Road to Recovery

So I'm laying here in Amarillo, pretty much haven't moved too much this week. I've been feeling better the last couple days, getting off meds and back on a normal diet. PT 3 times a week. On my own I have 6 exercises with like 30 repetitions each, 3 times a day. Once my knee gets back to its normal size I can start moving around on two legs again. Until then this is my layout:


Two separate machines, one to keep my knee cool and one to keep it constantly moving. And if you see Koko laying in her spot an extra 10 points (:

Horay!

Thank you for keeping up with me!

So as of right now I have raised enough funds to make it to Thailand and back this summer! By the time I make it back I will probably have burned through that and everything I have saved up, so don't be surprised if I try to mooch a meal or something off of you (: One more semester till I graduate in December, then a few more years or so till I pay off all my school loans, then some amount of time till I have all the savings I need to be able to retire safely, then if I'm still working hit me up for a meal or something to pay you back (:

Seriously though, sending out letters like that is not a very comfortable thing to do, it's difficult in a lot of ways, and it is probably THE most humbling process I've ever gone through. I'm glad my team members, family, friends, and christian brothers and sisters where ever they are have the convictions necessary to make something like this trip happen.

I obviously have a conviction to share the good news, but why do we have to leave home to do it?
If we didn't spend our time energy and resources towards the mission in Thailand, would somebody else step up to the work we do and seeds we plant?

I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.

Classes this semester

Ok so I'm on my senior design classes now, and they are pretty sweet. You know, just saving the world and all, it aint a thing. As a senior aero engr major, you go into satelites, rockets, or planes. I got into satellites, and we're working on a mission to send a satellite to change the orbit of the asteroid that's the biggest threat to Earth right now. Other than that, I'm just concentrating on the Thailand trip and rehabbing my new ACL. Can't wait till I can run again! Only 6 more months to go!

My body's getting old

So about a year ago playing frisbee some kid ran into my left knee, and the clinic physiscian said it probably was just a sprain so go easy on it. I continued playing on it and doing everything normally as best I could, all through being a summer intern at SMac and stuff.

Then about two months ago or so I turned awkwardly on my right knee playing flag football, and the clinic physician referred me to an orthopedic guy. I went for him to look at only my left knee. When he tested it a little bit he thought it was torn, but wanted to look at my left knee too for comparison cause some people just have loose joints I guess. Right away "When did you tear up this knee, too?" So he suggested an MRI on both knees.

The MRI was hilarious, I had to completely sit still for 45 minutes. For each knee. I like to wiggle when I have excess energy and I kept catching myslef. Just wiggling for no reason. Every time this happened made me want to laugh. But I can't laugh too hard because then I'd start moving around, but that just made me want to laugh harder but I couldn't or we'd have to start over. It was torture. An hour into it I fell asleep and jerked my whole body awake a couple times but evidently they were both during pauses or something.

A week later someone called, a receptionist I guess, and said I tore both my ACLs and MCLs. I'll probably have surgery, ideally one knee during Winter break and the other over summer, (and I still want to go to Thailand the 2nd half) but we have to make this happen fast cause I still haven't actually talked to a dr. since the results came and we'll probably switch to amarillo dr. for the surgeries.

school school school

Add on to the Rifle road trip

I finally remembered at least one of the things I knew I was forgetting. It's really random like three months later I know but we went bowling and I shot the best shot I ever will in my life.

The first shot ended with a split, I think 7-9 split. I decided it was hopeless so I practiced putting as much spin on the ball as I could which would normally end in a gutter ball. There was a lot of spin, but it was pretty slow, and it definitely bounced like 3 times. When I let go I knew it was at the wrong height and didn't see it I just heard it bounce. When I saw Rick and Salomon get kind of excited watching I thought they were just playing trying to get me to turn around, but I turned to see it slowly curve and hit the right side of the 9 pin at the perfect angle. The 9 pin flew into the 7 pin and I wish i had it on video.

Headed to Rifle Colorado...again

So me and Salomon made an epic road trip and we ended up staying in Rifle the whole time. It started out as a trip to california to see the cowboys. Then it was to vegas. Then half Rifle and Amarillo. Then we just stayed in Rifle. Here's some bullet points that I never want to forget:

- A nap every day

- 2000 miles added onto Salomon's car. Messed up my sleep schedule from so much driving. I had the lock-in Friday night, drove to OK at 10 saturday morning, left OK at 6PM and got to Rifle at 6AM Rifle time. That was the way there. On the way back I drove from 11AM Saturday till basically 2PM in college station Sunday, stopping only for a little for an hour of church and some eating, and seeing Kalena in Wichita.

- 5 complete round trips between Glenwood Springs and Rifle

- Waterworld on Wed, going for the lazy river record

- Paragliding and then another theme park with the swing over the cliff on Tues

- Skydiving on Friday

- Helping Alan remodel his home Thurs and a meteor shower that night

- A pretty intense Bible study Sunday night.

- walking into the Farr's house at 8AM without knocking when they thought we were getting there later