Joe's progress

Another good visit to the clinic to get Joe's wounds dressed and assessed.This visit was timed better and as a result we were in and out like a flash. The trick seems to be that you get in there a bit later to miss all the old people who don't have anything better to do than get up at the crack of dawn and form a queue outside the clinic from first light. This is a phenomenon I first noted in Plymouth when I was at Art College. Our house when we was at Art College was almost five miles away from the City centre, so in order to get there for nine we used to have to get on a bus reasonably early with all our gear - bags, cameras, portfolios and all sorts, sometime really weighed down and quite often with a hang over. But the whole process was made ridiculously unbearable by the fact that for some unfathomable reason loads of old people who weren't at college or in employment still seemed to not get the idea of being retired and having a lay-in. So at 07.30 in the morning come rain or shine, sleet or snow, instead of being tucked up snug in bed where we wanted to be, they'd all make their way down the steep cobbled streets of Keyham

Keyham Plymouth.

risking life and limb in the ice and frots to clog up the buses to the brim before we had a chance to get on. Being polite we'd give them our seats and stand there on the bus for over an hour as it swayed and swerved its way into the city centre covered in bags and folders like bleeding donkeys. We never ever got a seat, the bus was always full of all these old people, but where the hell were they going at 7.30 in the morning in the freezing cold? Why couldn't they have waited till after the rush hour - we could have sat down then and saved hundreds of pounds on physio later in life caused by twisted spines where we were forced to stand with all that kit over our shoulders!

So, anyway, having remembered those experiences we tried going in a little later today and it worked, there was one last old bloke in front of us and we were in and out in hardly anytime at all.

Prior to going Joe had also been showing off - showing that he was able to make a few steps with no assistance. He made four steps which is a good start. I think it's probably hard physically to do that, but more of an issue is the confidence and the concern that in doing so is he damaging the join in the bone if it is starting to fuse together at this stage?

One outcome that I've been peased to see is that one of Michelle's friends Lynn bought Joe an Airfix kit (Hurricane WWII) and Joe made that with his Grandad and has now gone on build a Junkers Ju88. This is the kind of stuff I used to do when I was a kid - good wholesome Old Skool stuff!

Even Ben's been inspired and has got his Butt off the settee and away from the poxy XBOX and discovered that keeping it real is fun and interesting and offers a challenge!

Joe during his very short wait today in the clinic and yet another pair of tracksuit bottoms bite the dust.

Joe behind the screen not wanting to look at his leg. Again this was a very low level pain event with Joe recording a pain level of less than 1 out of 10. The nurse was talking about the scabs again today saying that it's quite important that the scabbing is best not allowed to form otherwise this would lead to a situation where there would be an indent in the leg. So when the dressings come off, she pulls away as much of the scab that is beginning to form as she can. As you can imagine this is quite a sore sensation for Joe and yet he only gives it 0.5 out of 10, suggesting that the recent pain was quite bad!

Later in the day Michelle took Joe out for a push in the wheelcahir and some fresh air as we had some respite from the rain during the day. In fact it was warm and sunny - very different from the previous 2 days.