Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

In my day, never was longer.

I have other things to bitch about but those will have to wait.

He really is that stupid.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Let the trolls come, and then ignore them. that’s the worst thing you can do to a troll.

Even though I know this is a bad idea, I’m off to do it anyway!

The US Supreme Court is on the ballot in november.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

The lights are all blinking red.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

Everybody saw this coming.

Everything is totally normal and fine!!!

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

Balloon Juice, where there is always someone who will say you’re doing it wrong.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

A consequence of cucumbers

Bad people in a position to do bad things will do bad things because they are bad people. End of story.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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The Idiot

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There is nothing like helping a friend. Barring it involving moving a body*, it’s usually a sign of Being A Good Person. However… I have learned that this is not necessarily a sign of being a smart person.

Yes, I did lift those. Yes, that’s a heavy band around my legs. Yes, those are velvet shoes.

A few days ago, I went with a friend to their parents’ house, which is being sold, as their father passed last year and it’s become too much for their mother. To say the family dynamic is stressful is a classic case of “My Culture Has a Case of the British Understatementitis”, so I wanted to be there for them. There was also a car. A car that has sat in the garage for about 3 months and is now an ex-running car. The desire was to jump the car, use it to take beloved furniture back to friend’s own home, possibly eat some pizza in a furniture laden home. The best laid plans, juicers, something something, I got distracted, maybe it was important, maybe not.

There’s a surprising amount of time lifting things for no reason on my calendar. & Looking like a Flashdance extra.

Said car is a luxury vehicle. As in, a Lexus. Did I mention it’s a 2017 Lexus SUV? Someone had to stay in the vehicle to steer the non-running thing & someone had to push. Being a clever person, I was not about to steer a car I have no clue about, with friend’s expensive car too close, and possibly lose control, crashing expensive SUV into parents’ house or a neighbor’s house. I’m not saying I’m disaster prone, I’m saying I have a tendency to defy statistics.

Piece o’cake!

So, your pal pushed a 4 ton vehicle about 20 feet. It charged up, was driven back into the garage. It died again. So, I did the feat of strength, again. We did some what was needed, we went back to our respective homes. All was well!

Until… I woke up the next day with the most incredible pain in my left shin, ankle & foot. I’ve been laid up for a couple of days and can only walk moderate distances with a cane. I have no idea what happened, so don’t ask me. It seemed really simple at the time. I did push the thing, it moved, I kept pushing until we had the space we needed. Why my body didn’t signal, “Girl, you crazy? Call AAA!”, i dunno. I’m breaking down the scar tissue and slowly regaining mobility, but that was, in hindsight, probably stupid. But good intentions? Ah, well. I can take loving well, if not wisely. Open thread, laugh at my pain, but remember, I did move an suv.

“You’re supposed to be smarter, WTF.” “Forget it, Odo. Mom can’t even hunt.”

Reader Interactions

60Comments

  1. 1.

    Spanky

    Yeah, I get that look. All the time.

    Sounds like you’re doing what needs to be done to heal. Lighten up on the weights.

  2. 2.

    JPL

    Now what was that comment that the great philosopher Forrest Gump said.   Well at least it took your mind off of the asshole in chief.

    btw I hated that movie.

  3. 3.

    Mnemosyne

    Shin, ankle and foot could be your sciatic nerve, aka sciatica. Try some pigeon pose-type stretches and see if that helps.

    I threw my back out by coughing while I had the flu, so I’m in the same boat. Thank go for my physical therapist, because without her I would still be hobbling around like I’m 98 years old. 

  9. 9.

    joel hanes

    For all of us, there comes a day when our minds make a promise that our bodies can’t fill

  10. 10.

    ziggy

    Love the illustrated story! Hope you are feeling better soon, but of course if things don’t get better, you should probably get the area looked at. I broke a big toe not too long ago and it is surprisingly easy to do. I hope there is nothing broken or torn!

  12. 12.

    satby

    You’re a good friend and apparently Wonder Woman. The only thing that have me reasonable pain relief when I ruptured a shoulder tendon and needed PT was Aleve (or the generic), so if you haven’t tried that it may help.

    love the kitty dialog!

  14. 14.

    Ken

    moving a body*

    Waiting for the footnote… waiting for the footnote… None?  AAAGH!

    Sorry, for some of us it’s as bad as, well, this.

    Hope you get better soon.

  16. 16.

    oldster

    I’m right there with you, Rue. Just before Thanksgiving I was at the gym and feeling frisky. I did some leg presses that were not too hard on my quads, but we’re apparently much too hard on my joints.

    I was not aware of doing any damage at the time, or even the day after. But a few days later my knees hurt like hell, and now two months later they still do.

