Ouch!

Edna wrote:

> In article <yrydnVhPJvfC4pTVnZ2dnUVZ_j6dnZ2d.RemoveThis@earthlink.com>,
> "m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
>>Edna wrote:
>
> [SNIP]
>
>>>If you haven't already, I highly recommmend splurging on a pair of rose
>>>gloves. Our house already had roses when we bought it, and my husband
>>>convinced me to spend the extra $ on the fancy gloves. I've managed to
>>>avoid stabbing myself so far.
>>
>>The rose gloves I've seen here tend to be heavy rubber. And
>>most rose work needs to be done in summer. Heavy rubber and
>>100 degree weather just don't mix. I do use the
>>medium-heavy leather work gloves when I work on the roses...
>>I got careless, that first time out pruning for the year,
>>and the roses rewarded my carelessness. Ungrateful plants.
>
> Ugh, rubber does not sound good. I got a pair at the local nursery with
> soft leather hands, and heavy suede gauntlets. Of course, since I threw
> away the packaging long ago, the only tag inside reads "Made in
> Pakistan," so I can't tell you who makes them.

I'll survive. I remembered this afternoon why I don't want
to buy gardening gloves that might become irreplaceable to
me. The big round bugs that live in rose flowers are back.
Some kind of rose-eating beetle that hides near the center
of roses and puts holes in the petals. With my dislike for
pesticides, the most effective way to kill them is to grab
them with (gloved!) fingertips and squish. No poison
needed... but the fingertips of my gloves are gonna get
kinda gross over the next few weeks.

> [SNIP}
>>Like yours, these roses were here when I bought the house.
>>Most were healthy enough that I would feel badly pulling
>>them out. (They aren't nearly as bothered by the bugs as I
>>am. I suppose a spotted flower petal doesn't bother a
>>rosebush, as long as the flower is sound enough to attract
>>bees.)
>
> I don't worry about the bugs on them, but I do try to prune and deadhead
> as needed. I looked in the back yard this morning and discovered a bunch
> of pink roses that opened overnight. (Well, maybe over two nights, since
> I wasn't home long enough during the day yesterday to look.)

They are pretty, aren't they?

> I did pull out one rose last year, because it looked really sad, and was
> occupying the only sunny spot in the front yard (I planted irises and
> lilies instead). I discovered WHY it looked so sad: when we dug up the
> flower bed, we found that whoever planted the rose bush simply made a
> little hole in the clay and stuck it in. We ended up digging out the
> entire bed and putting actual dirt into it.

Clay clay? Not just clay-like, compact soil? Whoa.
Someone assigned the resentful teenage kid to plant the
rosebush? That's rose-icide, that is.

I've got fairly clay-like soil. I amend a lot when I put in
a new plant, and mulch.

I dream of having one of those "Sunset Magazine California
Gardens" type yards, one day. Mounds of colorful,
drought-tolerant, cottage-garden-y plants gracefully blowing
in the breeze in all directions.

One day a long, back-breaking distance away. :>

--
Megan
Journeyperson Dancing Barbarian
Keeper o' the FAQ: http://home.earthlink.net/~m_thomas3/abml/
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
<"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:yKKdndcVEOwcHZfVnZ2dnUVZ_veinZ2d@earthlink.com...
> Anne Elizabeth Baldwin wrote:
>> "m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
>> <"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote in message
>>>victoreia wrote:
>
>>>>Just don't ever catch a fingertip in a car
>>>>door.....especially when the door slams shut hard enough
>>>>to break the tip of the bone _and_ take off most of the
>>>>nail.................you really, really don't want to find out how much
>>>>that hurts. (You have no idea how many
>>>>nerve endings are there until you don't have that nice
>>>>nail protecting them!)
>>>
>>>OWIE!
>>>
>>>I have some idea. I've seen a nice exhibit at science museums, a
>>>sculpture of a human body with the body part sizes proportional to the
>>>number of nerve endings in them. The finger tips were kinda big...
>>
>> How big were they? {curious look}
>
> Oh, gosh... it was 15+ years ago that I saw the sculpture. Little figure
> of a human, bulbous tongue, bulbous fingers (or was it the whole hands)...
> I can't quite remember the rest.
>
> But I did get the impression, from that, that the hands alone have more
> nerve endings than the whole arms. Nerve ending density is *not*
> proportional to skin surface area.

