I just completed "Gift Shop" - Day 2 - Advent of Code 2025 #AdventOfCode adventofcode.com/2025/day/2

@duolingoverde.bsky.social year in review

I just completed "Secret Entrance" - Day 1 - Advent of Code 2025 #AdventOfCode adventofcode.com/2025/day/1

Book cover for "Sustainable Dual-Track Development" showing a futuristic wind turbine on a bridge within a ravine.

The latest agile development book is here! Proven track record with 100s of successful projects all over the globe.

It’s simple: deliver features people want while writing maintainable code. amzn.to/3LSUCiF

Girl standing in front of the Osaka World Expo 2025 sign with a byAcre rollator.

@wirecutterunion.bsky.social not everyone who needs a walker/rollator is geriatric. I’m disappointed that the byAcre one I’ve been using with absolute delight through recent medical issues wasn’t even in your testing pool. The thoughtful design allowed me to continue to travel through my recoveries.

AI-generated emoji of Madison within a backdrop of clouds themed around the San Francisco Ruby Conference branding

Stoked to be in the clouds with #SFRuby next month.

Prices go up again tomorrow if you want to join as well: sfruby.com

The San Francisco Ruby Conference: join in at sfruby.com YouTube video by Evil Martians

This November in San Francisco... 💎❤️
Grab your tickets before October 20 at sfruby.com
youtu.be/m2P9PZwi8W4

Screenshot of the Google maps app highlighting the “wheelchair accessible” filter

TIL there’s an accessibility filter in Google Maps so I can stop getting stuck at station transfers without an elevator….

2024 In Review A digital version of Madisons 2024 annual letter

Every year I write an annual letter. For 2024's letter, @shawn.justshillin.com helped out by making a deluxe version of it ➡️ 2024.madisonmsites.com

@shawn.justshillin.com coming into the recovery ward and taking this was one of my first memories post-surgery. I have no idea who dressed me and apparently had been awake for over an hour 😹

Girl in wheelchair with bandaged and braced right knee

I survived! My tibia was properly fused back together (a previous injury as a kid broke it & healed poorly which is why it snapped so easily 2 weeks ago). Meniscus got minor repairs. Thanks to the gift of a family out there, I also received a new ACL from a donor. donatelife.net/donation/don...

Person laying on a couch with a pop-up table opened to cover an injured knee.

I have been using a lap desk for work all week. This table is just to protect my injured knee from the cats who have an affinity for using my knee as a stepping stone/pounce point.

I skipped #14 😹 use your community. @shawn.justshillin.com has been an incredible support, forcibly teaching me to be a better patient. Friends are giving me their supplies like a shower bench. I’ve gotten so much love as the news has leaked. I wish I would have “taken up the space” & shared sooner

#18 is not to be shy to ask for the drugs. The RN asked if I was claustrophobic and said she’d get an anxiety RX put in for me. If she’d instead asked if I’d wanted it, I probably would have felt shame and said no. This has been a lot on its own, there’s no need to suffer more.

#17 is to advocate for yourself. Given the previous injury, I asked to still get the MRI in case it could give him more info to give me the best outcomes. He insisted that surgery would still happen, but agreed to put it as a priority so he’d have the info going in. TBD on those readings!

#16 is that it is shocking how little the recovery can change even if you’re getting more done. 3-6 months is my recovery whether or not there’s ACL work (same for repair or replace). It only increases to 6-9 months if there’s also meniscus work.

#15 is that you won’t always know everything that’s going to happen in surgery beforehand. He’s done this 1000+ times & some things will be a game day decision while in there. Bone is getting repaired. Maybe some ACL repair. Distant chance of meniscus. Min 1 hour for bone, up to 2 hours w/ others

Me moving down the hospital hallway in my new brace and crutches

#13 the right equipment makes a world of a difference. My knee felt immediately more comfortable in the brace they put me in and I felt like I was flying out of that hospital on crutches instead of the borrowed cane I came in with.

Decorative tape along one side of crutches to indicate which side should face outward

#12 those things will shred your pants when up, so they always need to face the outside. @shawn.justshillin.com helped me make it easier to know which was the outside by using some of my stationary tape as crutch flair.

The ground-end of a crutch shown with a spike attachment moving in and out of place that gives it stability on ice

#11 If you live in a snowy place, they will give you these attachments to your crutches that can go down to help you navigate ice with stability!

#10 - you can effectively lose an ACL if the part of the bone where it attaches to has broken off. Thankfully the ortho dr happened to be passing through, saw me on the board, & figured he should be the one to give me the results. He was going to have his staff get me in the next day to see him 10/X

#9 - Sort of on the don’t delay front, prepare for the unexpected for imaging something with a lot of unknowns. My phone was at less than 20% when we arrived at the ER and I had pretty much nothing with me. 9/X

I continued to be embarrassed when the ER doc’s physical exam wasn’t painful (just as before), as if I was taking up space I shouldn’t, but he agreed to do the CT to be sure. It only hurts when I attempt weight. #8 - no pain to the touch doesn’t mean something isn’t wrong, it’s just a 1st pass 8/X

I sheepishly checked in with the “ailment” of “I’m here for a CT since imaging is now closed” with a lot of “are you serious?” vibes from the staff. 😹 Spoiler: imaging was right to strongly encourage me to do this, so #7 is to read between the lines when folks can’t legally tell you what to do 7/x

I delayed until just before imaging closed the next day (#6 - don’t delay). The tech had me wait so radiology could take an immediate look. They advised at least a CT. If I waited for my dr, I’d be delaying everything by a 1+ weeks, he encouraged us to go down the hall to the ER to get it now 6/x

After seeing me hobble towards the front desk, his demeanor changed & asked to get me back in there within the next week. Asking if I needed the xray first, his nurse piped in with #5 “insurance won’t approve an MRI without an Xray first” (internal thought: “MRI!? Is this serious!?”) 5/x

I got an ortho referral just in case, advising to delay the appt by a few more days in case I didn’t need it. I’d injured this knee in my youth without treatment (no health insurance at the time) & has given me problems ever since, so he ordered an xray. #4 - share historical context! 4/x

I had a really good yoga workout before my accident & thought “I really should be doing this more as I’m getting older to help me stay active.” After a physical exam, he gave me 50/50 on it being okay versus serious because… #3 active bodies can take more hits &, if injured, bounce back quicker 3/x

I waited for an already-scheduled checkup on Tuesday to have a doctor look at it. I was terrified to hear anything ACL-related, giving all the horror I’ve heard about the recovery. #2 - a doctor can feel immediately if you’ve completely torn your ACL, which was the first good news I’d heard. 2/X

Scene from the perspective of a person lying in a ski patrol toboggan attached to a ski patrol staff member with a view of trees and Lake Tahoe in the distance.

I took a tumble while skiing last weekend and thought I’d share lessons learned so far in hopes it helps someone else. Oh, and maybe I can get extra tips, too!

#1 - save the number for local ski patrol in your phone. Thankfully an off-duty EMT stopped to help and made the call for us.