Stuff

Making Progress

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The plastic surgeon said: “If it hurts, stop doing it!” Good advice – listen to my wrist and judge what I can do by how it feels.

Still a bit of discomfort but not much pain to speak of. My hand remains a bright pink from the antiseptic – I haven’t been able to wash it with the dressing on (the dressing comes off tomorrow).

Progress…

I managed to shower again (more or less) with one hand – my right hand held high encased in a plastic bag with an elastic band around my wrist – not supposed to get the dressing wet until I take it off. Brushed my teeth, dressed myself, all with less struggle than yesterday.

One of my neighbours brought me stewed lamb for lunch (I love lamb) – I was actually able to pick up a fork in my right hand and eat – when I started feeling the strain I switched to my left hand but I can see I’ll be able to use my right for more tasks quite quickly – just NO lifting of anything more than 1/2 lb for a couple of weeks.

Another day and I might actually be able to drive my standard transmission car. I plan on visiting the vehicle in the garage tomorrow to see if using my fingers and arm lets me manoeuvre the gear shift without putting undue strain on my wrist – if I can pass that test, I’ll take the car out for errands. However, if there’s any pain, I will STOP doing it. I heard the surgeon loud and clear!

Out Of Commission – Temporarily

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Post Surgery

No sewing or knitting for a while – had carpet tunnel surgery on my right hand (my dominant hand) yesterday morning. While I can move my fingers a bit, any movement of my wrist is uncomfortable, occasionally painful. All day yesterday and for the next two days I need to keep my hand elevated – as if I were doing a royal wave – to prevent swelling and reduce pain.

It’s astonishing how many tasks I can’t do – brushing my teeth with my left hand is a joke, pulling up my jeans and doing up the button on the top – a definite challenge. I start reaching to do something with my right hand, stop myself midway and change hands – but my left hand has very little fine motor control. And for the next few days I can’t drive my standard shift car. I’m hoping maybe by the weekend I’ll have more use of my right hand fingers so I can move the gear shift but for now I’m house bound or dependent on the generosity of friends to taxi me about.

The dressing comes off on Friday, the sutures come out ten days after that. By then, the discomfort should have subsided enough for me to function more normally. I’ve got my fingers crossed that now I might get back some function in my thumb – the numbness at my fingertips is definitely receded, if not yet completely gone, which bodes well for my return to reasonable function of my right hand.

Stuff!

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These are my mother’s fine china dishes. She passed them on to me in 1993 when I moved to Winnipeg. I used them reasonably often while I was there, but since returning to Halifax in 1997 they’ve been used only infrequently – I just don’t do the kind of entertaining that would warrant tableware as elegant as this.

I’ve just sent this picture to my niece asking if she’d be interested for sentimental reasons in having her grandmother’s dishes – she doesn’t, I know, particularly like the china she got when she was married.

If she declines the offer, and I’m expecting she will, I may just put them in my kitchen and use them for everyday dishes and wash them in the dishwasher. 

Nobody really wants fine tableware like this these days. There is little point in having the set stored in my buffet unused. So if the gold edges wear off in the dishwasher, or pieces break, what does it matter – it’s just “stuff”.

Then the question is what to do with my reliable, unbreakable Midwinter white stoneware dishes which I’ve used faithfully for 35 years! More stuff I have to decide what to do with!

George Carlin had it right in his hilarious monologue about “Stuff”. Never seen it, don’t know it – watch it! We all have too much STUFF!