Can It

Temperatures have dropped again this morning. My thumbs are barely working. My hubby has already made coffee, so after pouring myself a cup all I need to do is make Kidlet's lunch.

I did a PBJ for him yesterday and there doesn't appear to be any lunch meat left, so I'll make a tuna sandwich for him. He loves tuna, and also egg salad sandwiches. Come to think of it, Kidlet loves food! At fifteen, he eats constantly.

Out of the fridge comes mayo, sweet relish, and lettuce. Third drawer down has the bread. Opening the door to the pantry is easy since I've replaced all the round doorknobs in the house with levers. Easy to use with fingers only. Disadvantage is that one of our dogs can open them too.

Oh for crying out loud! The tuna is in a can. 

I must open that can. I can't make a strong enough grasp this morning to twist the hand crank on the manual can opener that I usually use. 

Fiddlesticks!

I now bend down to dig the electric can opener out of a lower cupboard. It is behind the toaster, air popper, coffee bean grinder, and electric tea kettle. 

As you may have guessed, I don't use it a lot. I try to cook with fresh ingredients, so I don't purchase many canned goods. If one doesn't open cans more than a few times a month, there doesn't seem to be much point in leaving an electric can opener out on the sideboard. So I normally just grab the manual opener. 

Except when I can't grasp.

Okay doke. I now have the can of tuna open. I pop the little cutting gizmo out of the opener in order to clean off the tuna juice. With the gizmo and the tuna can, I go to the kitchen sink to drain the tuna and wash the gizmo. 

Whoa! I can't squeeze the the lid on the can into the can with my fingers and thumbs wrapped around the can to finish draining the tuna. 

Hmmm. I place the can in my left palm, wrapping my left fingers as tightly as possible around it. Then with the fingers of my right hand I push in on the lid as I turn it over above the drain. 

Success! 

After washing the gizmo and the sink, I go back across the kitchen to complete Kidlet's sandwich making. Most everything else is easy peasy. I remember to use two hands to pick things up. I can push the baggie's zip lock against the counter with my fingers to close the sandwich up. I do find that the double zip bags are the best for this.

Once the kitchen is cleaned up and Kidlet is out the door, I go up to my office. It is very warm up here as we have a large window-like opening that overlooks the diningroom pellet stove. Since heat rises, my office is a nice, dry hideaway for the morning.

Blogging, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and eBay are my constant companions until my thumbs work better. Thankfully so!