One Hand Speaks

As much as I love the idea of wearing watches, bracelets, and rings (and other male accessories for the hand) I struggle with it a bit. I spend a fair amount of time viewing and investigating how men wear jewelry on the hand and wrist. We see all types, styles, and flavors from post-modern minimalist to I-wear-a-ring-on-each-finger underground off mainstream sub-culture guy. As much as I love watches and rings, I do not wear them as much as I would like. This is a one-handed paradox for me....

"What is it like having one hand?" It is not often I am directly asked this question. But it had been asked with sincere intention. Most of the time I get smaller parts of this type of question. Mostly people want to know what it is like doing a specific activity, having a certain experience, or about the quality of unique aspects of a one-handed life. People are generally curious about how I drive a car, tie my shoes, or ride a bicycle. Sometimes people want to know what it is like trying...

It is the easy things in life I tend to find to be more difficult. This has been my one-handed perspective for quite some time. Over the course of life I started to notice this quality in myself and the opposite in others. One of the most difficult activities I struggle with is opening bottled water. This is because I cannot hold it with one hand and twist open the cap with the other hand. I usually have to squeeze it between my knees to hold it or hold it against my body with my short arm....

I live a non-bionic life and have no interest in having a bionic hand. I like the way I was born and enjoy my one-handed life. Over the past couple of weeks I have had many people on social media send me links of bionic people doing bionic things with their bionic body parts. I have noticed a trend in the mainstream of all things bionic. There are great people doing great things with their bio-mechanical technology. I think this is a very cool and hip thing. However, it is not my thing. I...

When people hurt their hands or arms they tend to have a different perspective of my one-handed life. As a result they also have a different type of interaction with me. Recently I had a couple of interactions that inspired this podcast. One is my mother's very recent rotator cuff surgery. Another was with a co-worker who broke their arm last week. Speaking with them reminded me of how people consider my life because theirs has taken on the temporary use of only one of their arms or hands....

I was born and raised in a time when computers were not such a huge part of our culture and lifestyle. I like to say I was born analog. But currently, I live in a digital world. Most of my adult life has been spent on a computer, specifically an Apple computer. I have earned most of my money as a professional artist as a graphic designer and illustrator. Or as I like to say, "as a digital sculptor". I have been using a Macintosh computer as a professional for over twenty three years. Way...

Driving with one hand has some real funny, weird, and unique qualities. One interesting aspect is the relationship between what hand I am missing and the side of the car we drive from in the United States. I am fortunate to be missing my left hand driving on the left side of the car here in the United States. This means I can use my right hand to shift gears on my manual transmission. If I lived in Britain, driving a stick shift vehicle would be a bit more challenging. Yet, some things would...

Life with one hand is a life of being stared at as a person. In a real why I have spent my entire life on stage. Or at least it sure has felt like this to me most of my life. It took me a long time to realize this is one of the many benefits to living life with one hand. I have some very strong memories of the feeling of being stared at as a young child. Those experiences have stayed with me my entire life. The benefit of this is I am very comfortable being watched, looked at, and being...

I have been working at the same job for the past twenty years. I do not know how common this is anymore in our current times, but I have done it. And to take it to the extreme, I have worked in the same city in the same building in the same department and pretty much with the same person for those twenty years. People have come and gone in my department and in my small group, yet, I have worked directly with the same person for the past eighteen years. It is an interesting experience to...

My left foot does a lot for me. Since I do not have a left hand, my left foot has has learned to take the place of my left hand when needed. Over the course of my life my left foot has become very dexterous, agile, and adroit. I can do a lot with my foot that people do not expect. Additionally, my grip with my toes is mighty strong. So is my pinching power. As an artist and a sculptor I have spent a great deal of time crafting and building things. On many occasion you could find me in bare...

I must say I learned a lot about myself breaking both my collarbones. Thankfully, It did not happen at the same time. But I did break them in back-to-back or consecutive years. Over the course of my life I have always feared breaking my right wrist or hand and in a real way I still do. However, I must say that breaking my collarbones taught me so much about myself and my one-handed life. Especially breaking my right collarbone. I had no idea the clavicle did not much. I guess we do not truly...

People I have known for long periods of time do forget I do not have two hands. This is not the same as people I do not know not noticing I do not have two hands. The flavor of the experience of close friends forgetting about my one-handedness has a very special taste all on it's own. It most cases it can be real funny the things they say. But for me, it is the expression on their face that does it for me. These moments do not come up as much as other people not noticing I only have one...

This is just a quick slice of my life regarding my current situation. Truly an update as to what is going on in my life in 2019. In podcast #088 I talked about how this was "The Transition Year" for me. It is certainly unfolding in that manner. Right at the end of the first month of 2019 I am right smack dab in the middle of all kinds of change and transition. I am looking at starting a new job, teaching Aikido again and traveling to do Aikido, and my mother and I are looking for a new...

"Dogs attack me because I have one hand?" I had to repeat the question back to my house-mate because it sounded so odd to me. He said this to me after a long conversation we were having about my unbelievable history of dog attacks, dog chases, and number of times I have actually been bitten by dogs. I had told him about many of my experiences in the past, but it was not until we started to live together that he truly noticed how dogs reacted and responded to me. He is a "dog person" and...

Today I gave a safety presentation at my job. Working for the Bureau of Reclamation as a Federal Employee has a number of requirements. One of which is safety training. At first it was a bit difficult to decide on the topic. We do these every month and we often start to hear the same things over and over. My goal was to do something different. I decided on the topic of foot safety and safety shoes. Part of my decision was based on my love of shoes. The other part had to do with living a...

I love superheroes! I have loved and admired the idea of superheroes for as long as I can remember. I do not know a time where superheroes were not a part of my life. So much of this was because of how I was raised. My parents raised my two brothers and me on superheroes and science fiction. We had a family culture around these two subjects. I have so many great memories watching TV and going to the movies with my family. But it was the idea of what a superhero meant to me as a young...

I guess every year is a transition year in one form or another. The idea of transition has been in my thoughts for the past couple of weeks. Ringing in the new year can do that to us at times. We think about the past year while considering what the new year will bring. Many people make their lists of resolutions as a tradition. In a real way we can all look at that as a transition. I have never been a fan of making resolutions. And when asked I usually say, "I do not make resolutions." For...

One of the sweetest and most precious gifts I have every received for Christmas was given to me by one of my very young martial art students. I had great teens and kids classes at Three Shapes Aikido for the ten years I operated the dojo. Over the years I have acquired so many great memories of the all funny, sweet, and odd-ball things kids say and do. Christmas was always a special time at my Aikido school. Even though I am a devoted Buddhist I support the spirit of Christmas. We had...

I spend a lot of time interacting with children of all ages. Mostly they are the ones who initiate the conversation with their bold and inquisitive questions. At the same time, I am a pretty open and talkative person. Put these two things together and some really fun and meaningful conversations can arise. After living a lifetime with one hand I have noticed patterns in the questions kids ask me about my one-handed life. One question that comes up a lot with kids is, "How do you do things...

This is a short podcast about the differences in how adults and children view me. More specifically it is about the perception adults have in regards to how I interact with child as a one-handed person. This is just a subtle pattern I have noticed over time and it is something I wanted to share. This is just a slice of my one-handed life. Thanks for listening! I invite you to share this podcast, offer a comment, or leave some feedback. Show Notes: The difference in how children and adults...