like any of them are embedded yet.

To add insult to injury, the nurse I talked to this afternoon informed me that I am not to get the staples wet between now and Monday. Those who know me well know that I am a total Bath Queen, and now a Bath Queen who has been bathless for eight weeks. (Showers are so not as satisfying.) I had looked forward to a proper hot bath for the past week, and now I have been thwarted.

So, in summary: Cast off! Yay! Seven staples still in! &#*@! X-rays and photos to come. Happy Friday to all of you.