Being a car guy with multiple certifications in automotive technology, I should know that trying to tell a Dealership that there’s a defective part on your car is a waste of time. The problem isn’t that I had defective front struts, but that the dealer wouldn’t admit that there was a problem with them until they were out of warranty. Once they’re no longer covered under the factory warranty, then they are happy to replace them… at $1,800.00 each! The lesson learned here is to have your new vehicle checked out by an independent shop from time to time, even while it’s under warranty… it’s always a good idea to get a second opinion.
As most of my readers know, I love ice hockey, but as we all know it is a rough, competitive sport that is played at an extremely fast pace. Even though we wear lots of protective gear and take extra precautions to safe guard ourselves against injuries, they still happen. I myself have been playing hockey at the competitive adult level now for over twenty years and yes, I’ve had my share of injuries over the years. Normally you go home after the game with just bumps and bruises, or maybe the occasional sprain, torn muscle or even a dislocated shoulder. However, this week I got to add a new page to my dossier with my first ever broken bone!
The aftermath of the surgery on my left clavicle – Virginia Hospital Center – Arlington, VA.
With only about 5 minutes to go in the third period, I was on the fore check in the offensive zone going hard for a loose puck in the corner, when I was tripped up by another player and found myself sliding head first into the boards. Trying to prevent a direct head impact with the boards, I started to turn my body as I was sliding and thus ended up with my left shoulder squarely impacting the boards instead. I knew instantly after the collusion that I had done some kind of damage to my shoulder, but was not sure exactly what it was. I was able to skate back to the bench under my own power and then pulled myself from the remainder of the game so that I could go to the locker room and remove my shoulder pads to inspect the damage. Sure enough, it was obvious that I had broken something in my shoulder. There was nothing protruding through the skin, but every time I tried to lift my arm I could see the broken bone pop up like it was trying to break through.
After changing out of my gear, I went home to let my wife know what had happened and then drove myself to the hospital to have it checked out by a doctor. The X-rays reveled that is was in fact a broken left clavicle and it would take surgery to correctly repair it. I was lucky enough to get scheduled right away for the surgery and also to have one of the leading shoulder surgeons in the area do the work. The surgery went well and took just under two hours… and now I have a titanium plate and 7 screws holding my collar bone in place so it can grow back together correctly. Oh yeah, and I will have another nice scare to show off! (View Photos, Slideshows, Videos & More»)
I was startled out of my early morning pre-coffee comma by what sounded like a bomb exploding in the back supply room at work. Looks like the shop will be needing a replacement air compressor for the new year! Cant say I’ve ever seen one come apart like this before, but I was assured that the oil was changed in it less than a month ago…!? (View Photos, Slideshows, Videos & More»)
