Work Hazards: On the Need (nay, Command!) to Relax

Two weeks ago, into the flow of it all, I was writing away as fast as I could on a Saturday afternoon when I stopped to take stock. This is what I noticed: The left side of my left hand had gone numb.

But why waste a good writing day when you have it, right? I shook it off (to quote the words of a well-known billionaire pop singer a few years back) and carried on (to quote the words of the entire population of the British Isles in similar circumstances). An hour or two later, I had no more sensation in my left pinky finger and the one next to it. (Do we have a word for that finger? We must. What is that word?)

Anyway. On the following Monday, I received the command to take it easy from my orthopedist, who also told me I had probably pinched a nerve at the left-side crux of my neck, which branches all the way down the left arm and controls sensation in those two fingers. Too much repetitive motion, the likely culprit in this scenario.

I asked about doing push-ups in the near future. She was skeptical. It made me happy.

When I touch the skin of the two fingers in question, it is the skin of an iguana, or what I imagine to be the skin of an iguana. See photo below, which I took in Tulum and believe to be that of an iguana.

Opportunity knocks, as all iguanas casting a long shadow over a rock in the sun happen to know. I will now relax.

Given current circumstances, I have also decided to learn to use the Substack video option. As mentioned in the video, the top photo here is from a lunch with my friend, Mexican poet and essayist Armando González Torres. We took several shots like this for the blog post, “Shelf-Stable Chocolate,” now live on Third Place Cafe Stories.

(Am I getting any better at this self-promotion stuff? You do not have to answer this question. You do not have to answer it at all.)

And for the final adventure of the month, please take a gander at the display the Cafe Lusso in Mexico City arranged with the QR-coded cards for the blog, and the pastry they so kindly offered me. It had Bailey’s inside.

Things are looking up. Seriously looking up.

This week’s blog post: You might think you’re home, but you’re really far from it. Here’s the link: Third Place Cafe Stories