Thinking aloud

I'm really unhappy about what happened at the hospital yesterday, not just because it was another administrative clusterfuck but because the cursory advice I was given by the sidekick contradicts every other source of information I can find. He basically told me to keep the shoulder immobilised for another two weeks for a total of over three weeks. All my online sources say 'a few days'. They also say that motion exercises should be begun as soon as possible and that the injury should be well on the mend within 3-4 weeks. I'm concerned not just about increasing recovery time but also potentially losing range of motion through scarring etc.

So what do I do? I could try and get an appointment at Mt. Sinai at the sports medicine clinic. I could try not using the sling and/or doing some very gentle motion exercises. I could follow what I am pretty sure is totally duff advice. I am not a happy bear.

ETA: I should probably also have said that his advice was given based on a cursory look at 9 day old X-rays. He didn't actually look at the injury at all. My impression was he was just trying to get a tick in the box marked "examined patient" for everyone who was in the clinic.

Sports medicine clinic

W00t! I have an appointment to see a sports medicine specialist at a stand alone clinic tomorrow. I just can't express how frustrated I am with hospitals. We pay people huge salaries to run the damn things (almost all the highest paid people in the public sector work in hospitals) and they absolutely suck. And there are still people who think that if only they had bigger budgets everything would be fine. It beggars belief.

OK so I've said it before

Middlesex bowled 104 overs today on the first day of a four day county championship game. Why then is it impossible ever to bowl just 90 overs in the allowed time on the first day of a test match? Answers to the ICC department of pathetic and implausible excuses.

Fun from the BBC's commentary on Holland-Argentina

Hundreds of fans had turned up for the match in bright orange lederhosen emblazoned with the name of a rival to one of the World Cup's corporate sponsors. Stewards infomed them they weren't allowed into the ground with such garments on so they duly stripped down to their underwear for the game!

No comment

Argentine teenage prodigy Lionel Messi will be aiming to reinforce the clamber for him to start.

I like this idea. Perhaps the fans should play Jeux sans Frontieres type games to see who gets selected.

Ayala couldn't be angrier if he tried. There's loads of shoulder shrugging and referee-bating after he concedes a free-kick for fouling Ruud van Nistelrooy.

The referee is probably pretty pissed off too if the Argie keeps putting a leather hood on his head.

One day at a time

I didn't wear a sling today. I decided to try and get the arm to start behaving! I walked the few blocks to Yonge and King and back necessary to make a clinic appointment plus shopping at the market on the way home. It was a bit achey but not too bad. Doing normal domestic stuff isn't too bad. I'm using my left hand for a lot of things I normally wouldn't and I'm tending to keep my right elbow tucked in by my side. Still, this is a whole lot better than having one arm immobilised.