Saddle Up Pinky

Over winter break, I went to my boyfriend's home.  While there, he thought it would be a good idea to go horseback riding.  Since I had never done it, I was all for it.  However, at one moment, the horse I was riding spooked, and I jammed my pinky on the horn of the saddle.  I know, right now you're thinking, "Poor Rita."  If you're not, you should be.  After subtle whining to several family members, I got it checked out to discover it was in fact sprained.  YES!  I was really hoping there was reason for my wailing.

When we needed a topic for this blog project, I struggled to come up with ideas.  I've always wished I was left-handed, and since my right pinky was injured, it only seemed appropriate to try the left handed approach.  After weeks of left-hand implementation-ness, I tried to brush my teeth with my right hand.  That gosh darn pinky is still sore!  My goodness.  What will it take. 

Ankle Deep in Facts

I'm not going to name names or point fingers, but I've had to deal with problems.  For one, I've vowed that I'm going to use my right hand to write notes in a particular class.  Okay, I will name the class at least:  communication theory.  My gosh, does the professor talk fast and write even faster.  His policy of zero computer use really puts me in a pickle.  For pure academic reason, I need to be right-handed in that class, or my gpa may suffer tremendously.  However, I have the brushing of the teeth and eating with the left hand down to an art. 

I've become even more observant of people who are left handed.  Right now I see a girl with a cup on coffee on the table to the right of her computer, aha!, she must be right-handed.  At the same time, I glance over to see a man holding a pen with his left hand, but he just drank coffee with his right, tricky.  It may seen that I am observing people's actions a little too closely, but what they don't know can't hurt them, right?  Accordingly to an online source, only 10-15% of people are left-handed.  Why is that?   Since there are basically only two options of orientation (right or left handed) why are the statistics not 50/50?  We live in a world that just does not make sense.

History regarding this left-handedness:

In the late 1890's, left handed people got the nickname of southpaw.  Most baseball fields were laid out where the pitcher is facing west and the batter is facing east, so the sun wouldn't be in the batter's eyes.  When a left-handed pitcher threw a ball, is was with his arm that was toward the south, hence, "southpaw."

Some cultures strapped their children's left arms to their cradle board, and this caused most infants to become right-handed.  In many cases infants were forced to use their right hand.  I believe I am one of them.

How interesting is it that people were restrained from using the left hand.  Maybe, just maybe, I will march over to the man holding his pen in his left hand and force him to put it in his right hand.  Second thought, I will restrain myself.

Minor Debachels

I run track for NMU.  This weekend we had a meet down at Stevens Point, Wisconsin.  Because of the small indoor track facility, the distance running team was encouraged to warm up for the race outside.  I grabbed my ipod touch and headed outside with my teammate Chelsea.  Without thinking, I put my ipod touch armband on my left arm.  "Shoot."  I proceeded to take if off the left arm and put it on my right arm.  It was a weird feeling.  After that decision, I realized the ipod touch is designed for the right handed individual!  One has to hold and slide this bar from left to right.  Not an easy task especially while running. 

One more item that I've really noticed being designed for the right-handed individual is a floss container.  Try to remove floss from the spool container with your left hand.  Yeah, that's what I thought, not an easy task.  Flossing daily was one of my new year's resolutions, so I'm not going to stray from it simply because the retrieval of floss is now more difficult.  From running with an ipod to flossing teeth, I am definitely realizing that this left handed business is harder than I thought.  Give me time, and I'll master it.  Luckily, I have the rest of the semester.

A New Era.

 I'm convinced that as a young child, my mother swiped the crayon I was holding in my left hand only to place it in my right hand.  I am.  To most, it's beyond ridiculous that I WANT to be left-handed because the world is designed for the right-handed individual.  I all too often end up doing simple tasks the hard way.  For that reason, I continue to proclaim my desire to be in the minority.

Let's try out this left-handed business.  My watch is fastened to my right wrist.  It's official . . . I'm doing this.  The morning is over, so everything is downhill from here.  After talking to my suite mate Brittany, I realized this is going to be harder than I initially thought.  "How am I going to do my hair?"  I'm thinking on the days I decide to actually do something with my hair ,some burns may be consequences.  We'll see when that point comes.  For today, I'm going with a pony tail, but even that involves having my hair tie on the right wrist too--weird.  For breakfast, I opt for the usual oatmeal with sugar and cinnamon.  Interestingly enough, the left side of the bowl has more sugar and cinnamon than the right side-- that's annoying.  Luckily, I grabbed a spoon (with the left hand of course), and stirred the living daylights out of the oatmeal to blend it to my standard.  While sitting in English class, I noticed a pasty substance on my left hand... o wait, that's toothpaste yet from since BEFORE breakfast.  This semester is going to be messy... in more ways than one.