Dinosaurs

I had a doctor's appointment this morning. Ever since I rolled my ankle in early August, my right foot's plantar fascia has been sore. This is the same one I ruptured while running on New Year's Day 1994. That day, I heard a pop, and at first I thought I had kicked a rock into the curb, but a moment later, I couldn't walk on that foot. 

This was pre-Internet, so I hopped home, wondering what I could have possibly done to myself. Then I iced it and wrapped it with an ace bandage. Fortunately, my sister had a podiatrist, and I was able to get an appointment right away when I called the next morning. Dr. P. was a runner and specialized in sports injuries, but he was nice to a non-athlete like me, too. 

As we talked, he mentioned how fascinated his two-year-old daughter was with their new home computer, and told me that there was actually software available for kids that young. Since I had recently purchased my first Mac, and my nephew was nearly the same age, I was all over it. That's how Millie's Math House became a favorite activity whenever he and his brother were over. It was an animated program for kids aged 2-5, featuring seven activity options that integrated counting skills.

It's hard to believe now, but educational technology was brand new then. As for podiatry, it doesn't seem like much has changed in the last three decades, except that Dr. P is retired now. (And we use online portals now, although I did notice that the young members of the staff were a little patronizing when it came to that. Are you able to access the portal? I was asked more than once, with slightly insincere deference.)

My new podiatrist recommended the same stretches that I used when I first got out of my cast. He also fit me for orthotics, which did the trick last time. He even offered to make them out of leather when I showed him the ones I got the last time I saw Dr. P. back in 2015.

"They don't have to be exactly the same," I told him. "As long as they work!"