The world is slightly off its axis this evening

I had my third trip to the physio today. Not that I'm in pain anymore. Not real pain. When I stand on one foot, it feels like my right hip won't actually hold me up for long and I have an niggling ache in my left bum every evening. I'd like to feel right and the whole thought of my hip ball being part-way out of my pelvis is a little creepy.

She tutted and wondered at what I do inbetween sessions to knock my hips off-kilter again. Erm... running, cycling, rock climbing and standing up all day in a cold wind?

She lay me down on the couch and tugged on my leg and ground my foot into the bench (how she didn't imagine this would hurt I don't know). My hips were still off-kilter. She told me to stand straight (I was). She pushed me over to one side. I flopped back, she pushed me again, I flopped back (repeat until bored). She grabbed hold of me and said,

"Now that's straight".
"No, I'm standing on one leg"
"No, that's straight"
"Seriously?"
"Seriously!"
"I can't stand like this any longer"
"You'll have to. I can't do any more for you unless you stand up straight"

I have to stand and look in the mirror. She's right. For years I have been leaning about 5 degrees to my left. I put it down to being tall. Tall people lean and stoop to fit in, to hear smaller people talking, to avoid looking like a darning needle on a pin-cushion of those litte pins you get in packeted shirts from Marks and Spencer.

She gave me some sexercises to do to strengthen my core muscles. They're very dull and undynamic. I need to dig out an old, loud CD. The words, "I can't do anything more for you," rang in my ears and I instantly decided I couldn't afford to see her anymore

I spent the rest of the day leaning. Leaning in my chair, leaning in the queue for lunch, leaning at the photocopier - but I wasn't, I was standing up straight.

I went to the doctors to get the results of my x-ray and it appears that after all, everything is fine and my hip is not popping out of my pelvis any more. So, I went for a lopsided run. 4km of moorland running over 45 minutes. I made the sheep and little lambs scatter and watched a twilight sunset over the glowing lights of swindon and the contours of the downs turn from navy blue to black then I turned on my sooper dooper headtorch and skipped my way along worn footpaths on the fields before returning to civilisation and a bounce down the road.

Next time I'll suss out the path behind the village that leads to the back lane to my flat and then I'll move house and have to start the process all over again.

My world might be off its axis but at least I am getting out more.

though you might notice I've cheated and used a photo taken a while ago in the middle of the day