Wednesday 17 April 2002

Pic of the day: I love the Dvorak keyboard. Or perhaps I just ran out of stickers.

Out of hand II

Women, how would you like a job that left you unable to speak for the rest of the day, and much of the weekend too? Where every word came at the expense of ever growing pain, should you choose to break the silence?

Men, how would you like a job that left you unable to drive your car in your own free time, unless you were willing to suffer pain and numbness that grew ever worse until you parked your car for an unknown length of time?

Newlyweds, how would you feel about gradually losing your ability for sexual intercourse, as each attempt grew steadily shorter and more painful?

***

My computer is where I communicate - I hardly ever say a word outside my workplace, except the polite "Hello" and "Thank you". My friends live far away and often in weird time zones, and I rely on my typing skills to keep in touch with them. Touch typing, as it were.

My computer is where I go places. I keep learning about this world and the people in it. And not least, it is where I let them meet me. In addition to this, there are the other worlds of human imaginations.

My computer is not just where I have fun, it is also where I create. To me, what makes life in the physical world meaningful is what we can create and what we can share with others. Apart from that, we might as well sit down and meditate while waiting for the afterlife to begin.

Do you think I will set all this aside for the sake of my job? For a job that has no value to me except as a way to pay my bills? Think again.

I have been typing since around the age of 5. I am not about to stop now.

***

Today I went to see the doctor. The doctor asked me various questions, among them where I worked. I refused to tell him. (I've promised not to write about my job, but I think you can infer from this what you need to know.) Anyway, he did not recommend those removable casts that keep the wrist immobile. On the contrary, regularly stretching the wrist was his suggestion. He wanted to give me a painkiller that also reduces inflamation, but then reconsidered when I brought up my acid reflux problem. The hospital had warned me not to take acetylsalisylic acid, which I have reluctantly adhered to. It is otherwise supposed to be a very healthy thing to eat in small quantities. The doctor conceded that I might take some paracetamol, and recommended some physiotherapy.

I don't usually take painkillers, but preventing needless inflamation of the tendons seems like a good idea.

***

I am training myself on the Dvorak keyboard today. I have put stickers on the keycaps. Right now it is worse than QWERTY, but it has the potential to greatly reduce the strain of typing in English, which is what I use the most.

A desperate measure for desperate times.