Yeah, that sounds about right. {rueful look at still-bandaged finger}

I notice that also when a nurse takes a blood sample for blood sugar
monitoring. The fingers are a really bad place for pain, and the hand isn't
much better. Unfortunately, I'm usually sensitive there. They don't believe
HOW MUCH worse it is for me until I tell them it's finally stopped hurting
continuously half an hour later. I just wish I was exaggerating. {wry look}

Well, no. I also wish there were more body parts where they could find a
hair-free spot to take a sample from. {wry smile}


Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

"Bookwyrm" <Bookwyrm RemoveThis @comcast.net> wrote in message
news:480a29aa$1@news.bnb-lp.com...
> Aaron wrote:
>>> Last night I somehow managed to slice into the tip of my index finger
>>> with the edge of the mirror in the bathroom. {wince}
>>>
>>> It isn't really serious, but it did bleed, so I have a bandage on it
>>> now.
>>>
>>> Writing with a pencil is an interesting challenge now. It doesn't
>>> seem to interfere with typing as much, but I'm noticing a little pain if
>>> I type with the tip of that finger too much. I'm trying to type with a
>>> different part of the finger, but it's a little clumsy. Computer mouse
>>> use is almost normal, at least. {Smile}
>>>
>>> So if posts and replies are sparse and short for a while, that's my
>>> excuse. {Smile}
>>>
>>>
>>> Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
>>
>> Agreed, Ouch!
>>
>> My *last* similar injury was when I tried to close a very sharp pocket
>> knife and my fat finger was nearly removed for being in-the-way. It took
>> over 6 months to feel mostly normal instead of like it had a thick callus
>> on it.
>>
>
> DH sliced off the tip of his right thumb with a jointer/planer some years
> back. *wince*
> Luckily a good surgeon was on duty in the ER that day. Fixed the nerve
> endings and closed the wound.

I'm glad the surgeon did such a good job. {BIG SMILE}

> Only problem, it has healed with a rather bulbous end -- looks sort of
> like a big toe, rather than a thumb.
> And makes grasping some small things (peeling covers off of some food
> packages, for example) rather difficult -- to sometimes almost impossible.

That would be pretty frustrating. Especially on the days when he's tired
of asking for help yet again because of the same old problem. {sympathetic
smile}Both Dad and I have days like that; I figure most other people do,
too. {Smile}


Anne Elizabeth Baldwin

> 'wyrm
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

>>> I sliced the tip of my middle finger
>>> a couple of weeks ago, and I have no idea how it happened. I was on my
>>> way out the door, and tried to check something on my laptop on the way
>>> out. (The trackpad doesn't work if your finger is pouring blood all over
>>> it.) The sharpest thing I had used in the previous five minutes was a
>>> butter knife to spread some mayo on a sandwich!
>> {WINCE} I hope your finger got better quickly! {sympathetic smile}
>
> It did heal pretty quickly, although I went through a lot of Band-Aids
> during that week. (Even the "waterproof" bandages don't really stand up
> to handwashing when they're on the tip of a finger.)
>
> Edna

And if you are the designated (manual) dishwasher, you learn the sound
of one hand washing, if not that of one hand clapping.

--
I'm glad my Mom named me Aaron,
That's what everybody calls me.

Hemidemisemideity of Anonymous Eponymity
Patron Saint of Hair Color Changing
Currently: Dark Intense Red - Hydrience 3RR.
Holder of a provisional pedant licens/ce
(limited to the area of physical sciens/ce)
Member of ABMLNCSC - Base singer, very base
"Mommy, make daddy stop singing".

I dye my hair so much my driver's license
has a color wheel. Nancy Mura
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

"Aaron" <kemtek.1.TakeThisOut@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:A2yOj.2297$WU.1480@trndny08...
>>>> I sliced the tip of my middle finger
>>>> a couple of weeks ago, and I have no idea how it happened. I was on my
>>>> way out the door, and tried to check something on my laptop on the way
>>>> out. (The trackpad doesn't work if your finger is pouring blood all
>>>> over
>>>> it.) The sharpest thing I had used in the previous five minutes was a
>>>> butter knife to spread some mayo on a sandwich!
>>> {WINCE} I hope your finger got better quickly! {sympathetic smile}
>>
>> It did heal pretty quickly, although I went through a lot of Band-Aids
>> during that week. (Even the "waterproof" bandages don't really stand up
>> to handwashing when they're on the tip of a finger.)
>>
>> Edna
>
> And if you are the designated (manual) dishwasher, you learn the sound of
> one hand washing, if not that of one hand clapping.

