oops. This is the stupid thing I did.

oops....I slipped on a palette while in the process of pushing off another palette into the refrigerated trailer we were using for the Obon Carnival. My left leg found the opening and slid through.

Slid all the way through since that palette was on a forklift and off the ground. What stopped me was my thigh...we'll it was only one leg, I wasn't about to go all the way through.

All I could remember afterward was that I was still holding on to the palette that I was trying to push on, so I finally let that go. Then I fell on my butt. It was keeping me balance for whatever reason.

Wood palettes are heavy, so I'm not sure how I managed to hold on to that palette and suspend it in midair.

Kyle helped me off...it took awhile to unwedge myself. I was scraped up but not badly (I thought). Everyone else said it looked bad, its looks red (part of that was sunburn), I could get an infection...did I break anything.

I was more embarrassed than anything...so I walked it off.

Later, I dance Obon dancing but before the half was over, I quit since my leg was hurting...this time it really swelled up. So I thought I better go home, the first time in 12 years that I've left the Obon carnival early.

I rested and iced most of the night...only to wake up at 2am to unlock the temple and social hall for sushi making. But I stayed out the activities, icing my leg, staying off of it most of the rest of day. I snuck in a little nap during Obon Dancing after my little welcome speech by hiding out in the Hondo.

At what was the end of the dance, I could hear Johnny N. let somebody in and saying that there is no one in here...I guess in the darkness I couldn't be seen. So I woke up to be around cleanup and then went home to sleep somemore.

I did go see my doctor on Tuesday. He didn't think anything was broken or fractured, nor signs of infection...but he brought up even more frightening possibilities, like, the artery could be compromised by the swelling of the muscle and cut off circulation, or that a blood clot could be formed and then that is not good.

Ok we ruled out the arterial stuff since the swelling has gone done since Saturday. We did an ultrasound to make sure the veins were flowing as usually and they were. So the result is just one big bruise and a little gimpy.

Just keep it elevated and iced.
(Originally published in Living in So Cali, August 5, 2008)

In Gassho