Piling on

Sorry for the silence but stuff keeps happening. A friend passed away from melanoma (get those moles checked!), then last weekend I came down with some kind of bug (Covid test was negative). So while still recovering from surgery, I am also recovering from illness. I was able to abandon the brace this past week and while I am still not supposed to do much, my shoulder is loosening up. Oddly, my other shoulder now feels better, so maybe no more joint replacements in my future. (Fingers crossed.)

Meanwhile, I completed two more jigsaw puzzles and am now puzzled out.

The velcro straight jacket

I knew I would have to wear an immobilizing brace post-surgery, but was not prepared for all the velcro. There is an armband around my upper arm to keep me from moving my shoulder, a cuff around my wrist, and an over-the-shoulder strap, all of which is attached to a wide band around my chest. All of these pieces are covered with a LOT of Velcro so they stick together. Last summer, I planned to finish a poncho I had been knitting, but didn't. Just as well, as today is the first day cool enough to wear such a thing, plus wool clings to velcro like a burr on a dog. Interestingly, I've discovered that superwash wool is relatively easy to peel off of the velcro.

The staples were removed this past week, and I asked if I could knit again. Sadly, the answer was NO because apparently I also had a bicep tenotomy during the surgery. Two more weeks of the brace, then two weeks after that I start physical therapy. Hopefully, somewhere along that timeline, someone will say it is okay to knit.

Another book I recently purchased is Annie MacHale's Three-Color Pickup for Inkle Weavers. This is advanced inkle weaving at its most challenging. One needs to be relative proficient at Baltic pickup before tackling this, so I requested a book from the library that should help with that.

Before my surgery, I was feeling a bit bored with fiber: I was tired of spinning the red Tunis and frustrated with the inkle weaving and not able to do much else. Now I am getting antsy to get back at it, have lots of projects planned. Hopefully it won't be too long. Meanwhile, there are jigsaw puzzles to tackle.

(One piece is missing. I purchased this puzzle used from the community center, so don't know if the piece was already missing or if I lost it.)

Idling

I'm still recovering from the surgery, and will be for a while. My energy level is low; not sleeping well is not helping, either. I've been using a "lift chair" - a motorized recliner - as my primary residence, although sometimes I shift to the couch. Lying in an actual bed is not yet comfortable.

While twiddling my fiber thumbs, I ordered a book I mentioned before, Tommye Scanlin's Tapestry Design Basics and Beyond, purchased from the Woolery. (I'm a bit anti-Amazon right now). I also purchased the latest Little Looms magazine. One can dream, can't one?

It's surprising all the things one can do with one hand, frustrating about all the things one can't. I did try to knit a bit on the Habitation throw since I am knitting continental, but after a couple of rows, gave up. Knitting activates micro movements in the shoulders, plus all the velcro on the immobilizer grabs at the wool. I've talked to enough people who have had shoulder surgery who regretted not giving themselves time to heal properly. I understand the urge to forge ahead, but don't want to make things worse instead of better.

Home now

Just a quick note to say that the shoulder replacement surgery went well. I'm home and sometimes feel almost normal. The dogs are at the kennel for a few more days, the cats take turns sleeping in my lap, my SO and daughter help with the stuff I can't do one-handed. So all is well. The aftermath of this surgery is more painful than hip replacement, so it will be a while before I can do any fibering, though.