I have cold finger. Not now, exactly, but a couple days ago I got really cold waiting for Mazie to arrive home on the bus. I thought, "I should've worn more clothing," but that's it. By the time Mazie had arrived and we got back inside, my middle finger was dead white above the middle knuckle and getting numb.
Now, people, this was not frostbite weather. I quickly searched "middle finger white and numb," and - can you believe it - I got results! Word for word! It turns out that my symptoms match something called Raynaud's Syndrome - a mild malady that "attacks" when provoked either by cold or emotional stress. The bus has been reason for emotional stress in the past, but I daresay the onset of this kooky quirk of physiology was due to cold.
Raynaud's Syndrome is rarely serious and usually just requires taking some preventive measures so that you don't get cold extremities. There's no firm consensus on what ultimately makes it happen, but the proximate explanation is that our bodies naturally shunt some blood away from our skin when we're cold so that we conserve heat. In people with Raynaud's, the vessels occasionally collapse when this happens, leaving fingers, toes, ears, and nose without circulation or oxygen. You should warm up aggressively when it happens, and when you do the symptoms disappear.
My sole bout with White Finger, as I'm calling it, was no emergency. It lasted only about four minutes and it hasn't happened since that first time. But it sure was weird...and interesting!
Now for cold feet. I am letting people know that I started a blog because it seems the more the merrier. But the more people who check what I'm writing, the more opportunity I have to offend somebody. So...in advance...if I offend you, I'm so sorry. The best I can do is tell the truth in love. But if you have something you want to add or even if you want to say "Hey!," I welcome your comments.
Finally, I made these purple things for my nieces. They were intended to play on the Warrior Princess vernacular, but I can't think of what to call them. Obviously, they're more than just leg warmers. Fur legs? Warrior warmers? Go-go fluffs? A good name would really help these, but I can't think of one.
All the best!
2 comments:
So it's very strange, but you and I were Browns together once, so it's not impossible... I was just thinking about how I really needed something to warm my shins. It's been super cold in SF (30s at night) and we don't have great heating here. I work in the front room which is way too far away from the living room down a big high hall to get any heat. Any I can keep my neck and torso warm with a sweater. I can keep my head warm with a hat. I can keep feet warm with slippers. But my shins stay cold! Moral of the story: you are a genius AND I want some pink fluffy shin warmers too!
Calf gauntlets?
Post a Comment