Grrl Power #1372 - Benefoot Arnpod (Patreon)

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This admittedly jarring transition does sort of back-flow into the previous scene eventually. Trust me.

Frix did ask Peggy if she wanted to close up the scars on her face and fix her ear, and she said that she'd have to agonize over it for a few weeks before making a decision. 

Living with something like a lost limb for years would take a minute to adjust to if you suddenly... found the limb, so to speak. That said, I think your brain would probably adjust pretty quickly to it being back. Depending on how long it was gone and what age you were when you lost it/got it back. 

Back in high school, I jammed up my big toe real good (I won't go into details as I don't want to give everyone a terminal case of the willies) Suffice to say, I wound up with an ingrowing toenail that I really hoped would self correct, but I wound up having to deal with it eventually. It involved, as I recall, using a cotton swab with some acid on it to kill part of the root of the nail so it wouldn't grow back wrong like an unattended beaver tooth. The toe was anesthetized and the worst part of the experience was getting a cramp in my hip while the doctor was doing his thing. But I still lived with a painful ingrown toenail for like... I don't recall... a year, maybe? At the time, I knew I would never forget the daily pain and limping, but today, like... 35 years later? I honestly don't remember which foot it was. You'd think one of my toenails would be slightly narrower, but I guess the root actually did eventually recover, just not as a dummkopf pointing in the wrong direction. 

I guess that points to the plasticity of the (relatively young) brain. Also a year spent limping is different than multiple years of not having a leg, so it will probably take Peggy a little while to adjust. 

Everyone share your grievous bodily injury stories! Yes, Opus the Poet. You have mentioned getting run over by a truck, but feel free to regale us again. It is possible you "win" at... you know, things-that-should-have-killed-me-but-didn't stories. 

I think the toe thing is my worst one. I've never broken a bone. I used to drink about half a gallon of milk a day when I was a teenager. I think that was the only thing I drank at the time. Oh, you know, I say I've never broken a bone, but there was a time when I was trying to unwind a swingset swing in a playground, and I jumped up to swat at it, and my foot came down right on the edge of the trench that gets scooped out under the swing, and my foot went 90° sideways. The bottom of my foot was facing the side of the other foot, basically. I'm pretty sure the underside of my ankle came into direct contact with the ground. That was in college, and like a dumbass, I never went and got it looked at. I just limped my way to class the next day. I don't know if I broke a bone, but I definitely snapped some tendons or ligaments. That ankle is still a little bit misshapen to this day. Though during my peak gym rat days, I was still able to do the full 300lb stack of the standing calf machine, plus another 180 from 45 lb plates hanging somewhat precariously off the hand grips. Like a full set, not a 1 rep max. So it sort of healed up okay. That ankle isn't that stable with lateral movement though, if I'm honest. Good thing I don't have a gender driven expectation or desire to wear high heels. 

I also stepped on something living in Galveston that left a centimeter barbed... quill? Spine? Something, right in the center of the ball of my foot. That was the only time I ever got stitches besides getting my wisdom teeth out and after shoulder surgery from fucking up my shoulders in the gym. Man, come to think of it my feet have had a hard time.