Thanks all for your thoughts.

To rscowboy: yes, I do think that maybe the PT might help with the balance, but for the amount of time they want to have me do this (2 4-hour sessions a week for ? weeks) seems excessive for the small or possibly non-existent payoff in pain control. I've been in PT for other things and one thing I've learned is that if insurance pays for 12 sessions, then you need 12 exactly. If it pays for 20, then oops, looks like you need 20, and so on. What happens if I need PT for something later in the year, and they already milked it dry? (Which I assure you they will.)

Rrae: yep, everything you said made sense. And I think I've treaded very gingerly with the doctor so far, so I don't think I've raised any red flags yet. I just am not sure that this program is such a great thing--there's also a group counseling session (oh joy!). I've never done a group anything where there isn't at least one person who thinks this thing is all about her/him and wastes enormous amounts of everyone else's time. And besides, I think I'm handling this all pretty well and don't need counseling. What would help my head is getting a job--I was downsized last June, right before my hip replacement, and still haven't found anything.

As for the mandolin, yes I still can play. I have a tiny bit of PN in two fingers, but not enough yet to really hinder me. That's one of the things that really worries me though. I play in a mandolin orchestra http://www.pittsburghmandolinsociety.org/index.html, which has really kept my spirits up during this period of unemployment. And thanks for liking my humor. You're in the minority, but I agree with you, I think I'm hillarious.

And cy: thanks for the poem! perhaps I should put it to music! Sorry you've been feeling pretty bad lately. I hope you get some relief soon. And that you find the cheese cutter for your soap. If you are going to use it to cut the cheese though, I might want to avoid you for a while.