Ouch

I bwuised my widdle thumb...



(I can hear all of you: "Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww..........")


Ok, maybe not.

But for the first time in a while, on Saturday, I returned to playing upbeat rock, swing and jazz after a month or more of accompanying a cast on Broadway tunes. The difference in styles is not terribly far apart, but enough to make me remember I have a lot invested in my hands...

Anyway, the tip of my left thumb is bruised because I slammed it repetitively too hard on the keyboard Saturday night. Now it hurts to play it just normally, and even to use the computer. I take for granted how much I rely on ol' lefty - that's the finger I use to hit the SPACE bar, also the ALT button. Both get used a great deal - look back and you can see how many times I hit the SPACE bar in writing just this short paragraph. You see the pain and anguish I put myself in for YOU, Gentle Reader????

Ah, the sacrifices I make...

But seriously, I think from time to time the vital importance I have in my hands. I am a full-time web programmer, so obviously I'm on the computer all day. The mouse can only do so much, there are times you have to use the keyboard. If something ever happened to my hands, even one of them, my livelihood would be put in temporary or even permanent jeopardy.

That doesn't even take into account my avocations - musical theatre, my band, church music.... they all require me playing a piano keyboard of some kind or other. If even one of my hands were injured, I would be unable to play at all.

Does anyone remember the M*A*S*H episode where the soldier lost some functionality in his right hand, but was a concert pianist? I think about that sometimes. Charles found him some specially written concertos for the left hand. What a guy, that Winchester.

Hey, it just occurred to me if something happened to my hands, I couldn't blog. Some of you might consider this a good thing.... :)

It's incumbent upon me to protect my hands, because if I lost their use even for a short time, my job would suffer and I'd have to quit any show I was working on.

It's a little scary.

Hang in there, guys...