Monday 11 February 2013

Update

On January 7, while playing for my organisation in the annual cricket tournament of the Press Club of Thiruvananthapuram, I injured my right foot. I hadn't thought the injury serious and had been limping along in pain hoping the foot will mend by itself. Then on February 5, while stepping out of the Cellar where we journalists meet nightly to share the day's gossip over a few drinks, my legs buckled and I had to sit on the pavement. My friends took me immediately to a nearby hospital. The next day the doctors conducted a surgery on my leg to tie up the broken ends of the achilles tendon, which had ruptured. I was discharged from the hospital on February 8, with advice not to put the injured foot on the ground for two months. A tendon injury takes longer than a bone injury to heal; and Dr. Kailas Viswanath, who led the surgery, said my foot was in a very bad condtion. He was surprised how I had carried on with the injury for nearly a month.

So, the long and short of the thing is I am to take rest for around three months. My daughter bought me a laptop computer and these are the first lines I am typing on it. I have started reading Thunchath Ezhuthachan's Adhyatma Ramayana. I look forward to finishing it in a couple of weeks and moving on to the other books I had always wanted to read. It is a pleasant feeling to be without the pressure of work. I started my working career on May 27, 1977, the day after I finished my BSc exams. First I was a supervisor in a Spinning Mill and it was on December 15, 1978, I began my long career in The Hindu. I have less than 4 years left before retiring from my job. I haven't had a break all these years. So now I am taking a break...

4 comments:

Arun Meethale Chirakkal said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Arun Meethale Chirakkal said...

There’s a reason to get annoyed and express discomfort, yet, you see the brighter side of it. Take care, Venu Chettan. Get well soon.

Prabhakar said...

Speedy recovery and happy reading. Enjoy the well-deserved break.

P. Venugopal said...

@Arun:
it is like dropping out of the action all of a sudden and then seeing all the action from outside, without having to do anything about the things happening all around. i feel so light. i can move around on one leg. have been provided with crutches, but i find hopping more convenient. the bathroom is just one step away from the foot of the cot, the television is in the hall ten steps away, friends are looking in all the time and my granddaughter is in my room most of the time. when there are no visitors, i have to tell her stories. no hurry involved in the overall scheme of things. besides, my wife has allowed me five cigarettes a day. my friend and neighbour Soman brings them home in the night when he returns from work. perfect situation.