"Bracing for Fall"

So far this has been a relatively cool Fall which makes me happy since that means perhaps Ole Man Winter cannot be far behind! Winter is perhaps my favorite of all seasons and this is all probably just because I live so far South that our Winters are mild in comparison to most. It gets just cold enough that the fireplace keeps it nice and toasty. Still I am "bracing for the fall" or at least I was. This is in reference to a wonderful brace that I am destined to wear for the duration of a slight knee injury. Keep in mind that I am far from complaining about my new fashion accessory as it is helping me avoid possible surgery. That said...I love my knee brace!

My new fashion accessory!

This all started several months ago with me denying that I might be getting a tad older and maybe by chance should change my ways! I still have a notion that I should be doing things that I used to do years ago. I twisted my knee while throwing the net for fish bait. Well, I thought, that is not too bad. A sprain can be healed without too much trouble. That "healing" went on for about three months and the knee "was" getting much better until..dear Ezzy, the dog, tried to help me. Ezzy is a nice size mutt and with that nice size comes a huge amount of enthusiasm! She is all of six years old and one would think that at some time during those six years, she would have settled down a bit. Not so..she is still a rambunctious puppy!..a near sixty pound puppy!..a big, oafish, ball of furry energy. She reminds me a lot of the cartoon dog, Scooby Doo! She is not the most graceful of all creatures and seems to be (at certain times) all legs and feet!

Ezzy, the big fur-ball of energy! It is even hard to catch her with the camera!

One day while I was going up the front steps, she bolted up the steps to get in the door before me. This normally would not have bothered me but for some reason (call it age), I was knocked off the steps! Now, I knew that just behind me was a large and very solid oak tree. I also knew that if I hit that oak tree, it was going to hurt...bad! So, I tried to catch myself. Catch myself, I did but by landing on the right leg...which turned out to be the "wrong" leg. Yep..when I stepped back and twisted to catch myself, I landed on the leg with the already sore knee. Ow!!! That smarted!...or actually, that really HURT! So now, I wear a knee brace! Folks...let me tell you, it helps tremendously! I have a terrible time lazing around the house so this brace has been a boon! I have been on the ladder...been twisting and turning while throwing the net..been kneeling while applying polyurethane to the hall floor! As long as I keep the "brace in place", I am good! It works so well that I am considering getting one for the other knee..you know..just in case! Moral of the story... Age creeps up on you..just don't let it trip you!