Ferrari Like Pitstops near Bluebell Woods

Yesterday was a sunny day spent with friends from Germany visiting nearby Italianate gardens during their bluebell fortnight. This marked my first car journey as a one hip wonder so was noteworthy on a number of fronts.

During my friends' stay I made a number trips out of the house and around our own garden. We had a carefully rehearsed process of someone fetching the mobility scooter from the garage below and driving it to the front door while under supervision I used the zimmer frame to negotiate my way outside. We of course had the reverse process also well rehearsed for when it was necessary to return inside.

We gave Bank Holiday Monday a miss because, tempting though it may be to explore the nearby Peak District, the Bank Holiday traffic takes away any enjoyment.

Yesterday was different and with my wife driving we drove to Renishaw Hall (home of the Sitwell family where for 2 weeks each year around this time the gardens are open to the public to explore and enjoy the wooded park resplendent with its English bluebell carpeting).


Getting me into the car went easily - along the lines previously described. However getting the mobility scooter dismantled with 3 willing helpers took a little longer. There is a sequence that needs to be followed to unhook, fasten down, manipulate, lift and pull apart different components. In skilled ( i.e. my)hands this takes about 90 seconds. With 3 willing but novice assistants it took a little longer. Eventually the various bits were loaded into the boot of the car along with the trusty zimmer frame and for the first time in about 5 weeks I drove out of the front gates and back into the "wider world".


On arrival at Renishaw Hall I was very impressed with the speed with which my "pit crew" (having learnt very quickly) managed to have the red scooter assembled and ready to roll.
It was almost like watching the Ferrari pit crew in action during a Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Shortly after that we were all wandering through the formal gardens and enjoying the sight of the bluebells on the ground under mature trees with the sun dappling through. It was just calling out to be photographed..... so here is one that captures both the moood and the achievement.

Onwards and Upwards - Talking the talk if not yet Walking the walk

Today is Thursday and I've just returned to the study after 3 trips outside of the house and a further trip up to the converted loft. I also managed to transfer into and out of the passenger seat of my car.

The reason for such rapid progress all in the one day was the presence of the community physiotherapist (accompanied by colleague). I reported that I had managed the initial crossing of the front door threshold and also made it up the stairs to the converted loft - under supervision and with the assistance of my wife. I stressed that I had not yet repeated either of these accomplishments.

I was able to talk and eventually hop through the process (note I carefully avoided using the word "walk" - I may talk the talk but I'm a long way yet literally from walking the walk!).

In the process of demonstrating how I managed to negotiate the change in levels on the way through the inner and outer doors and then again out into the front patio I referred to the concern I had about the wheels on the front of the zimmer frame moving away from me when I was shifting my centre of gravity forward of centre. The answer proved simple - to swap the front wheel components for static feet. Fortunately the colleague of the regular community physiotherapist had 2 in his car. So with those in place and using the more straightforward route we had worked out before, getting out was really no problem. I made my way over to the small round table we have outside and sat on one of the 2 chairs in the afternoon sun and thought I can now return to sitting out on the "front decking" like the retired cotton pickers of old with a cup of fortified coffee and a good book to read.

Having got this far we then made our way back. I would like to have said "headed" back but this would be misleading. I find it easier to negotiate the steps to get back inside if I approach them in reverse. Because I had only made this journey once before in my current state I forgot that one of the manoeuvres required a single long stride backwards and subsequent second or two supported in mid air with both feet off the ground. I initially tried this particular manoeuvre in 2 stages and it felt wrong. Both physios recognised that this would be better as a single step backwards and so it worked out. It was good to have a second (and third) opinion and gave me more confidence.

Once back inside safely we then discussed the progress I had made with "climbing" the stairs to the converted loft. I demonstrated this and asked one of them to be behind me at the top of the stairs ready to steady the shower stool. Having got up to the converted loft I was asked why I wanted to get there - was it to sleep? So I pointed out the ceiling mounted projector, sky box, sound system and Nintendo wii and explained that with friends from Germany coming in a few days it would be good to be able to set up a game or two on the wii. (I realised this went down as an example of "boys toys" so stopped there) This seemed an acceptable reason all round but especially to the colleague who wished to do something similar in his house - provided of course he could persuade the wife!

