Monday, December 1, 2008

Slippery When Wet, the unlikely story of a broken finger



As I approached Tiger 2, I had 2 choices; run straight down Tiger 3 and be at the trail head in <30 minutes OR take the TMT down for an additional hour of running downhill in the mud. I ate the rest of my peanut butter and honey tortilla, gave Struth some biscuits and decided to take the TMT down. The wind was howling, so much so, that at times it was it drowned out my iPOD. Whoa. But I was having such a good time. Why stop in 30 minutes when I can keep up the fun for 60 minutes by taking the TMT? So down the TMT I went....literally. I totally wiped out on one of those wooden bridges that covers the little streams. As soon as I put each shoe on the bridge, I instantly felt my feet slip under me. I tried to brace myself but as I stood there trying to take a step, I kept sliding until I literally slid right off the bridge and I felt right into one of those little streams. It felt like slow motion, like when you are in a dream and try to run but you are not making any progress. Struth came running towards me and was concerned, but I was fine, albeit stunned. We kept on running. I approached another one of these bridges and thought I to myself, 'now be really careful....the last time'...and whoops, I was down again and this time I used my hand to break my fall and out came a yelp and a *%*#@$%! By the time I got to my car, my finger was swollen, throbbing and painful. Oh, it's just a finger....
I wrapped it for the rest of Saturday and then again on Sunday, making clapping for the Seattle Marathon runners interesting. I still had my voice though. . . .
Today I consulted my boss, an MD. "Do you think this is broken?" I asked. He urged me to go get an x-ray, as did countless others. So I went and indeed, it is broken.

I will NOT run on my hands for awhile. At least until it heals.

Also, today is December 1st. Does anyone know what day it is? It's the birthday of the fabulous HPT! Homer has a message for you!