. My DH had a great time at the coast!

Ever wonder if you should go somewhere when you know you probably shouldn't?

That's what happened with me. I was having trouble with my left knee and although it isn't confirmed by a physician, the symptoms are that of a bakers cyst (just behind the left knee) and it was (and still is) causing me pain especially when straightening the leg or when I put weight on it.

Then of course, my back has issues stemming from birth but I really took it over the top when I lifted a 40 pound container of kitty litter a couple weeks ago. Dumb! I know! So adding to the birth defect that I was dealt with from birth, more pain! Bringing me to my knees pain. Instead of having occasional sciatic nerve pain on the left side; it turned into sporadic pain on the right side. For those of you unfamiliar with sciatic pain let me give you some kind of idea. Imagine getting a spear thrust into your bum that is charged with electric current so the pain not only affects the bum, but the current sends additional pain down the leg. The part of my spine affected by the kitty litter seems to be the tail bone (which by coincidence I had fractured in the past some 20 years ago). That kind of pain can best be described by imagining some big hurly guy wearing steel toed logging boots hauling off and kicking you squarely in the tail bone. Hard! Yeah...it hurts in spasms just like that. Lets not forget that I'm a wee bit chubby so the additional weight doesn't help.

Now that you have the back ground, let me press on with my story here.

The ride to the coast was a daunting two hours of constant sitting. I don't know about you, but when I sit, my tail bone pretty much takes the brunt of the load, so by the time we finally got there, I wanted to just lay down and relax a few minutes, but the view was breath taking! The whole western wall was glass with glass patio doors leading to a deck and the ocean was right there! There were no buildings, houses or anything to obstruct the view, just a few weathered tree tops and the beautiful ocean licking the shore!

Then...guess what? Stairs! The bedrooms were upstairs. Each step was like having that logger behind me applying swift kicks and that spear being thrust in repeatedly with each step. I finally got down on my hands and feet (can't use my knees because of my left knee) and finished climbing the stairs; later I found that coming down stairs would also be easier on my hands and feet. Then, wonder of wonders...we had the good fortune of having a Jacuzzi in our bedroom! I stared down into the seductive deep tub imaging all those lovely jets spurting soothing water out massaging my back, knee and sore bum. I could almost imagine harps playing in the back ground. I could hardly wait!

My DH and cousins DH went to the store and my cousin was resting so I had plenty of time to bathe.

After cleaning the tub (it looked clean, but I'm a fuddy-duddy, you never know what bacteria and or germs might be lurking in those jets) I drew water and climbed up over the side and into the roiling water. It was a long way down into that tub! I added a bit of antibacterial Melaleuca soap and a drop of Melaleuca Solumel and the soothing fragrance was wonderful and there was just a wee bit of suds everything should have been perfect, right? Think about it; if riding for two hours on a cushioned car seat was hard on the tail bone, imagine a hard fiberglass bottomed tub! Jets or not, it was NOT comfortable in the least and I was having problems trying to find a way to sit in that confining tub that would not involve my tail bone or bum. After about 15 minutes of writhing about, I'd had enough and was ready to get out; but soon I felt very much like a big sardine in a very small can.

I wound up thrashing around trying to get out (I'm chubby, remember?) I couldn't put weight on my left knee because it was already having a pain fest of its own. I couldn't shift to my right because that invisible spear was there jabbing me in the bum. The tub was deep so I couldn't just hoist my chubby self up by hanging onto the sides. I drained the tub hoping that would help. But there I sat, using my hands for cushions, while I waited for my DH to return.

When my DH finally returned, I was still sitting there shivering deep in the bottom of the Jacuzzi. My DH tried to help me out, but he couldn't lift me and I couldn't lift myself! But then I had a vision of my cousins DH having to help and maybe the fire department and those visions motivated me beyond super human strength! I flopped around until I could finally get my weight over my left foot so I could hoist myself up and out! In doing all that excessive thrashing I added more pain to my back that has lasted to even now. That's how I got the additional owie!