On June 24, at approximately 3pm EST, my unconscious body was wheeled into the operating room to have my right knee replaced. That I am here now writing this would indicate I survived my ordeal. In fact, the entire process was nowhere near as frightening as my overactive imagination thought it would be. Thankfully while I was out not a single thought strayed into nightmare territory. Which was one of the things I was really concerned about considering my imagination. Instead, I dreamed I was with the crew of the Black Pearl as we terrorized the British in the Caribbean.
When they woke me up nearly two hours later the first order of business was getting a cup of coffee. Hadn’t had anything to eat or drink since ten thirty the night before. While I’m gulping down my coffee the nurses kept insisting that I wiggle my toes. They had given me a spinal block before surgery, and I was basically dead from the waist down. It took some time, but as the feeling slowly returned to my legs I was able to wiggle my toes. They then insisted I get up and stand, and while the anesthesia had not worn off completely I was helped to my feet where I stood for about thirty seconds, amazed at the absence of pain coming from my right knee. A pain I had been dealing with for several years and had become so bad in April I was forced to take a personal leave of absence.
From that point on it became a matter of crossing a few more hurdles before I was released and made it back home a little after eight that evening. A little groggy and battered, but no worse for wear. The first week of recovery moved slowly but as I healed and found myself able to move more freely I settled into a routine focused on getting better. It has now been a little more than two weeks, and while the incision is not pretty, it looks a lot better than it did. I’m no longer using crutches to get around the house and will likely continue to use my cane until I’m released to go back to my little part time job.
About the only thing to suffer during this time was my writing. Being focused on my recovery interrupted my daily routine. I failed to keep up with the daily sentence for Bitter Hollow, and anything else related to my dream. But I’m back now, and ready to hop into the saddle to continue my pursuit of the perfect story. And to continue to share my work with anyone interested. Thanks for tagging along on my little adventure.
Richard Schiver 
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