In Loving Memory of Mark Planisek

With the recent Metro crash in DC, I thought once again of how a life, anyone's life, can be taken at any time. This hit home even harder as I just found out a friend of mine died after being hit by a vehicle leaving his art exhibit. I went to Mark's exhibit and talked to him over an hour as he was just so great to talk to. I left him a hour before this tragic event happened upon him. Those of us who knew Mark will indeed miss him, his smile, his artwork and his zest for life.


Mark Planisek

The Caps, Cortisone & a Grand Jury

What do the Washington Capitols, cortisone and a grand jury have in common – not much except my interest or involvement.

The Caps 4-0 win over the Rangers on Monday night gives Washington a sign of relief and some hope that we can win the series and advance. Finally, DC has a winning team and one for which tickets are hard to come by. I was lucky enough to win a ticket the first playoff game at the Verizon Center. Unfortunately, the Caps lost and it looked like they just fizzled in the last period. However, I finally got to see Ovechkin score a goal. When I go to the games, I try to keep my eye on him and watch him skate. He had some skillful moves skating forward, backwards, sideways and everything in between. Hockey players have also amazed me as they are actually taking on two physical activities: a scoring game of sorts and ice skating at very high levels – not to mention a third physical activity – fighting!

As for the cortisone, I had my second shot at my 11-month post surgery surgeon follow-up. My surgeon said if it didn’t work, he’ll be doing something else in June. It didn’t work so I guess it’s on to something else. My knee just isn’t getting to where it should be and I always “feel it” and have pain on a regular basis. If I ride in a car for several hours, I really feel it. So, I guess my ACL injury refuses to go away and right now it feels like it will be with me forever.

On to the grand jury, which I experienced this morning in DC. I was mugged in January and the guy was caught, thanks to a guy on a moped who following the mugger and led the police to him. Because of a technicality, the mugger was released, and, of course, never showed up for his court date. I’m not sure why the judge left him off in light of his being wanted in six other states. Seems to me he would have been a flight risk and indeed he was. So today there was a grand jury just in case he ever does get caught, DC can try him. At the Grand Jury, I got sworn in and then a U.S. assistant attorney asked me some questions and then I was able to go. Two of the police officers also testified. If the guy is ever caught, a trail will be next on my list of things to do.

So that’s what I’ve been up to the past month or two. Stay tuned for the ACL follow-up to see what is in store for me next.

Nine Months & Not All Good

It's been nine months since my ACL surgery and had yet another follow up visit with my surgeon. The pain and swelling I have been experiencing is not quite to be expected at this point. So, I got another cortisone shot. As I remember from my first shot, the results are not immediate and so it is with this shot. It's now 10 days since the shot and I still have pain and some swelling. I'm now wondering if this will ever go away.

The good news is that I am back to doing almost all of my regular activities pre-injury/surgery. I have been going to the gym and am now running and just started doing some yoga but am having trouble with some of the poses, especially of all things, the resting pose as I just am not that flexible yet. I also went back to doing a rehab exercise I used to do. I only did it on my injured leg but decided to do it on the non-injured leg. It was so easy on the non-injured leg that I thought I was doing it wrong. All you do in this exercise is stand on a step with your bad leg; bend the bad leg and then tap the toe of the good leg on the floor. I am still having problems with this but when I did it reversed, it was incredibly easy and simple.

I've also been monitoring the progress of the big-names that had ACL surgery. Gilbert Arena, Washington Wizards, actually had 3 knee surgeries in 18 months. He hasn't played since last April and will give it a try this week. Pre-injury he scored 60 points against the Lakers. Let's see what post surgery brings.

Tiger is at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando. He has won on this course five times as a pro. He rallied to a 68 just behind Jason Gore who is at 65. Let's see if Tiger can bring it home.

I haven't heard much about Tom Brady except that he got married. His orthopedist Dr. James Andrews said recently that he believes Brady's chances are good for a full recovery and CBS SPorts.com reports that Brady should be considered a fine No. 1 Fantasy QB once again.

Of course these guys have had a zillion more PT sessions than I had and have worked with the best in the field during their rehab and recovery. And, my career doesn't rely on my knee. So, I guess for mere mortals like me, perhaps full recovery isn't in the picture.

One Year & Counting

So,it's been over a year since I tore my ACL and almost 8 months since the surgery. I'm beginning to sense, my knee will never be like it was. I still ice my knee after workouts and still have pain going up/down stairs. During the inauguration, I walked a couple of miles and had problems the next day. I feel very unsure about kneeling and when I sit on the floor and try to get back up, it is difficult, espcially when the leg stiffens up.

Other than that, I'm back to at least trying everything I used to do pre-injury, runing, yoga, etc., except skiing. I sold my ski boots a couple of weeks ago. Quite a bargain for the person who bought them as they were only used for about 10 hours.

I have yet another follow up visit to the surgeon next month. Since I saw him last month, there has been no improvement so I guess this is it. He said he had some tricks up his sleeve and I'm not sure what he meant but I guess I'll find out next month.

I Was There - Part 2

Did you see me waving the flag on the Mall? I was there along with the 1.8 million people or so folks milling about the Mall & Parade Route (as well as those that were not able to get in because of overly zealous security procedures). Anyway, my day started out around 5 am….yeah, early! I walked to the Metro with Lisa, the person who was staying with me from LA and flew in just for the inauguration. When I went outside, I saw my neighbor’s dad, who also was getting ready to depart for the swearing-in. He and his friend drove from Wisconsin for the inauguration. These people were only 3 of the thousands from all over the country that came to witness this emotional and historical event.

