Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Torture

I just about lasted a week, but there's stuff I need to make, so this morning I have started on the bag for my mum. The thumb wasn't too bad while I was knitting, but now I have stopped, Oh Boy!! Can't bend the thumb at all. Have slathered on some pain-killing gel, Voltarol emulgel, this one seems to work the best of all the things I tried. Last night I was wandering around with a huge therapeutic magnet stuck to my thumb. Did it work, no! Is this the end of my knitting career?? We'll see. Typical! I find something I really enjoy and start having visions of having found "my thing" and this happens to scupper it all.

During my no knitting week, I was at the office doodling out a design for the pyjamas, when one of the guys who rents a room from us, Mike, asked what it was. So I told him it was knitted pyjamas. He asked wouldn't that be a bit hot and I replied, no because I was making them out of bamboo. He looked at me a bit strange. So I explained that there is a new yarn around made of bamboo, so he has asked to see some. I shall take it in tomorrow. He then told me about when he was in Hong Kong and watched some scaffolders putting up a bamboo scaffold. Because the bamboo is so light they would literally throw the poles up to each other and catch it one handed. After that he told me about a fast growing bamboo that was used as a torture method. The victim would be tied up above a bed of this fast growing bamboo, and as it grew, it pierced right through the person's body. Nice!!

5 comments:

T said...

That thumb sounds dreadful! Have you seen the doc?

Btw, I managed my first dream about 'the boys' last night, yayyyy! ;)

Seahorse said...

Ouch! Would those support glove things be any good? (I'm sure you've thought of them anyway!).

I reckon that banboo torture thing is an urban myth. You'd either die or thirst/starvation first or it would grow round you, surely!?!

Nina said...

Oh, your thumb sounds like trouble! I'm sending you lots of healing vibes. I recommend reading this recent blog entry of a very experienced knitter: Scroll down to the entry entitled "Hands: You only get one set. If you're lucky."

http://www.samuraiknitter.blogspot.com/

You really should get some additional attention. Don't you have a local "knitter's urgent care"? ;) But seriously, perhaps at this point you need another opinion. I mean, other than the ones we're giving you here, ha-ha.

Have you used arnica? Arnica montana, I believe. (gel, cream)

By the way, it does seem you've been knitting full-speed for quite awhile. Maybe, after *taking a break until your thumb is back to normal*, you could mix it up a bit. You would have more time to do all your favourites, like reading, writing, carpentry...

Oooh, here's some incentive: Sock Wars starts this summer! You *have* to be healed by then!

Not that you wanted a big lecture...

florencemary said...

The thumb problem sounds very depressing. I don't think complete rest is the answer - though 'mixing it up', as Nina suggests, might help? Will speak to my daughter, who's very good on the alternative medicine approach..

Sarah Ditum said...

Oh poor thumb! Is there any way you could vary your knitting technique to take the pressure off it a bit? I'm very bad at cheating when I'm meant to be off the knitting, so I do sympathise.