Yeah. Fortunately, with three people in the house, that's not usually
necessary. We're usually pretty good at stepping in when a dish-washer is
laid up. {Smile} (I'm sure we have plenty of faults to make up for it, but
at least we're good about that. {Chuckle, REALLY BIG GRIN})


Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

Anne Elizabeth Baldwin wrote:
> <"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote in message
>
>>Anne Elizabeth Baldwin wrote:
<nerve endings in body parts>

>>But I did get the impression, from that, that the hands alone have more
>>nerve endings than the whole arms. Nerve ending density is *not*
>>proportional to skin surface area.
>
> Yeah, that sounds about right. {rueful look at still-bandaged finger}
>
> I notice that also when a nurse takes a blood sample for blood sugar
> monitoring. The fingers are a really bad place for pain, and the hand isn't
> much better. Unfortunately, I'm usually sensitive there. They don't believe
> HOW MUCH worse it is for me until I tell them it's finally stopped hurting
> continuously half an hour later. I just wish I was exaggerating. {wry look}
>
> Well, no. I also wish there were more body parts where they could find a
> hair-free spot to take a sample from. {wry smile}

I miss the days when the person testing iron levels, before
blood donation, was allowed to do so with a blood drop from
the earlobe. Earlobes are relatively low in nerve endings.
Regrettably, it seems that location skews the iron level
estimation, so they are back to whacking a sharp point into
a fingertip to test iron levels. ow.

Fortunately for me, I'm not as sensitive as you are! I
might never donate blood, if I were.

Hair-free spots... well, yes, we are mammals. Palms of
hands, bottoms of feet, and that's about it for any
guarantee of hair-free. Face, for females, but I don't
imagine you'd enjoy a prick on the cheek any more than a
prick on the hand.

--
Megan
Journeyperson Dancing Barbarian
Keeper o' the FAQ: http://home.earthlink.net/~m_thomas3/abml/
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

In article <kIidnYIiqOisLJbVnZ2dnUVZ_siknZ2d RemoveThis @earthlink.com>,
"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
<"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote:

> guarantee of hair-free. Face, for females, but I don't
> imagine you'd enjoy a prick on the cheek any more than a
> prick on the hand.

OH, so many possibilities for reply, but just thinking about any of them
sent the PG-rating into convulsions...



--
Don Bruder - dakidd RemoveThis @sonic.net - If your "From:" address isn't on my whitelist,
or the subject of the message doesn't contain the exact text "PopperAndShadow"
somewhere, any message sent to this address will go in the garbage without my
ever knowing it arrived. Sorry... <http://www.sonic.net/~dakidd> for more info
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

Don Bruder wrote:
> In article <kIidnYIiqOisLJbVnZ2dnUVZ_siknZ2d DeleteThis @earthlink.com>,
> "m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
> <"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>
>>guarantee of hair-free. Face, for females, but I don't
>>imagine you'd enjoy a prick on the cheek any more than a
>>prick on the hand.
>
>
> OH, so many possibilities for reply, but just thinking about any of them
> sent the PG-rating into convulsions...
>
>

<looks at post>

<re-adjusts thinking for obvious naughty thoughts>

<re-adjusts again, trying for less obvious>

<enlightened>Ah!</enlightened>

Geeeeez. You should wash that brain out with soap or something.

:>

--
Megan
Journeyperson Dancing Barbarian
Keeper o' the FAQ: http://home.earthlink.net/~m_thomas3/abml/
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

In article <886dnatm975LHpfVnZ2dnUVZ_tqtnZ2d.DeleteThis@earthlink.com>,
"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
<"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote:

> Edna wrote:
<SNIP>
> > I did pull out one rose last year, because it looked really sad, and was
> > occupying the only sunny spot in the front yard (I planted irises and
> > lilies instead). I discovered WHY it looked so sad: when we dug up the
> > flower bed, we found that whoever planted the rose bush simply made a
> > little hole in the clay and stuck it in. We ended up digging out the
> > entire bed and putting actual dirt into it.
>
> Clay clay? Not just clay-like, compact soil? Whoa.
> Someone assigned the resentful teenage kid to plant the
> rosebush? That's rose-icide, that is.