I was supposed to be a volunteer and meet at the Castle on the Mall, which is located on 12th Street. At first, I was going to get off at the L’Enfant Plaza Metro stop but decided against it in the crowded metro (yes, it was crowded at 5:30 am) and I started to sweat because of all the layers I had on. So, I decided to get off at Gallery Place and cross over Pennsylvania Avenue at 9th, 11th or 12th Streets. Big Mistake. The organizers failed to let anyone know, including the media, that there was only ONE crossing to get to the Mall – at 18th Street. So, in the darkened streets of DC where thousands upon thousands were congregating, many of us begin the long, long walk to 18th Street (because of where the White House is located, we had to go north first to Eye Street, then back south on 18th Street to the Mall). I was just amazed at the number of people there at such an early hour. There also were hundreds of police/military and dozens and dozens of buses/trucks blocking the entrances to the streets.


I arrived on the Mall at sunrise and enjoyed some beautiful views of the DC skies. I decided to head to the Castle and ran into Sabine who told me to meet up at the Castle. She volunteered during the campaign and was one of the lucky few who got to meet Obama at the Open House on Wednesday. Because I signed up to volunteer, I got a credential, which came in handy. At about 8:30 am, I was COLD and heard the Museum of Natural History were opening their doors. My credential got me in a bit after 9 am and there was hot chocolate waiting, warmth and bathrooms. I stayed in the museum almost until 11 am and decided to join the masses.

Despite the cold, despite the crowds, despite people being hungry, everyone was still in a joyous mood. I have never seen so many people with so many happy faces and tears of joy. People just simply waited, many, like me, for hours and hours, until the big event. It seemed to take forever for all the VIPs to enter, then emerge from the Capitol to face the crowd. Then, on the JumboTrons, we saw Obama. Screaming and flag waving galore ensued – each and every time they showed Obama as well as Michelle and the kids. All the past Presidents were introduced, some more warmly received, i.e. Clinton, than others. However, when Bush (and Cheney) came out there were boos. I didn’t boo, which I thought was not appropriate, but I didn’t clap either. Obama then spoke and the people listened.


After Obama’s speech I thought I’d get out while the going was good. I decided to take the L’Enfant Metro back instead of taking the ONLY exit back out on 18th Street (I heard that was a nightmare as people were chanting Let us Out). I have never been in a crowd of people that dense for that long of a period. It was scary at times. But everyone was calm and mannerly and we simply trodded along as one. Once on the Metro, it was fine and getting out early was a good idea.
I finished my day having lunch and drinks at a bar on U Street, visiting my neighbor on the way home and watching the remainder of the festivities on television. Each and every time I saw the image of the masses of people on the Mall waving their flags, I got emotional as I was there part of that remarkable day or as the Post said “A Moment That Will Define a Generation”.

I Was There!

I had no expectations of seeing anything during the Inauguration events. I had to tickets and did not plan to arrive early and stand for hours and hours before anything happened. I just decided I'd go to things to be there and whatever I saw, all the better.

On Sunday, I started the day going to a wonderful pro-Obama brunch organized by my friend Natasha, who used to host salons in DC years and years ago. She has quite a list of friends and I knew several folks who came - many from the 9:30 club days.


After a good time at the brunch, I decided to head down to the concert on the Lincoln Memorial. I waited about 30 minutes for the bus and after 2 buses passed packed with people, I decided to walk. As I got closer to the Mall, it seemed like a lot more people were coming back than heading down. I found out that the entrances were closed and they were not letting anymore people in. They herded us to the Washington Monument where there were several jumbotrons set up. The crowd kept getting larger and larger. I managed to squeeze up to the gate in front of the World War II memorial and had a view of the Lincoln Memorial. Being 1/2 mile to 1 mile back, I saw nothing but I was able to watch the jumbotrons set up along the reflecting pool. I got there in time to "see" U2 (I just knew they would play "Pride" and they did) and Obama (my first time hearing in speak in person). I was glad I went to be part of all of this.

The Metro was packed coming back home and after feeding the cats, I headed to a friend's house for cocktails. I saw the end of the Eagles game where they made a great come back only to lose in the end and then kept sneaking into my friend's bedroom to watch the Steelers. Then I met another friend on U Street, which was happening and lines at all the "Obama-related" places like Busboys and Poets and Ben's Chili's Bowl. After a drink at Marvin's (named after Marvin Gayne so this place was packed), we headed to Polly's as I wanted a place with a TV so I could finish watching the game. The bars just got more and more crowded.

My last stop was at my neighbor's house as her father and his friend drove from Wisconsin for the Inauguration and I wanted to stop in and say hello.

So, all in all, it was a long, fun day where I saw many friends, U2, and our next President. I can't remember another time like this ever in DC, or anywhere. It's like New Year's, the Superbowl and Halloween all rolled into one holiday.

I can't wait to see what is in store for tomorrow. I Was There, Part 2, will follow.

Almost One Year Since My ACL Injury

It’s been awhile since I posted so I guess it’s time to catch up. I’m at about the 7 months post-surgery point and 11 months post-injury point so my life has been affected by my ACL injury and rehab for almost a year – that’s a long time. I still have pain and discomfort doing certain activities like going down steps, trying to kneel, etc. I saw the surgeon last week and he basically gave me the go ahead to do just about anything – running, yoga and yes skiing – which I won’t be doing. However, everything in moderation and if I experience pain and swelling, which I have been, I need to ease back down the next day as well as ice and take Advil or something similar. So things still aren’t back to normal and I’m not sure they ever will be.