On crutches

Right now, my foot is in a cast. And I use crutches everywhere I go. At my company softball game last week, I slid into third and cracked my left ankle. Yes, I was safe, but then I was out. I am now on the DL after what was a great start to the season. I was batting .876 with 7 RBIs. No homers yet, but I would have eventually ripped one. So now the most common question is no longer “so what’s it like being back?” Rather, it’s “what did you do to your leg?” After they hear the story, they tell me…

“You survive a year in Iraq and you injure yourself playing company softball.”

Surprisingly, I’m enjoying my time on crutches. I get rock star parking, people open the doors for me and old ladies offer to push my shopping cart. When I go to the VA, everybody looks at me like I’m some kind of hero. To be honest, this country – at least in Milwaukee – treats people on crutches like kings. I wonder if being on crutches will get me out of a speeding ticket. Imagine the possible excuses… “sir, I swear I couldn’t feel my foot and the pain pills were making me drowsy.” Yeah, that’s probably not a good idea.