After returning to the ground floor without any mishap the three of us discussed the risks involved in trying to get into the car. If I had a full hip replacement there would be special considerations regarding the angle that my leg could be bent so as to avoid the hip joint dislocating. As this did not really apply in my circumstances and because I had demonstrated that I could manage to lever my way up and down stairs it was agreed that I could attempt to get into the car under supervision.

So another trip outside was required. In preparation for this "journey" to the car - which was either by steps ( definitely ruled out) or slope - we agreed that I should use the mobility scooter to travel from front door to the car below. As it happens my son was visiting and in the process of loading up a hire van with some furniture. A shout to him resulted in the mobility scooter appearing at the front door before I got there. 2 minutes later I was sitting in the passenger seat of my car - having ratcheted the car seat up to its highest extent, pushed the seat back as far as it would go and reclined the back to 30 degrees. Past experience of managing with newly replaced hips came back to me as I laid back as far as I could and positioned myself over the handbrake before swivelling round and lifting my filleted leg over the car door sill. Getting out was easier and I got back on the mobility scooter made my way back (again under supervision) to the front door and once again reversed my way back with the zimmer frame into the house.

Later that afternoon my son wished me to advise him on stuff to keep or dispose of in the garage and as my wife had by then returned the three of us repeated the careful egress from the house one more time.

About 40 minutes later after acting both as gaffer (barking out instructions) and labourer (moving a few items around the garden on the mobility scooter ) I returned to the house a final time.

All in all an afternoon of moving both onwards and upwards and if not quite yet walking the walk I was at least talking the talk :-)

The Final Frontier - Smashed! :-)

Its my birthday and because of the recent turn of events it seems like all of them and all my Christmases have come together.


I've already mentioned how being able to bend my knees up made movement easier and particularly the transition into and out of bed. In the last few days I've been confident enough to stand up from the powerchair without needing to use the zimmer frame. I demonstrated this yesterday to the GP who visited (one week later than planned) to carry out a prescription review and to the district nurse who came later at the end of the day to remove the one remaining suture that had been missed before.


Buoyed up a little I decided on the spur of the moment yesterday to see if I could manage to "climb" the stairs that lead up to our converted loft area where we have a video projector and Nintendo Wii among other things. I enjoy "playing" golf on the Wii when the images are projected onto an end wall. It's also where I used to watch football and other sports. I refer to this as my "executive box". We have some friends from Germany visiting next weekend and thought they might enjoy "playing" some of the Wii sports and other games. I need to be up there however if only to act as gaffer and bark out instructions how to get the various pieces of kit working together.

With my new found flexibility I thought I might be able to sit on the first few stairs and straighten enough to lever myself up one at a time in a seated position. I tried up one step then down one step, following the physio guidance to first time users of crutches after hip operations. "Good - up to heaven, Bad down to hell". Essentially this means lead with the appropriate leg when going up or down steps while supporting weight on crutches ( or in my case my 2 arms on the step behind or in front depending on direction of travel). It worked!


The steps up to the converted loft area turn through 90 degrees so I checked that I could manage this as well. Despite this working out I decided against going " all the way" as I would need to stand up at the top from a seated position and work out how best to get seated from a standing position to come back down. I think this will be possible with help to fetch and carry the necessary aid such as crutches, zimmer frame or small stool.


Well that was yesterday and this is today - my birthday. My wife and I had decided if the weather was good enough last weekend to try to see if I could get out into the garden. When I tried with the physio 2 days before we could not see how it would be possible without 2 people standing by. However we did not try opening up both inside doors that lead into the porch. When we tried that this morning I had a less encumbered route using the zimmer frame. As before I first tried moving down a step at a time and making sure I could return safely before committing to the move. This worked for the first change in level and I then tried the final hurdle and once again felt secure enough in my ability to return ( albeit backwards) that I finally made the greatest leap of my recovery period and got all the way outside where the mobility scooter was waiting for me.

In the 90 minutes that followed I was able to help my wife in the garden as she tidied up, moved plants and planted some new ones. Our bungalow is built on a slope and below the lounge/ dining area is a garage space the land continues to fall away and beyond our front garden is the roof of a neighbours bungalow. Our drive however continues to the right of this bungalow and slopes down to the road. I scootered down to see if the neighbour at the bottom was in and in his absence scootered back up again. A few years back we replaced a series of gentle steps with a slope to link the 2 gardens so I can use this with the scooter to get all around the garden and fetch and carry tools and garden waste.

