Kneecapped

I was reduced to a quivering mess on the floor of my local supermarket last night after slipping over and twisting my knee. I can now understand why footy players get carried off in agony when they land badly.

I had just walked in the front door (out of a very light rain shower) when my left foot slipped forward like a bat out of hell. It went forward so far and so rapidly, I went down like a stone. The problem was that as I went down, my right leg went under me, so I ended up pretty much landing on my right knee and then sitting on my foot. That was enough to extend everything further than the manufacturers design allows for. I was rolling around on my back, clutching my right knee and swearing very loudly for a few minutes.

When the pain subsided enough for me to be aware of what was going on, I found myself surrounded by concerned staff and other shoppers. I was also right in front of the checkouts, so when I looked around, I was being stared at by a couple of dozen shoppers who were getting on with paying for their stuff and avoiding having anything to do with me.

The manager arranged for one of his staff to drive me home, which was a good thing as I could not have hobbled home alone. I also had to fill out the usual couple of pages of forms, in case I decide to sue. I slipped over right under a bunch of cameras, so I presume they will be keeping all the video evidence.

I have since been to the quack, and the initial diagnosis is that I have simply torn some muscles along the side of my knee rather than stuffing the ligaments and cartilage. The treatment is to lie at home on the couch with my leg up, which is what I am doing now.

The problem with being at home is that I get bored quickly and will start spending money shortly as a result. I have already added 10 books to an Amazon wishlist, and we might be going to a computer store later today to get some things for the office. If we do that, I will more than likely come out with a wireless mouse, some wireless headphones, an external hard drive and perhaps a new iPod. I am also getting tempted to add some kind of wireless media server thingy to the home network for playing movies and music through the TV and stereo. I don't really need any of this stuff, but buying it and putting it in will keep me busy whilst the knee heals.

The really annoying thing is that I was thinking of taking today off and going for a 4 hour ride - the aim being to discover the route from Five Wog through Petersham down to the airport. I reckon I will need that amount of time to suss out the route, given how hopeless most of the route signage is. Today is a great day for it - the temp is around 18 degrees, and there have been a few light showers (I enjoy riding in light rain).

What a bugger of a thing to have happen.