DID NOT SEE THAT COMING

 All the signs were there so  maybe I should have seen this coming but I didn't.  

I own some  gnarly looking hands. Prime suspects to be painful but strangely they weren't--till the other day when they lived up to the look. 

My hands suggest that maybe at one time I tried to  pull a fast one on the Mob and had been worked over by some goons. Actually, they are the result of being a klutzy athlete in my early years, then as a caretaker of livestock later on. My horse and the calves beat me up the most. 

However, gnarly looking or not, they have always been quite functional and mostly pain free, my right hand being the best. This week, my good hand slipped over to the dark side. Now it feels ugly also. So far only one finger on the right hand has caved to the pressure but I fear I am on a slippery slope. I brought this on myself.

Don't know if I mentioned it before but my property came with an all concrete, 12 by 16 foot, storm shelter. That metal roof just sits over the concrete one and it was put there at a much later date to match the house roof. 

 It is mostly underground and is over 101 years old according to the date carved in the wall. It has a few troublesome cracks in the concrete so I am not confident enough to use it as a tornado hidy hole. I have pretty much ignored it. However, this year I thought it might make a decent root cellar and since I have a bounty of produce needing stored this year, I decided to spruce it up and use it. 


The walls were down right nasty looking from over 100 years of neglect. So out came the scrub brushes and cans of paint.  Since I was going for cover up and not beauty, I decided to use up some of the left over  paint I had lying around. Thus, I have a white ceiling,floor, three white walls and one blaze orange one.  Everything took 2 coats.  

OK I missed some spots, some areas were too rough or broken to accept paint, my edges are terrible and I ran out of paint during the second coat of orange, but trust me, it does look cleaner. 

All the painting, especially the ceiling over my head took its toll on my body. I've had arthritis in my back and hips for about 15 years but it has been mostly manageable. Boy did I stir up a nest of hornets with the painting. My body protested mightily. It took nightly soaks in steaming hot Epson salts baths to remain mobile. Epson salts is a miracle worker by the way. I would wake up the next day just a little sore but once again ready to go.  

The morning after my final brush stroke, I woke up to a really angry, swollen,  super achy pointy finger on my right hand from gripping the roller and brush. Since it was my least deformed finger, it took me a bit to realize that it was having an arthritic flare up. Son of a gun!!   First time ever for that part of my body. My pinky gets briefly cranky when I mow but that is really a lesser finger and easy to work around. 

Seems the index finger does much more than just point. It handles a good chunk of the computer keyboard, controls the left side of the mouse, the fast forwarding button on the remote. opens soda and dog food cans, guides a knife, works scissors,removes lids and is really handy when blowing your nose,washing your ears or wiping. Who knew??

Our opposable  thumbs may have moved us up and away from the other beasts but it could not have done that with out the index finger's help but it never gets a mention.  A very underrated digit.  

So as with all things age related, I curse-- then adapt. It is ALL better now and that next finger in line has learned some cool new stuff.  The second runner up finger is still a bit awkward but it is trying. It just needed training.

While I am at it, I probably should work on training my left arm and hand to actually do things also.  Out side of a support role, that appendage has always been pretty useless and uncoordinated. It is more or less there just for decoration and to give an allusion of symmetry. Time I put it to work for it never hurts to have backup. 

I did discover a useful tool to help the finger pain. I realized heat helps but I didn't want to be tied to a bowl of hot water. I had things to do. So I broke out a winter favorite that I keep on hand.  They are called Hot Hands and can be bought at Walmart or any hunting supply store. Most hunters or outdoor sorts all ready know about them. 

They are inexpensive, air activated, disposable hand warmers that really work. I normally use them here in Arkansas when hiking in the snow. I slip one inside my gloves and have warm hands on the coldest days. They are also a staple in my winter emergency kit that I keep in my vehicle.

These really gave my poor ole sore finger relief and actually reduced the swelling. I would wrap it around my achy knuckles or just hold it in my hand. They do make larger ones that might work even better.  I could put it down, take care of business and come back an hour or so later and the warmth would crank right back up with just a little shaking of the bag. It is quite reliable and portable. Hope this discovery might help someone with a similar problem of achy hands or maybe just cold ones come winter. 

Do you have tried and true, non-pill methods to combat or prevent arthritic flare ups or are you blessed with the supple hands of a youngster.  

PS, That cantaloupe is still hanging in the tree.