While I was able I also scootered into the garages we converted into a play room complete with snooker table exercise bike and multi gym. It is also full of furniture from both children who are both in rented accommodation at present. In addition this garage is where I keep a reasonable wine cellar. I have not been able to manage it for about 6 months despite occasional deliveries of cases of wine. I was at last able to sort out 3 such cases and will when I get the chance update the spreadsheet I use to manage the cellar.

One other thing I was able to accomplish while down there was to load Ubuntu (a linux distribution that I've been impressed with recently) onto one of the old computers that I keep in the garage (mainly for wine cellar and wood turning purposes - I keep wood turning videos and patterns on it for reference purposes as the lathe is in a room off the other garage).

It was a great feeling of release and of getting back to normal that I was able to share with another neighbour who came out to wish me well.

We did not try the car this time but that is going to be the next step in my expanding universe of activity.

Liberated by an Expanding Archipelago

I was reflecting yesterday on how my world had again contracted and drew a diagram of small connected circles. The diameter of each circle represented the degree to which I could move or more accurately stretch from a seated position. I drew a small circle to represent my office chair from which I could reach a couple of PCs, DAB radio telephone and "at a stretch" a printer.

From this central circle I drew a very short line to an even smaller circle which represented the toilet I would visit a few times during the day, slowly pushing my way around behind a zimmer frame. Another short line led to another small circle in the kitchen where my wife had arranged a flask of cold milk next to our kettle , jug of cold water and tea, coffee and sugar before leaving for work in the morning. A slightly longer line to another very small circle represented my journey to bed each night. This was the smallest circle of all - once in there was no moving out until the next morning, courtesy of improvised urine bottle and bucket by the bedside should it need emptying during the night.

During the months leading up to being overwhelmed by the post operative sepsis I was aware of the contracting nature of my world. At first travel by bus was sacrificed and I relied entirely on using the car. Then I relied on other people driving and finally became housebound then confined to bed. At the same time I came to rely first of all on a walking stick, then 2 elbow crutches and finally invested in a powerchair to get around the house. This chair took some finding as it is a rather neat design with small wheels, a thin base which houses a lithium ion battery similar to those in laptops, and a central adjustable column on which is mounted something resembling an office chair. It doe snot look at all institutional which was important to my self image. The difficulty in acquiring it was due to the fact that this "shopper chair" designed to disassemble quickly for use around local shops was replaced by an all in one folding design which required tubular steel struts and braces. As a result it looked very much like an institutionalised wheelchair.

After a few abortive orders I eventually found a dealer who still had one of the old design in stock. When it arrived the delivery van driver announced "its the only one left in the country still on sale".

For about 4 months before becoming bed ridden this extended my world inside the house and I had planned on using it once I returned home after the filleting of my right leg. In my pre op chair riding days I had removed the footplate from the front of the chair and was able to pull my knees up to place my feet on the flat platform beneath the seat to which the wheels and battery were attached.

I had removed the footplate and its support bar to the garage which I could not get to when I came out of hospital. So on Monday, Tuesday and most of today (Wednesday) the chair remained unused and as a result my life remained proscribed by the small archipelago of very small islands in which I could "live, move and have my being" that I have just described.

This evening my wife - bless her - found the discarded footplate and support bar and we managed to reassemble it. Once back in place I was able again to make use of the powerchair. Of course I did need the help of a strange long handled and stiffened loop that I was given by the occupational therapist to help lift my right leg ( imagine a dog lead around the head of an invisible dog and you'll get the picture) onto the footplate - but I was temporarily overcome by the sudden explosion of my personal space.

I have since travelled to most rooms in the house and looked out of windows onto men cutting trees in neighbouring gardens, birds using the squirrel proof feeders we have around our garden and squirrels hanging upside down in the feeders we have given up on as offering any sort of deterrent.

My personal space diagram now has longer lines leading to more and larger circles. I am still housebound of course but suddenly "the world has opened up" for me once again! In time I guess it will extend outside the house to our garden where I can use a mobility scooter to help with chores. Later still I hope to manage to travel in my own car again - albeit driven by others.

I hope you now understand why I really do feel liberated by an expanding archipelago and what is more one with potential for further expansion in the weeks ahead - hope springs eternal!