Out of Commission

[Safebare]

It is time to let all of my FRN friends know what became of me Sunday, May 28th. It has briefly, but significantly, changed my life 180 degrees. I broke both feet.

I accomplished this feat after 4 days of following my brother's compadres in the North American J24 Regatta held off Sylvan Beach and hosted by the Houston Yacht Club. At the close of the event we were readying my BIL's boat for transport at the head of the boat ramp. 3 of us were on the cabin manipulating the mast into place.

This is not a 3 person job and I was the odd man out, so I backed off, out of the way to crouch at the side of the bow. I grasped the safety line (lifeline) as security. As I grabbed the line, it fell loose in my hand.

I'm not sure why it decided to fail at that time, I certainly wasn't pulling hard on the line. I lost my balance and was faced with the fact that I was headed over-board. I made a conscious decision to jump, rather than fall the 6 ft. to the asphalt surface below.

I landed squarely on my feet, crouched in what I thought, and my brother described, as a perfect 2-point landing. But, my feet were very angry about the whole exercise. Pat and Dave finished securing the boat while I lay on the asphalt assessing my situation. Others provided me with some ice for my painful feet.

2 friends utilized a 'fireman's lift' to hoist me into brother's p/u and we went to the closest hospital for x-rays. It was discovered that I had broken both heels (bi-lateral calcaneus fx). The fractures are simple, but needed plates and a screw due to the complexities of that particular bone. I believe the story of Humpty Dumpty originated from a calcaneus injury.

Anyway, I am now completely off my feet. No walking, driving, sailing or other endeavors (nude or otherwise) that had been my life for the past 60+ years, at least not for 6 weeks - 6 months. With the help of a very capable and loving support network, I am comfortable in my new wheelchair and being tended to by my kids, extended family and many others.

The GF tells me that it is The Universe's way of teaching me to accept help instead of being the giver so much of the time. I am sure there is a lesson here (or 2), just not clear on it just yet.

I will get past this and continue to appreciate all of the love and support demonstrated thus far. We are certainly a community, not islands, separate in isolation.

~Safebare

[jbeegoode]

Just six feet makes a huge difference. When I was around 35, I had gained weight and had been less active. I didn't realize the extent. I was out playing with my son one day in the desert behind the tract house, reliving my childhood with him. There was a ditch/wash along there with soft sand in it. It had steep graded slops into it about 5 ft. deep. It was for flooding.

I jumped off into the ditch, thinking that it wasn't far, the sand was giving, and I used to do this all the time. I was launched in mid-air when time seemed to slow down dramatically. In a flash, I realized that I had forgotten how to fall and land. The muscle memory was probably gone and my intellect was drawing blanks, if not getting in the way of natural movement. I landed on my heels legs not bending to cushion the fall. It created problems, pain. Eventually the spur thing, the podiatrist giving me $400 rubber heel pads and exam and a reminder every morning, as I got out of bed. My custom boot maker fixed the irritation in my heels by shifting the weight to the balls of my feet. That caused other problems eventually, but barefoot living and self foot massage is fixing that. 

Now, what we have in common here is lo seinto, I feel your pain. It sounds very serious, but recovery is possible. You will have to become more aware and in touch with your body and give love to those feet after the wheel chair, care and pain pills. The feet will enjoy the attention. DANG! So, you like to swim? You'll be spending more time here?

Your back and shoulders may be out and in time, may need some work. It affects the whole of the body system, and myofasia, but that therapy feels really good.
Jbee

[Safebare]

Thanks Jbee. I do hope that this will allow more time here. I have a couple of pre-event FRN stories to share. Realizing the bar for stories is set very high with this group. 😀
My deferred adjudication ends this weekend and all is in order except that I will have to be creative with the community service hours. I have 3.5 hours clearing trash from public trails with the Hill Country Nudists. I have asked for acknowledgment from the yacht club in providing support for the regatta. That, plus the fact that i am now disabled, hopefully will get that whole situation behind me.

~Safebare

[eyesup]

Yikes! Wow! Something you do all the time and out of the blue things go wonky!
Safebare, stay off the feet and get well. And yes trust in your family and friends just like they trust you.

When I was a kid we used to jump out of trees and off the banks of the bayou, 10-12 ft., no big deal. My uncle in Louisiana had an old style barn on his farm. The hay loft was a good 12-13 ft. up and we would play army commando and “escape the enemy” by jumping out of the loft. I had bones of rubber back then, but yeah landing correctly is the trick. I wouldn’t do it now unless necessary.

Follow the doctor’s orders. I have learned this through behavioral modification.
As I have multiple family members and friends that are nurses and work in health care and make sure I do that too.

Duane

[JOhnGw]

Given the daft things I have done and other accidental happenings in my life, all I can think is that I wish you the best of luck with your recovery and "there, but for the grace of God, go I."

