I Had An Accident

I guess it's finally time to share I had an accident.  Why would I share this on a pool blog?  Yep, because it could affect my pool game.

Basically, I had a fight with my lawnmower and I didn’t win.  Dang it.

I’ve been doing my own yard work since I was a child helping my parents on weekends, so the embarrassment factor is high for this.  But, on a nice Thursday morning, I was rushed to mow my yard and the wet grass from days of rain was not helping move things along.  I tried to lift the side opening to let the stuck, wet grass out, which I have done a 1,000 times, but this time it didn’t lift and I reached under too far with my fingers to try and get it to raise.  Yes, while the mower was still on.

It was just a freakish kinda of accident, really.

The blades clipped two of my fingers on my right hand and after grabbing a towel and ice, I then carefully (not really) rushed myself bleeding to death (not really) to the ER.  The same ER I used to take my Mom to.  So, yea, I lost it as I walked in.  And then kept losing it at weird moments sitting alone in a hospital room watching my life flash before my eyes (not really).  But, the emotions of being in the same ER of the last moments of my loving Mother made for a much tougher, very lonely, scary, alarming, dire situation.

When the finger doctor (really a “hand surgeon,” but I think my description is funnier) asked me if I brought my skin in, I knew it was bad.  I looked at him confused, then pictured my lawnmower and my yard and realized some blade of wet grass was holding the top skin of my middle finger ransom.   

The finger doctor gave me shots into the top of those two fingers (yea, it hurt like $%@!^& hell) and then gave me 11 total stitches.  The longest finger (yes, the famous middle finger) was the finger that was damaged and slit open the most between the two.

Fast forward 5 weeks and I still have an open wound on the top of my middle finger.  My 4th finger is extremely sensitive and hurts, also, but the skin has closed up at least on that finger.

I can’t stress enough all the things I canNOT do quickly or easily on a daily basis because I am right-handed and the wounds are on the fingers of my right hand:  Brush my teeth, put on makeup, wiping (no matter what type of wiping - face, going to the bathroom, counter, etc), zipping up a zipper on my pants, cleaning around the house, typing, using scissors, opening any type of can (dog food or diet soda), etc.  Try doing dishes one handed!  I dare you.  I can’t even wash my hair - I have to go to a salon to get it washed and straightened (kinda like a diva).  I can’t write, can’t…..well…..can’t do anything that puts pressure on the top of my middle finger because it’s an open wound.

I have a couple of months of healing left.  Healing well, but still extremely sensitive and hurts to the touch on those two fingers.

However, if anyone needs a partner in crime, my fingerprints are gone and altered, so there’s that to help throw off any forensics and CSI.

A few fellow players were like, “good thing you are right handed and it didn’t affect your bridge hand.”  But alas, I’m one of those unique players who is right handed and yet plays pool left handed so it DOES affect my bridge hand.  But, I haven’t competed in a long time and haven’t even tried yet to see if I can play pool (that will be tested next weekend, tho; scary).

Makes one wonder, though, if I was still in the throws of competing, the type and amount of delay it would have in my pool playing plans.

While this is a horrible, scary experience that put me into a very deep depression for reasons related to aloneness and invisibleness, I am completely aware how very blessed I am.

Blessed?

Yep, blessed.

The blades didn’t go to the bone and the blades didn’t take off any fingers.  So, extremely blessed I still have all my appendages.  Could have been a TON worse.

I have to keep my hand elevated because any blood flow going down to my fingers causes a lot of pain (I even sleep with my hand in the air resting on a pillow above me).  And, I had to wear a sling for the first couple weeks to help keep it elevated.  I went to Paris, France right after this freak accident (and don't worry, I wasn't about to let my almost-gone-fingers stop me from traveling across the world to see the beautiful city for the first time) and so all my photos have this monstrosity in them:

But then in some other photos I took off my sling and hid my bandages behind me:

Bottom line is:  I can’t wait to mow again, do the dishes, brush my teeth normally, etc.  I still might have that chick wash my hair tho - that’s a pretty sweet deal!