    Stupid, stupid me. I have a date to see a knee-doc in a month, and god knows what the answer will be. Surgery? New knee? Euthanasia?

    All I know is, it was entirely my own damned fault. Ah, well.

    Hope you feel better with rest and stretching. PT can work wonders.

  17. 17.

    Mohagan

    I find as I get old(er), it is so easy to strain my body doing things it never occurs to me could be problematic, and of course the pain never shows up until the next day so I don’t realise the damage I am doing until it is too late. I have strained my knees doing yoga, which is pathetic, so you should feel great about injuring yourself pushing (twice!!) a big ol’ SUV. What a good friend!  But seriously, next time call AAA ?. Please take it easy and give yourself plenty of time to recover. You don’t want this to turn into some kind of nagging problem for months.

  18. 18.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Back in the early ’80s, a long time south side buddy of mine called me once and said, “I need help.”
    I replied, “Sure. Whatever you need.”
    He said, “Come on over.”

    When I got to his place, he took me out to his backyard and whispered in my ear:
    “Some girl I’ve never seen before knocked on my door @ 8 am this morning and said, “The cops are in the factory across the street.” then turned and walked away. For all I know she knocked on the wrong door, but man, you know what I got in my basement.”

    Indeed I did. A farm worth at least $30- 40K, and that wasn’t counting the hash he had.

    Without getting into all the details, at 6 or 7 pm that winters night, I was driving south on Grand with a p/u load of stems, rootballs, and soil under my camper top, taking it to Carondelet Park where the city had a composting facility.

    I pulled up to a red light. A K-9 cop pulled up next to me. The dog is barking his fool head off. The light changed. The cop pulled away w/o ever even looking at me (as best I could tell). I continued to Carondelet Park where I dumped the load and then dumped the other load out of my pants.

    Not the smartest thing I’ve ever done, but if I was faced with the same choice? I’d do it again.

    PS: I love the ” I’m not saying I’m disaster prone, I’m saying I have a tendency to defy statistics.”

  20. 20.

    ruemara

    So you’re all saying that being able to walk a bit today doesn’t mean I should go for a run and weights tomorrow? I’m not sure about that.

  21. 21.

    Jager

    When I was a senior in high school I sold my ’57 Chevy and made a few bucks on it. I bought a one-owner ’46 Ford from a retired railroad engineer. Car was perfect with one exception, it wouldn’t start on cold damp days. I could push start it myself with no problem, of course, I was a 17-year-old hockey player. I could probably do it today if it was pointed downhill

    One of the old man’s mechanics told me that after the war, there was a shortage of rubber and almost all of the accessory wiring was cloth covered in the first post-WWII cars.

  24. 24.

    Eric S.

    R.I.C.E.
    Rest. Ice. Compression.* Elevation.

    * Do not cut off blood flow!! A friend twisted an ankle last year and I told him this. He asked, “Wrap it as tight as possible, right?” NOOOOOOOO.

  29. 29.

    ruemara

    @Starfish: i have one of those THC pain relieving creams in my Amazon cart. If these weren’t lean times… but I guess it’s the hard old-fashioned way, RICE and time.

     

    @zhena gogolia: I am  at least a moderately literate idiot.

  35. 35.

    Starfish

    @ruemara: I just started doing some weight stuff, but I am trying to do many repetitions to build up endurance so the weights that I use are really low. We also do not have a barbell. We have a Smith Machine, and I have no clue what that is for.

  36. 36.

    MazeDancer

    Your cat’s expression is simply splendid!

    Always a good thing to help friends in need. No matter what.

  38. 38.

    ruemara

    @Starfish: If you see me sitting in the second batch of pics, that’s a Smith machine. I use it for calf raises, because it allows a full range of motion in the heel and because it protects me from hurting myself with the safety bars. It’s a simple shrug to get the weight off of my body. I also use those for weighted hip thrusts. I need at minimum 75lbs for training legs and I can get up to 90lbs safely.  Smith machines allow you to practice form and safely lift heavier without a spotter. My light is someone else’s heavy.

    Edited to reflect that a full heel range motion for calf raises means you angle the heel below the toes then elevate to high on the toes. Which means you need a small platform to do heel raises right.

  41. 41.

    The Dangerman

    As I reloaded the page, the two words I saw were “The Idiot”. I knew – KNEW – this post was going to be about someone else. Maybe I have a bad case of TDS.

    If there is ever a post called “The Imbecile”, I best not be disappointed.

  42. 42.

    Another Scott

    You are indeed a good friend.  Sorry you’re hurting.

