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January 03, 2009
Desperately Seeking Ambidexterity
One of the things I love about being single is how challenging it can be. I have a lot of support from a lot of people—otherwise goodness knows where I’d be right now—but, still, I find myself in a lot of situations I’m not quite ready for, where I have to figure things out and cope or admit I’m not up to the task and give up.
I’m not much for giving up.
This can be tiring, but figuring out how to do things I didn’t know I could do has also kept me hopeful. In the early days of my widowhood, the logic went something like if I could figure out how to clean out the gutters, I could probably figure out some way to deal with my grief. Now this helps me walk around feeling like I can cope with whatever I have to cope with, and that’s a good way to live.
Since I got burned earlier this week, though, I can’t help but notice that the one thing I can’t seem to figure out how to do is to bandage my own right forearm. You would think after a week of changing the dressing 3-4 times a day, I might be getting better at it. Sometimes I think I’m getting worse. It is beyond all reason the way my left hand refuses to do what I tell it to. I cannot, for instance, teach it how to use scissors, so when I have to cut the roll of gauze—again, let’s remember, 3-4 times a day—I try and try cutting it with my left hand and then finally give up and let my right hand do it—awkwardly, of course, since the bandage is, essentially, on my right wrist, but it gets done. I guess this is partly because scissors are made for right-handed people, and so now I’m beginning to appreciate why left-handed people have their own stores. (No, really, I saw one in San Francisco.) I am not quite ready to give way to despair, but that’s only because I’ve found a coping mechanism, which is that I will take every opportunity when I’m out-and-about to have someone rewrap my bandage more securely for me. The trade-off is that whoever’s helping me rewrap gets to see my burn, which some of my (crazy) friends seem quite eager to do. I haven’t hit up any strangers yet—other than medical personnel—but you never know. Luckily, the darned thing is finally starting to heal, so I’m down to rebandaging twice a day.
I am hoping this is a problem I won’t be running into again.
Posted by adrienne at January 3, 2009 11:23 PM
Comments
Sabrina is willing to do it for you when you come over after work tomorrow. :)
Posted by: Olivia at January 4, 2009 12:12 AM
I just came upon your blog in the last week or so. I am so sorry to hear about your lose. You should put a blog archive pull down on your sidebar so some of us can easily read back. Big hugs to you.
Posted by: Cheryl at January 4, 2009 01:19 AM
It's not you---it's totally those scissors! (at least, so says my left-handed sister.) Have you thought of measuring a length of gauze and cutting it before you wrap it around your wrist? Or is that completely misreading the challenge?
P.S. I never thought of mastering new things as a way to be hopeful, but your logic makes the most beautiful kind of sense.
Posted by: Sara Holmes at January 4, 2009 08:31 AM
We knew he was crazy before, perhaps it is a weird boy thing.
Posted by: tonderdo at January 4, 2009 10:56 AM
I'd help you rewrap your bandages! Aside from being your friend, I'm fascinated by such things. Years ago, I went to a left-handed store that had just opened in Harvard Square. Even though I'm right-handed, I wrote my name with my left-hand so that I could get the free goodies handed out (no pun intended) to southpaws. I don't remember what I got besides a 12 inch ruler that said, "Lefties will rule the world."
Posted by: Saints and Spinners at January 4, 2009 03:02 PM
Olivia, Darn! I just read this now. My bandage was pretty good today, though, eh? They stay better when I wear shorter sleeves.
Cheryl, Thanks, and you are right about this archive thing. I've been plotting and planning making some changes to the blog for some time now, but it always takes me a REALLY LONG time to figure them out myself. My lack of technical knowledge is shocking for someone who, technically, runs a website .
Sara, I *have* considered this bit with the measuring-and-cutting-ahead-of-time, but a.) it feels a bit like cheating, and b.) I keep optimistically thinking the next time is going to be the time that I am going to be able to cut the gauze left-handed. Because I have this mastering new things=being hopeful logic, I can be quite stubborn in my attempts to do this kind of thing.
Tam, True, it's not just Ron, though.
Farida, Just another reason to sigh over you living so far away! Of course, with my somewhat extensive contact with illness, hospitals, and the like, this sort of thing doesn't bother me either and I am, in fact, given to asking friends if I can see their incisions/injuries when they occur. So I am totally the ocean calling the sea salty on this one.
Posted by: adrienne at January 4, 2009 10:44 PM
I will bandage yer arm anytime you want! I mostly want to see your sweet burn! I bet you're going to have a tough-looking scar. I'm jealous - I want a wicked scar to show off to people. I'm just sorry you had to go through all that stupid pain. Did you manage to get through the weekend without injuring yourself?
Posted by: amy at January 5, 2009 04:32 PM
Aw, thanks, Amy! :) Goodness knows, you'll be getting plenty of looks at the wicked scar once I decide to ditch the bandages.
And, seriously, I somehow managed to sleep wrong last night and can now barely turn my head. I'm totally falling apart.
Posted by: adrienne at January 6, 2009 02:55 PM