It looks like actual clay to me. Hard as a rock when it's dry, slippery
when wet.
>
> I've got fairly clay-like soil. I amend a lot when I put in
> a new plant, and mulch.
>
> I dream of having one of those "Sunset Magazine California
> Gardens" type yards, one day. Mounds of colorful,
> drought-tolerant, cottage-garden-y plants gracefully blowing
> in the breeze in all directions.
>
> One day a long, back-breaking distance away. :>

Wouldn't that be nice? I'm working on one corner at a time. (Don't look
in my back yard right now.)

Edna


---|)--- Edna Huelsenbeck (huelsenbeck@gmailDOTcom) ------------
---|---- Goddess of the ABML Out-of-Practice-Musicians Band -----
--/|---- Member, Brute Squad, Mommy Division --------------------
-| |')-- Provisional Member of the Sisterhood of Mess -----------
--\|/----Official Bard of the Book and Bridle -------------------
|
'
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

In article <A2yOj.2297$WU.1480@trndny08>, Aaron <kemtek.1.TakeThisOut@gmail.com>
wrote:

> >>> I sliced the tip of my middle finger
> >>> a couple of weeks ago, and I have no idea how it happened. I was on my
> >>> way out the door, and tried to check something on my laptop on the way
> >>> out. (The trackpad doesn't work if your finger is pouring blood all over
> >>> it.) The sharpest thing I had used in the previous five minutes was a
> >>> butter knife to spread some mayo on a sandwich!
> >> {WINCE} I hope your finger got better quickly! {sympathetic smile}
> >
> > It did heal pretty quickly, although I went through a lot of Band-Aids
> > during that week. (Even the "waterproof" bandages don't really stand up
> > to handwashing when they're on the tip of a finger.)
> >
> > Edna
>
> And if you are the designated (manual) dishwasher, you learn the sound
> of one hand washing, if not that of one hand clapping.

Rubber gloves.

Edna


---|)--- Edna Huelsenbeck (huelsenbeck@gmailDOTcom) ------------
---|---- Goddess of the ABML Out-of-Practice-Musicians Band -----
--/|---- Member, Brute Squad, Mommy Division --------------------
-| |')-- Provisional Member of the Sisterhood of Mess -----------
--\|/----Official Bard of the Book and Bridle -------------------
|
'
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

Edna wrote:
> In article <886dnatm975LHpfVnZ2dnUVZ_tqtnZ2d DeleteThis @earthlink.com>,
> "m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"
> <"m_thomas[numBksInLastHrldMage]"@earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>>Edna wrote:
> <SNIP>
>>>I did pull out one rose last year, because it looked really sad, and was
>>>occupying the only sunny spot in the front yard (I planted irises and
>>>lilies instead). I discovered WHY it looked so sad: when we dug up the
>>>flower bed, we found that whoever planted the rose bush simply made a
>>>little hole in the clay and stuck it in. We ended up digging out the
>>>entire bed and putting actual dirt into it.
>>
>>Clay clay? Not just clay-like, compact soil? Whoa.
>>Someone assigned the resentful teenage kid to plant the
>>rosebush? That's rose-icide, that is.
>
> It looks like actual clay to me. Hard as a rock when it's dry, slippery
> when wet.

My soil is like that, and I don't think it is clay-clay.
Though mine is merely heavy when wet, not actually slippery.
Perhaps mine is the next step up from real clay. I
completely sympathize on the hard-as-a-rock when dry. To
plant plants between April and November I have to use the
scrape and wet method. Scrape a little shallow bit, fill
with water, wait for water to loosen soil, scrape more,
water, scrape... I tend to spend 10 minutes at it, then quit
for a few hours, then return to it, then quit... I don't
plant much during dry weather.

And I have to be feeling *very* inspired to plant anything
sizeable, since that requires a big hole.

>>I've got fairly clay-like soil. I amend a lot when I put in
>>a new plant, and mulch.
>>
>>I dream of having one of those "Sunset Magazine California
>>Gardens" type yards, one day. Mounds of colorful,
>>drought-tolerant, cottage-garden-y plants gracefully blowing
>>in the breeze in all directions.
>>
>>One day a long, back-breaking distance away. :>
>
> Wouldn't that be nice? I'm working on one corner at a time. (Don't look
> in my back yard right now.)

I do the same thing. Contemplating the whole yard just
makes me despair, so I work at it in little bits. Edges,
mostly.