    A couple of years ago I was moving some metal shelves around, with stuff on them.  One set had the leg posts digging into the linoleum and was being stubborn about moving, but I was even more stubborn.  Then I heard/felt a loud “pop!”  Ouchie.  :-(  It took 3 weeks for me to be able to use the clutch on my car without eye-watering pain, but it eventually got better (enough).

    Our bodies are amazing, but have limits.  Especially when we’re no longer 25!

    Get well soon!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  44. 44.

    NotMax

    2017? Probably right on the cusp of needing a new battery anyway.

    a 4 ton vehicle

    More like 2 tons. ~4300 pounds, per auto sites.

    My go to for strain injuries like that (aside from aspirin) is the no-reason-on-Earth-it-should-work-yet-it-does blue goo sold under the brand name Therapeutic Mineral Ice. Only that brand, for whatever bizarre reason. Referred to as “smurf gel” among our little group.

  45. 45.

    Ruckus

    @ruemara:

    Ouch.

    Welcome to the club of bodies that don’t work as designed (possibly any longer) or whose design is faulty and to a noticeable degree.

    And don’t come back at me with that I can still eat stuff……

    As I remember you really aren’t near the I’m so old I’ve lost all the common sense I ever had, in the last 5 minutes stage. Or at least forgot where I put it last time I needed it, which was unsurprising, 10 minutes ago. So I’m putting this up to physical over exertion.

    Which, if I remember anything at all, has a requirement of either heat or ice. See I told you I can’t remember where I put, what was that again………

    I have a number of movement issues and see the movement disorder clinic at the VA and take meds for some of them. I’ve found that heat is often better than ice for some things, but what I really  do remember is that there are good places for playing internet doctor, The Mayo Clinic seems to be one of the better ones.

  46. 46.

    JPL

    @OzarkHillbilly: lol  Zhena is talking about disappearing if Bernie wins Iowa and you are trying out a role for netflix’s Ozark.    Ruemara’s pulling cars and who knows what Cole is up to.

    At some point I’ll be typing to myself.

  47. 47.

    NotMax

    @Mnemosyne

    Just so you know you’re not alone. Over they years have managed to throw the back on different occasions via:

    1) Coughing
    2) Sneezing
    and the real kicker, (3) Yawning.
     
     

  49. 49.

    NotMax

    @Ruckus

    Might be by now discredited info but years ago was taught a first aid technique by an elderly RN – to first feel the injured area. If it feels warm, apply cold. If it feels cool, apply warm.

    Putting that to use hasn’t failed me since.

  55. 55.

    Kattails

    @ruemara: OH girl. Really… I am no one to chastise anyone about abusing your body. So, what I was told by a nurse was alternate heat and cold. If the muscles are tense, just cold will tighten them further. If there’s swelling/inflammation you want to get that down with a cool compress. Hence the alternates, plus an anti-inflammatory.

    Plus the deepest massage you can stand (and reach if you have to do one for yourself because of no funds for a professional), using lots of hand lotion or oil so you can really smooth the muscles. I believe shin splints are on the face of the leg, the bony parts; sciatica runs from the hip socket on your back cheek down toward the heel, digging into that socket part can hurt like a bitch but help. Sorry I don’t live nearby.

    Also Tiger Balm Ultra, in the small, petroleum-jelly like jar, not the cream. Awesome stuff. Hope you’re feeling better soon, get some purr therapy too!!

  56. 56.

    Ruckus

    @NotMax:

    That’s not a bad metric at all but some of my things, which feel like muscle issues are nerve issues so the tactic doesn’t always work that way. And nerve issues are not always anywhere near the area that feels like it’s having a problem. Aww to be young again and have to go through all of this again……..Not. And it could be a lot worse. Took 4 yrs for them to decide that no, I do not actually have parkinsons. But I do have many parkinsons like symptoms, so good times.

  59. 59.

    Cathie from Canada

    When I saw the title, I thought “ahah, another post about Trump” so at least its better than that!

    Anyway, hope you are feeling better soon – its amazing how what seems to be very minimal over-doing can result in such long-term damage.   A few days before Christmas I yawned too wide or moved my chin too far forward or something, and ended up with such a pain in my jaw and TM joint that I think it was somewhat dislocated, I couldn’t close my mouth properly for several days until everything finally moved back to normal.  I found a heating pad was the best solution because it seemed to help the joint relax a bit.  Also, Tylenol 1.

  60. 60.

    smintheus

    Intense pain sounds like it could be a “slipped disk” in your lower back, in which case you’d want to do exercises to stretch your lower back, force the disk back where it belongs, and strengthen the muscles in the lower back to keep it in place.

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