Revenge of the Lesser Digits

Useful for walking, balancing, climbing, grape smashing, and occasionally hitting computer keys from reclined positions, my toes are nonetheless under-appreciated. Until now.

My weekend was ruined in a great feat (no pun intended) of ironic vengeance. I managed to make it through an exhausting and dangerous week over crumbling sandstone, basalt cliff sides, and criss-crossing of rivers with a host of abrasions and bruises, but no serious injuries. Rejoiced at the final pull of our transect line on Friday and trying to lighten tensions from over-worked field techs, I finished my swathe and waded with enthusiasm into the Virgin River...and tripped on a mud-hidden rock....

The fourth toe on the left measures a mere 40mm, and yet the consequences of a bruised tendon were gargantuan. Walking was unbearable. Out was the run I had planned after work. Out were the semi-technical canyons in Zion planned for the weekend. For all I knew, out was my ability to work.

I spent the weekend moping about in an IBprofun, buddy-taped blur, trying to keep myself distracted by lesser industries. My toe is feeling much better, which is good, but I am bitter at the loss of my second to last weekend in Utah. The experience has given me much thought on the appreciation of digits.

On a serious note though, one of the most important subjects that my mind wondered on this weekend is the nature of friendships in the lifestyle I have chosen. Who I talk to when I'm upset, the nature of friendships from a distance, the nature of acquaintanceship with other transitory folk, the very few people one connects with out of the very many people one meets, and the balance between isolation and independence.