--
Megan
Journeyperson Dancing Barbarian
Keeper o' the FAQ: http://home.earthlink.net/~m_thomas3/abml/
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

Edna wrote:
>Megan wrote:
>> Edna wrote:
> <SNIP>
>> > I did pull out one rose last year, because it looked really sad,
>> > and was
>> > occupying the only sunny spot in the front yard (I planted irises
>> > and
>> > lilies instead). I discovered WHY it looked so sad: when we dug
>> > up the
>> > flower bed, we found that whoever planted the rose bush simply
>> > made a
>> > little hole in the clay and stuck it in. We ended up digging out
>> > the
>> > entire bed and putting actual dirt into it.
>>
>> Clay clay? Not just clay-like, compact soil? Whoa.
>> Someone assigned the resentful teenage kid to plant the
>> rosebush? That's rose-icide, that is.
>
> It looks like actual clay to me. Hard as a rock when it's dry,
> slippery
> when wet.

Yup, good old fashioned clay. That's what's about 6" down in my
entire lot. Just 6" of goodish dirt and then clay. We're doing a lot
of digging and roto-tilling. And mulching.


>> I've got fairly clay-like soil. I amend a lot when I put in
>> a new plant, and mulch.
>>
>> I dream of having one of those "Sunset Magazine California
>> Gardens" type yards, one day. Mounds of colorful,
>> drought-tolerant, cottage-garden-y plants gracefully blowing
>> in the breeze in all directions.
>>
>> One day a long, back-breaking distance away. :>
>
> Wouldn't that be nice? I'm working on one corner at a time. (Don't
> look
> in my back yard right now.)

We've been doing the same for 5 years now. Most of the front is
done - except now I have to dig up all the bulbs and separate them.

The back yard... that's a whole 'nother story. Particularly since we
lost two 60-70 foot tall trees to high winds in March.

--
Purrt the ghatta
Smitten Kitten
Part-time gryphon
Disciple to the Goddess of Chocolate
Owner of a full Pedant's licenc/se
Goddess of Impertinence
Snikkrish the Tearer
Carpe Bean
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch! 

Purrt wrote:

> Edna wrote:
>
>> Megan wrote:
>> <SNIP>
>>> Clay clay? Not just clay-like, compact soil? Whoa.
>>> Someone assigned the resentful teenage kid to plant
>>> the rosebush? That's rose-icide, that is.
>>
>> It looks like actual clay to me. Hard as a rock when
>> it's dry, slippery when wet.
>
> Yup, good old fashioned clay. That's what's about 6"
> down in my entire lot. Just 6" of goodish dirt and then
> clay. We're doing a lot of digging and roto-tilling.
> And mulching.

I've thought of roto-tilling. But I'd have to plant
immediately whatever got tilled, and I don't buy plants in
big groups.

Doubt I could fit a roto-tiller in my car, anyway. Though,
hey, if you got one into your Miata...

<snip>
>>> I dream of having one of those "Sunset Magazine
>>> California Gardens" type yards, one day. Mounds of
>>> colorful, drought-tolerant, cottage-garden-y plants
>>> gracefully blowing in the breeze in all directions.
>>>
>>> One day a long, back-breaking distance away. :>
>>
>> Wouldn't that be nice? I'm working on one corner at a
>> time. (Don't look in my back yard right now.)
>
> We've been doing the same for 5 years now. Most of the
> front is done - except now I have to dig up all the bulbs
> and separate them.

My front yard is actually tolerable; the prior owners didn't
let it deteriorate to "Yard a la Vacant Lot" they way they
did the back. I'm just trying to de-lawn it, since lawns
aren't appropriate for California weather.

Errr. And I have plants in front, that are bulb-based, but
I'm a bit hazy on care-for-bulbs. I suspect some kind of
digging and splitting is probably called for... just not
sure how to do it. Or where to put any spare bulbs that
result from the process. Or when to do it. (Winter?
Spring? After blooming? Before?)

Must Google sometime. In all my spare time.

> The back yard... that's a whole 'nother story.
> Particularly since we lost two 60-70 foot tall trees to
> high winds in March.

Whoops. I hope they didn't land on anything you actually liked!

--
Megan
Journeyperson Dancing Barbarian
Keeper o' the FAQ: http://home.earthlink.net/~m_thomas3/abml/
 >> Stay informed about: Ouch!