BIG LEAPS AND KARATE CHOPS (Kerry breaks a bone)

When I was 18 years old, I broke my first bone. It was my big toe ... I think it was the right one, but now I don't remember. I was in rehearsal with the ballet company I danced with, and we were preparing to perform "Coppelia". In it, there is "The Dance of the Hours", with twelve dancers. That's a lot of people, and we had limited rehearsal space. We had to do a grand jeté (a big leap) ... my right leg went forward ... Justyn's left leg went backward ... POW! She went down hard, but was fine. I broke my toe. I don't know why we weren't wearing our pointe shoes for that reahearsal; they would've protected my tender little toes.

My parents have always been grateful for my broken toe, because a week later I was due to fly down to Baltimore to audition for a dance scholarship at Goucher. I was also up for an academic / leadership scholarship. I didn't get the dance scholarship, but did get the other, which was much bigger and renewable for four years. Anything to help out. :)

I, too, have always been happy to have this as the story of the only time I broke a bone: "I kicked a girl."




So how's this for another (possibly) broken bone story: "I karate chopped a tile window sill." ?

Yes, I do realize that this requires an explanation ...

So, yesterday, I was getting ready to go out for a 16-mile training run. I got into my running clothes, and went downstairs to put on my cardio belt (a strap that measures my heartrate and sends the data to my Garmin GPS). I took my new fleece top down to the bathroom with me to put on after the belt, and then I would put my hair up and be ready to go. Maybe I was in a hurry ... or maybe I was already mentally outside, because I forgot to take into account the small size of the bathroom. I put the top over my head, brought my arms down and ... SMACK! I heard a really gross sound as my right hand karate chopped the window sill. I shouted, "AIE!" (the French version of 'ow'), followed by a French word that I definitely didn't learn in Madame Ravenelle's class. I ran my hand under cold water and watched the beginning of a bruise develop. But there was nothing else I could do, so I went out for my run. (The bruise never really developed ... if it had, I'd put a picture up for you.)

Philipp thinks it's probably broken, but I'm not sure, because it only hurts when I press on it. We'll see how it is in a day or two, and see if I go in for an x-ray. I don't know what they can do for me, and I have no desire to have a cast on my hand. Mainly because I don't want to run with it. I'm sure I'd get lots of comments on it at the marathon!

So that's the story of my second (possibly) broken bone. I'll keep you posted if there are any updates. Incidentally, the tile window sill made out fine ... just like Justyn.



One other note ... thanks to Ariana, I'm now hooked on NPR's "This American Life", and look forward to runs of over an hour so that I can listen to it (I download the podcasts). I also discovered a podcast called "The Final Sprint", and listened to an interesting interview with Mike Huckabee.