It's Fallinnnnnggggg...

Sigh.

I can't believe how fast this summer flew by. I was so comfortable in the warmer weather, so happy to hold my coffee mug as a normal person would. 

Happy to reach out to another human to grab something without immediately having to retrieve that item off of the floor where it had promptly fell as my now-useless thumbed hand inadvertently released it.

Enjoyed dressing myself when and where I wanted to.

Everything is now falling.

It will take a few days, and probably some broken things, to begin to remember to hold on to items with my 'thumb-less' grasp.

You know, that awkward finger/palm wrap around hold that is impossible to do on a cup of hot coffee or tea.

Having to remember that I can no longer grab two items at a time - one in each hand. Which means twice as many trips back and forth.

One distinct advantage is that I will get lots of exercise this fall and winter! Plus I am able to interact with many more friends and family now in order to complete tasks and chores.

Can anyone lend me a hand?

Sunshine Makes Me Happy

John Denver sings, "Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy."

To which I would add, "Sunshine on my thumbs is always good..."

No, it doesn't remotely rhyme, but is so, so true in these late spring days going into summer..

I can garden, use chopsticks, scrapbook, tie shoelaces, turn pages in a book,  paint, scrub windows and screens, and even be happy for all of the little projects around the house that I've been unable to do since last fall.

Granted, our daily temps have been in the low to mid seventies. Nights, however, have been staying in the high forties to mid fifties. Infinitely better than in the freezing range.

My list of 'to-do' projects are nearly endless. I can now grip an old toothbrush and clean around the buttons of our various remotes. I can scrub the heck out of the grout on all of the tiled walls in our bathrooms with a hand held scrub brush, and scour all fourteen hundred square feet of tiled flooring. I can disassemble cabinet doors and remove knobs for touch up painting. 

I can pinch, grasp, pull and twist with ease. 

Gripping my garden tools is a breeze. With the sun out I can spend hours in the yard digging, spading, raking, and trimming. Today I will be banishing weeds and transplanting my lovelies. 

I can live again.

Thank you Lord for sunshine!

Chopsticks Fiddlesticks

I am beside myself with joy today. Last evening we were able to dine at our local teriyaki restaurant and I was able to use chopsticks! Hurrah for warmer weather!

During the cold months of fall, winter and early spring my thumbs simply don't work well enough to even attempt such a feat. Trying to eat with those harmless little wooden or molded implements turns my meal into a round of fiddlesticks with me the obvious loser.

Have you ever fumbled, then flipped a chopstick through the air just to have it embed itself into a wall merely inches from someones face? Truly humiliating, believe me. 

Humiliating that it happened, not that I missed!

Chopsticks were never designed for dagger type throwing events.

Since I grew up eating Asian food with chopsticks, has it never seemed right to me to consume such meals with a metal fork. As to asking for a pinyin or chirirenge (soup spoon of china or porcelain), I'd much rather go hungry than resort to using a baby's utensil. Yes, I know - I'm a rice snob. Gotta have those sticks.

Which leads me to my euphoric meal last night. My thumbs are working! Though not as strong as in my youth, which includes all the days prior to my forty-fifth birthday, these opposable digits at the ends of my upper extremities are a very valued addition to my daily repertoire. 

Welcome back, Dear Thumbs!

Spring Has Sprung!

Looking at my last post I realize how fast the winter went, though it seemed to creep along at the time.

I can (mostly) use my thumbs again!

I still have to watch how I grasp things one handed, but for the most part the pain is gone and I have a much better range of motion.

Gardening, spring cleaning and scrapbooking are once again my regular activities of choice.

I joyfully thumb my nose at winter!

So much of our lives, actions and reactions are conducted on our emotions and feelings. I am the first to admit that I tend to be crabby when I ache, irritable when limited in my motions and activities, impatient during the Seattle area's cold, wet months.

Not to speak of those never ending grey skies.

Granted, I am definitely a sunshine type of gal. I love being outside with the heat of summer pounding down on me. Basking in the glow of those golden rays.

And yes, I do wear sunscreen nowadays. It's such a pleasure to be able to unscrew the lotion bottle with thumb and fingers, lol...   

Bundy Kind of Day

Okay, I am willing to admit it. I pulled a 'Peg Bundy' yesterday.

My youngest son's high school is in mid winter break. He slept in until nearly noon, hubby was at work, so I stayed in my jammies and watched TV all morning.

When my darling Manlet did wake up (at fifteen years old and 6'3" tall he no longer qualifies as a Kidlet), we had brunch in front of the TV and continued watching a couple more shows together.

It was delightfully relaxing, though I did practice enough restraint to skip the bon bons.

It helped, of course, that there weren't any more bon bons left from Valentines Day.

The weather has been much warmer over the last week or so. It hasn't snowed in ten days. My thumbs haven't ached quite as much in a couple of days now, so I am able to type and post today. 

Still, I am thankful for my day of 'rest' yesterday. 

Manlet and I didn't get dressed until nearly 3 p.m. Then we ran to town to the post office. Well, truthfully, we drove. I doubt I could actually run three miles. If I was able to, I know that I'd never be able to run back. So we drove. Manlet drove. Gotta love a kid that drives!

I suppose that I really agreed to run errands for my son so I didn't have to answer my hubby's standard "What did you DO today?" greeting he gives as he walks in the door after work.

And yes, Manlet and I stopped for dinner elsewhere. 

I was hiding. From the truth.

I spent the day in front of the TV for no particular reason, other than I wanted to.

So there!