my cankle

I remember talking with my German flatmates a few weeks ago about 2 terms that were unfamiliar to them. One was back cleavage. The other was cankle. One website notes 23 different definitions for cankle...and this one is the most straightforward:


cankle. noun; the meeting of the calf and the foot where an ankle is not present due to lack of ankle (???)

I have a cankle. My flatemates and I went on a hike last Saturday; toting sleds behind us. There wasn't quite enough snow to sled where we had wanted to (down a long, windy, gravel road), but we did manage to find a slick hill. Two ladies went down rather speedily - and with no problems. The other lady and I decided to go together (it was a big sled), and it was a real blast. Then we hit a little patch of gravel that the other ladies sped over - but because of our combined weight (I assume), we didn't zip...we zilched. We went from going pretty dern fast to not going at all. My body went one way, and my ankle stayed firmly in the sled.

The next thing I know is I'm rolling around in the snow - my friend said I was babbling. I pretty much knew that I did something kind of nasty to my left ankle (again). My friends were my crutches, and we made it up the hill in a record amount of slowness. Once home (we were a-slippin' and a-slidin'), we removed my boot and unveiled...a light blue cankle. We iced and elevated it, ate raclette, and went to bed.

I woke up on Sunday in a bad mood because my bad dream of bad ankle didn't go away. We spent a bit of the day calling hospitals and doctors...and wound up staying inside. Sunday is not a good day to get sick or hurt here...

My colleague took me to a private hospital in Prishtina on Monday. We left at 10am and got back around 5pm - but it was a very pleasant day (except for a really uncomfortable MRI). My diagnosis: 2 semi-torn ligaments and 1 very stretched one. Because my ankle was so huge (it was pretty colorful and bloated), the doctor put me in a temporary cast and told me to come back in a week to get a real one on. Grr...I was really hoping to avoid a cast as they're so stinkin' heavy and make cleaning oneself more difficult. Sigh.


The next couple of days have been spent in a fair amount of discomfort with sleepless nights and nappy days. My colleagues and roomies have been incredibly thoughtful and kind while I lay around more-or-less moping. I've been a bit disappointed that I've had to cancel stuff (including a New Year's party and a trip to Albania) and haven't been able to go on visits. I've been even more disappointed that I can't concentrate... (PLUS my phone is broken and at the phone doctor, the internet hasn't been working all that well, and the cable is out)

A highlight (and there have been several) was when 3 gents from the church popped over to visit the shutin. It was a hoot small-talking with these 3 about Confucianism, Incas and Aztecs, and sour cherry vs. apple juice. It was so sweet that they came - very family-esque of them. Other highlights of this time: watching 2 local shows with the mum of my friends (she came in 20 degree weather on ice so that I wouldn't be lonely); reading a good book; watching all 3 of the Xmen movies.

Yesterday 2 colleagues and I braved the winter wonderland and drove to Prishtina to get a cast change. It was very giving of them as staying indoors by a fire would've been a lot more fun. I have a slightly more comfortable cast and was given orders to inject my belly with a blood clotting stopper. Bummer.

The biggest bummer is that there is over a foot of snow outside - the first big snow in the 2 1/2 years that I've been here - and I'm stuck inside. Humph. Thanks a lot, cankle.