For a usually healthy body

I have neglected my gratefulness-blogging. Oops. Unfortunately, I have something to talk about now.

Last weekend while I was skiing on some black diamond moguls at Loveland (I have to tell you it was a black run to save some of my dignity), my left ski got stuck in a mogul and my right ski tripped over it and kept turning so that it got stuck tip-down about four feet directly below my also stuck, normal position, left ski. This, as you might imagine, twisted my left knee in a manner that was rather prolonged and painful. To make a long story short, I got a nerve-wracking toboggan ride down said black diamond mogul run thanks to the ski patrol, went to the doctor last Tuesday, and learned that I sprained my MCL (that's the ligament on the inside of the knee).

So, for the last 9 days I have not been able to bend my left knee more than about 30 degrees before it's too painful to move anymore. I can't walk normally, run, do tae kwon do, kneel to get things out of low shelves, curl up in bed, or put my pants on right leg first. This is one of a handful of sports injuries I can remember having (mostly hand injuries) and definitely the worst injury I've ever had.

So here's what I'm grateful for: a healthy body. (Also, I'm grateful that a sprained MCL is the worst injury I've ever had.)

I do actually think about how happy I am to have a healthy body when I am not injured or sick, but being injured certainly makes me think more about it. Limping is exhausting, and in the last few days, I have desperately been wanting to curl my leg up under myself. At this stage in my life, I actually am perhaps more invested in sports than I ever have been before (which is not saying that much, but I ski, run semi-regularly, and do tae kwon do) and it is really frustrating not to be able to do any of those things - and to know I probably won't be able to for a few more weeks.

I am also grateful for friends' and coworkers' niceness. Bonni and Jess changed the tires on my car last Sunday so I could drive an automatic transmission. Last week, my boss did a knee exam on me (he's a doctor) and was careful to let me sit rather than stand as much as possible. Lots of coworkers have asked how my knee is feeling. It's nice to feel cared about. I am also so grateful to know that my knee will heal in a few weeks and I will once again be able to move normally.

Grateful for: IKEA

Okay, so I don't love Ikea in the same way I love my mom or Thanksgiving. But hey, if I'm going to write a bunch of blog entries about things I'm grateful for, I'm going to run out of family members eventually.

Yesterday Ross and I filled up a wall of our bedroom with the Antonius clothes storage system from Ikea. (Or more accurately, I filled the wall since I put the whole thing together.) I've had one set of drawers from that system for several years and I really like it. We've been needing to buy at least one more dresser, and this frees up a dresser or two for upstairs (so I can reign in the fabricsplosion up there).

I was SO EXCITED when I found out an Ikea was opening in Denver. I'd previously only been to one in Michigan, and I think the experience is a lot of fun. I love seeing Scandinavian design, although its clean lines, liberal use of plastic, and compartmentalization are a little too modern for what I actually want in my home. It is visually pleasing, but not cozy.

Walking through the showroom every so often is fun - you get to see lots of creative ways to arrange furniture and utilize space that often goes unused, which is always nice - plus they have some products you can't get elsewhere very easily... like lingonberry juice! And everything has silly Swedish names! Oh, Ikea. So much fun. I am so happy there is one in my city now.

Grateful for: Vinyl

I've been working on a quilting project lately, and since our music player in my sewing room is a record player, I've been listening to records. Mostly a Mannheim Steamroller Christmas album. But it only has 8 songs on it, so when that gets old, I listen to Ross's other records, which include a lot of 1960's and 70's folk.

As far as I know, my mom has never quilted. She is a much more talented seamstress than I am, so she makes things like clothing and silk wall hangings. (I have never successfully made any clothing, my costumes rely heavily on staples and hot glue, and I've been working on the same Christmas wall hanging for like five years.) I make quilts and blankets because they come together quickly and following a pattern is not necessary.

Anyway, as I've been upstairs listening to records and sewing, I've been feeling connected to my mom. I don't think she's ever worked on a quilt while listening to Peter, Paul, and Mary or Simon & Garfunkel on vinyl, but when I do, I appreciate sewing and folk music - and my mother - in a new way.