[Greenbare Woods]

It is time to let all of my FRN friends know what became of me Sunday, May 28th. It has briefly, but significantly, changed my life 180 degrees. I broke both feet.
~Safebare

OUCH!   

Stepping a mast is a chore.  Taking a dive off the bow into a parking lot is very unsafe.  When we get older we aren't as resilient as we were 5 or so decades ago.

May you heal rapidly and be as good as new.

Bob

[John P]

Ouch! I guess the moral is, when stepping a mast, watch where you step.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery, and for creative time spent on the internet during the process.

Would a name change to "Dangerbare" be appropriate?

[ric]

just shows how quickly an accident can turn our lives upside down

i guess the moral is , live for today cos you dont know what crap is coming tomorrow

hope you have a speedy full recovery

[jbeegoode]

I told DF last night. She works with accident people. She winced and compassionately said, "ooh" with puckered lips. There will be some recovery process and care and patience, but then what else to do when you are laid up? You'll probably get the rest the bod into great shape, while the heels get caught up.
Jbee

[Safebare]

Thanks for all of the supportive words of wisdom and humor.  I will try to never again get out of step when stepping the mast. 
Should I reconsider my handle?  Many years ago, I chose Safebare because it blends my vocation and avocation.  I have been in occupational safety for 25 years.  I do preach the practice of safety while off the job too.  Am I a hypocrite?  I don't think so.  I generally am a very careful person.  But I do get out there and do stuff.  I feel that life is for the experience and there is little that others do, that I cannot.  That leads me to some activities with risk that I don't completely recognize.  And the fact that my bones have over 6 decades of wear and tear, completely escapes me at times.
At work, it is different.  You should only be in an environment that you are familiar and/or with others that have experience in that environment.  Where the risks are known and mitigated.  Even then, unrecognized hazards can pop up, like the loose lifeline.  We are human and vulnerable.
I check safety equipment frequently and always before use.  I walked the boat, end to end, before I took it out of harbor that morning.  I never thought to check it once it was loaded on the trailer.
I am resilient and will survive this, just as I survived other examples of life's disasters.  Until i don't.  "Take away my legs, and I won't walk any more."  This is significant, but I'm still here, still a force with which to be reckoned.  My son's best friend has been in a wheelchair all of his life.  And he is a 2nd degree black belt.

Still Safebare!

[Greenbare Woods]

Sorry to hear about your injury Safebear.  Sailing is usually pretty safe. 

[eyesup]

I don’t sail, so I had to look up ‘stepping the mast’. It said it was the process of raising the mast so you could then raise the sails. If you were getting ready for transport, what is lowering the mast called? The same term?

I also looked up “bi-lateral calcaneus fracture” and winced at some of the medical photos explaining the injury. The pictures of the hardware used in repairing the bones in the foot made me think of the old saying, “Cured of what you suffer from, but suffering from the cure”.

You will likely need a card or something when you go through airport security.
Plates-n-screws-n-bolts and thangs!

You could change your screen name from “Safebare” to “TinMan”!

Duane

[Greenbare Woods]

If you were getting ready for transport, what is lowering the mast called? The same term?
Duane

Putting the mast down ready to transport would be called "UN-stepping the mast." 

[Safebare]

Bob, that's the first I had heard of un-stepping the mast.  I always referred to the process as lowering the mast.  Stepping the mast refers to placing the mast into the 'step'.  Of course it's not stepped until properly secured.  Going up is always more of a task than coming down, with gravity being the major difference.  Stepping the mast usually involves assistance from others or some form of mechanical advantage.  I can bring it down without any help.  Rather, I used to be able to bring it down, when I had working feet. 

I will be back stepping and un-stepping in no time.    

I like to sail in a breeze, more than in a blow.  Prefer to relax and dispel life's rough edges, no clothes and a cool beverage among friends.  That should be a rather safe activity.  But, sailing can be adventurous to risky as there are many shallow areas and underwater obstructions in the bay that can cause a leisurely sail to turn dangerous, if one is not aware.  But, I really was caught off guard by this turn of events, once out of the water and on solid ground. 

[Greenbare Woods]

Bob, that's the first I had heard of un-stepping the mast.  I always referred to the process as lowering the mast.  Stepping the mast refers to placing the mast into the 'step'.  Of course it's not stepped until properly secured.  Going up is always more of a task than coming down, with gravity being the major difference.  Stepping the mast usually involves assistance from others or some form of mechanical advantage.  I can bring it down without any help.  Rather, I used to be able to bring it down, when I had working feet. 

I will be back stepping and un-stepping in no time.    

We always said "Unstepping the mast" when I was doing a lot of sailing before having a family and kids.   Take the mast off of the "step."    How hard it is to do up or down depends on how your boat is rigged and where you have to stand, etc.