Weather forecasters are predicting an arctic blast to hit sometime this weekend and I think I’m mostly ready for it.
Well, at least when I’m viewing the projected temperatures from the comfort of Monday night while I’m writing this column.
Everything starts acting up Wednesday with nearly 100% chance of precipitation.
Now, in my limited experience, rain usually accompanies some sort of cold front and therefore ruins my day more than usual.
I can tell you that we’re definitely getting some of that rain and a drop in temperatures thanks to my reinforced ankle joint.
The surgical steel implant is sensitive to barometric pressure and temperature changes – and my body lets me know when both of those things are happening.
In case you were wondering or don’t recall from science class back in the day, barometric pressure is just a fancy way to describe air pressure.
While I usually call it my “Tin Man” ankle, maybe I should change it to my “meteorologist ankle” and see how reliable it is over the next few months.
Then again, once we roll into Fair season, I’m too busy to keep tally or record how accurate my pain is regarding the weather.
Still, the painful indicator also fluctuates depending on how many days of bothersome weather we have versus a consistent experience.
I’ve learned that the only other adults who understand my woes are those with arthritis in general and senior citizens.
Plenty of times when I’ve explained my forecasting gift, I was warned that aches and pains were just part of getting older.
Those folks also said that once I reached a certain age, everything hurt and it didn’t matter what the weather did outside.
As for those with arthritis, we seem to be able to commiserate on sensing changes in the weather and offering tips on dealing with the discomfort and pain – depending on how severe the atmospheric shifts are going.
I’m glad to have such a network of communication and have taken extra care towards listening to my body for whether painful changes can be mitigated ahead of time or addressed as the need arises.
For example, if the internal pain in my ankle seems to increase from one day to another or even through the course of the day, I know to check on that group of friends to make sure we’re either all in some sort of joint irritation, versus the possibility that I slept or stepped wrong.
Listening to my body also helps me monitor Mike’s well-being, too.
If my ankle is feeling stiff and sore and the rest of my friend group echoes similar sentiments, then I can help Mike manage his possible aches and pains better.
Sadly, there is no cure for arthritis or being a human weather vane.
But, I’m hoping that if I establish routines and consistently take time to make sure that there is no outside influence on my ankle, then I can ride out whatever the weather decides to throw at me.
As long as we don’t have a repeat of 2021’s Winter Storm Uri, I think I’ll manage just fine.
