The sun was coming up and the weather was warm. I had a wonderful 3+ miles walk. It was a little hairy navigating the bikers. I've never seen so many bikers before. And it wasn't a race. They were coming and going in every direction. People had on work clothes, work out gear, kids strapped to special seats, big messenger bags to hold all their work stuff...my oh my...never seen so many bikers on a Thursday before. This picture doesn't really show ALL the bikers I saw, but they came whizzing by every few seconds. Thankfully they were nice and rang their bell, said 'on your left' and let me have my space. Portland has to have the most bikers per capita of any city.
The weather was grand and the scenery beautiful. I encountered some homeless people sleeping, people heading to work, people exercising, boats heading out on the river, people just living and doing. I loved that I had no agenda. Here are a few pictures from my walk.
After fueling up with the donuts and resting my foot, I set out to the bead shop in the Nob Hill district. It was fun walking through the neighborhoods, the quaint charming houses, the shops etc. I didn't find what I was looking for at the bead shop but I sure enjoyed looking at all they had to offer.
By this time my foot was causing a great amount of pain. It took me about 30 minutes to walk 1/2 a mile. (about half my normal speed). I could barely contain my frustration. The pain was getting worse and I didn't know what to do. I googled 'foot massage' and found a great place nearby that specialized in feet. It was ridiculously relaxing. In the 2nd picture my feet were soaking with hot stone massages between the tones and a mud mask on my calves.
At this point, I was over 2 miles away from the hotel, tired and hungry. It was now 4 pm and the donuts were consumed at 11 (and hardly an adequate lunch). I used urbanspoon to google a wine bar. I had read they were plentiful in Portland. I selected one along the water front (and near me via max train). Though I only had to walk 2 blocks after getting off the transit it took me 20 minutes. My foot was on fire at this point. I ordered a small meat and cheese plate and a flight of pinot noir wines. Being happy hour, the price was right. I sat and enjoyed the fabulous view and noursihed my tummy while resting my foot. Here is a picture of my food, my drink, my view. Pretty sweet, huh? Too bad my foot was still hurting.
Getting back to the hotel took 45 minutes. I should have taken a cab, but the waiter at the restaurant said it would take over 20 minutes and I wanted to save money. Dumb idea. Though I didn't have to walk far, I did have to walk. And any amount of walking triggered pain. It felt like I was walking on sharp thumb tacks. No matter how I stepped it hurt. I finally made it back to the hotel at 6:30 and cried. Thankfully Jim had some ice in a bag for me so I could ice my foot, and brought me some wine. I nibbled on the leftover meat and cheese I had brought back. And took ibuprofen. 3 hours later, I am still in pain. I want to hit something, I want to cry, I want to AMPUTATE MY FOOT. Seriously, it hurts that badly. It's had many flareups before, so I know what to expect, but what bothers me is why. I didn't walk up and down many hills, it was relatively flat. But looking back on the past 2 weeks, it's been hurting off and on. Perhaps I should have seen it coming. I do have an appointment next Monday with the dr. (follow-up). He mentioned surgery previously, I am afraid that's what will happen. And it irks me. I am doing everything he said to make it heel and it's not heeling. I roll my foot on a frozen ice bottle, I do the exercises, I wear the boot, I take ibuprofen, I only walk on flat surfaces and it still hurts. DAMN. The pain is so frustrating, the cost of the surgery makes me ill (we have crappy insurance). So, this is me now, wearing the boot, while my foot throbs, twinges, shoots pain up my leg and makes me want to scream.
This ranks up there with childbirth pain. I'm thinking amputation could solve things. Does anyone have an axe?
