So life deals some rough hands sometimes (Bad Pun). I got up to leave for three days on the river yesterday, but as I had played bass for a function until later than I'd planned the night before, I decided to catch another 40 winks. When I awoke again, my bipolar daughter was up, in a bad place, and soon had broken the bathroom mirror. As the trigger was that I had failed to get to the laundromat to do the laundry the day before while packing, I drove over and put in the loads of clothes. When I returned to the house, My wife and daughter were outside, so I went in to begin cleanup. I used work gloves to remove a few large pieces of glass that had fallen to the sink, but then I had to use the toilet and removed the gloves. When I finished I noticed that the large sections of glass still fastened to the wall were starting to lean out, and I foolishly grabbed one with my ungloved right hand to brace it. The largest piece then fell, and came across the first tow fingers just above the knuckle, and cut nearly to the bone and nearly all the knuckle on my index finger, and flapped a pretty good chunk on the second finger. Urgent care soaked the wounds for ab9out an hour, then x rayed, and then put 5 stitches in the smaller cut and a few more than that in the index cut, with the PA saying she would have sewed more but the piece she needed to sew was gone. Then they splinted the two fingers, wrapped them in gauze and some new external dressing that sticks to itself, and sent me off to a hand specialist, as the PA was concerned about tendon damage. he hand specialist did not think there tendon was involved because I could still move everything, albeit slowly and painfully, rebandaged after bending the splint and separated the fingers in the bandaging. Then came the bad news, low activity until followup on Mo0nday, get used to the splint as it will be there for a month, and fingers must remain dry, hand in a plastic bag for showering. And there is no way I can hold a flyrod with my right hand. While I am a half-assed caster with my left hand, my recollection is that Kings and Cohos are two handed fish. So as it now stands I may be able t get out around then same time as Clint. This really sux as I bought a darkside ticket for 9 months instead of a shotgun, not that I would be using that too much with a gimp index finger. So later today, I'll find out if I can operate the vise and tie flies, and see if I can play my bass with my third finger, guitar is out of the question, and may be for good depending on how things heal. And banjo is certainly done unless this comes back 100%, those thumb index middle rolls don't work well with no index, although Jerry Garcia played pretty good banjo with thumb index ring after losing the middle in an axe accident. BOO HOO! ( On the brigh side , if it had come out further it could have cut the wrist, chance to bled out or totally lose the hand function, or it could have been the left hand, and I'd ben shopping for a pedal steel if I want to keep playing.
I may see some of you as I ordered a XMas present in Pulaski, and I will have to go up and get it when they call, but won't be wearing waders for a while.