I'm out of the sling

I saw the Orthopedic on Thursday, I had more Xrays taken and I was so excited to post them here.
They made a CD for me of all the images that they have so far created of me with their Xray machine. I brought the disc home, put it in my laptop, and got asked by windows if I wanted to burn items onto the blank CD that I had just inserted. I was thoroughly disappointed. I called them; they apologized and are mailing me another disc.

So, instead of seeing it, I'll describe it for you.


The screws are pretty impressive, and they look like... screws.
In the picture they look like #8, ¾" philips head Sheet Metal screws from Home Depot. (Probably the stainless steel variety that come in the green bags.)
The plate looks more like a chain, or a series of OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOs all strung together, twisting slightly as it wraps around the contour of my collar bone. Actually, now that I think about it, it resembles a piece from an Erector Set that I had when I was a kid.
The main break is a visible crack with a screw horizontally through the bones, not the plate. (Imagine if you were to join two boards end to end by "toe nailing" them with a screw.)
The rest of the screws are at all different angles, looking like half of a double helix DNA strand.
I totally forgot to count them! But, in my memory there were seven.

The surgeon said that everything looks great, it is healing very well, and that I can start physical therapy now. Two times a week for four weeks! That's a little disruptive when you live an hour and forty-five minutes from town. Hopefully I can figure out a way to get instructions and do some of that up here on my own.

I'm out of the sling and feel like like I'm back to normal. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not back to normal, that I can't lift stuff, and that I still have to avoid hugs and slaps on the back and back packs, and pulling the blanket of my bed up with my left hand, and sleeping on my left side... those things hurt.