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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, johnR... wow, glad to hear...
and say:
HAPPY 4O th...
:)
god bless...
:)
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, ellingwood... wow, sure hope you healed well after THAT...
oh my... :(
take care all...
god bless...
:)
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johnr9q
Sport climber
Sacramento, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 6, 2010 - 11:55am PT
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Quote from RMSUSA:
"Holy crap! That's a huge amount of money to spend for a thumb! Ambulances, helicopters, chasing rangers, searches, hours long operations. I no longer wonder how come insurance costs so much."
But the alternative is to just throw the thumb away and live life without a thumb? (I guess you would need to determine the monitary value of a thumb) Maybe we need a health board that would make decisions on issues such as mine and consider age, activity level etc to determine if you could get certain procedures? Maybe if you're fat, smoke, drink excessively, or engage in dangerious sports (Like climbing) you would be denied certain medical procedures?
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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Here's a funny story for ya:
When I was 14, I blew the tips of both my thumb and the finger next to it off with explosives. I'm still not sure which is more dangerous, serious alpine climbing, or explosives as a hobby. This all happened a few years before Kennedy was shot; and way before 911.
In any case, I was helping an old farmer get rid of a big rock in his field.
Highly friction sensitive explosives are really dangerous to fool around with, and I was being a little too careless that day. After I drilled the hole, by hand , in the granite rock. I proceeded to load the hole with pretty (powerful stuff). It was a real hot day and the powdered rock in the hole mixed with the explosive, making it much more friction sensitive.
It all happened in a milli-second-- lucky I didn't have my dumb ass head over the hole.
I walked and ran about a mile, back to my home. I wanted to take the trolly to the hospital, but my sister panicked and called the cops.
If this incident had happened today, I would have had FBI agents at my house, and a swat team. How times have changed.
After the explosives hobby ended, ( my mother put an end to that by throwing all my stuff out), I went from making cannons etc. to pretty serious gun making.
A few years later, around 17, I discovered rock climbing and kind of lost interest in the other, perhaps more dangerous hobbies.
Eight years after I blew my fingertips off, I did the Nose with George Myers ( around 1972).
So I guess the message in this story is you will be back up there--fingertips or not!
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mariaji
Social climber
Tucson, AZ
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Nov 10, 2010 - 10:22pm PT
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Never grab the wires!
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Nov 12, 2010 - 06:27am PT
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hey there say, SteveA and all.... wow, what a young life! say, glad your mom was looking after you, from that incident...
nice success as to the climb, thanks for the share...
my ex-son-law had his top of finger cut off from farmworking machine... i reckon they either couldn't find it, or it couldn't get put back on... this was about 17? years ago, or 15?--not sure...
well, oddly so, he said if the finger would have been cut off one 8th? of an inch, or "something" tiny like that, then he would have been given some kind of "?compensation" or whatever it is called for such injury-income or disability-help??? but he was "off" by that much, he kind of joked on how he "missed out"--but he was sure glad it was not worse, in truth...
he's a hard worker, and always has been since his early youth...
he uses the finger for a good tease and such, for the young kids, you know, like:
you better get off the phone.. or you better get off that video game--see what happened to my finger...
you know, that kind of stuff... ;)
ahhh, daddy's and their ways...
:)
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Nov 12, 2010 - 12:22pm PT
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John R, way to hang in there and thumb your nose at the (near) loss. Happy climbing!
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johnr9q
Sport climber
Sacramento, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 17, 2010 - 11:49pm PT
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I got the pins (securing the bones) out Monday but doctor said to wear my brace for two more weeks. I will be able to start physical therapy after that so should be back climbing and mountain biking in a month or so (I am hoping). I have some pictures that were taken in the hospital before the thumb was reattached. They are pretty graphic so I am reluctant to post them.
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labrat
Trad climber
Nevada City, CA
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Nov 18, 2010 - 12:24am PT
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Post them. We will get over it! Is it worse than the pictures in the book one move too many?
Erik
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johnr9q
Sport climber
Sacramento, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 18, 2011 - 10:54am PT
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Thought a picture might explain the injury best. I am now doing great. Back to climbing and mountain biking. Not much feeling in the thumb and strength isn't real good but, it turns out you don't need your thumb much in sport climbing. Cliping and uncliping bolts with my left hand, however, is the bigest problem.
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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Feb 18, 2011 - 10:58am PT
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That's certainly one way to quit crimping and practice your open grip. ;-) I'm glad you're healing well. The pictures are a little icky (OK, a lot) but really fascinating too. Thanks for posting them.
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High Fructose Corn Spirit
Gym climber
Full Silos of Iowa
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Feb 18, 2011 - 11:19am PT
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John, that's incredible! What an experience, I can only imagine. Would love to see a picture of the healing today, progress so far, if you like. Hip hip hurray! for today's medical technology. See you out in the hills!
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Niels
climber
Denmark
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Feb 18, 2011 - 11:35am PT
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John,
Happy to hear that your thumb was re-attached successfully and great to hear that you're back climbing.
I consider this to be money well spent by the health insurance system.
Niels Riegels
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johnr9q
Sport climber
Sacramento, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 18, 2011 - 08:30pm PT
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I just took these pictures so you can see that everything is almost totally healed. The nail is slowly growing back but that will take awhile
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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Feb 18, 2011 - 08:31pm PT
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Absolutely stunning. Kudos to your doc!
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Brandon-
climber
Done With Tobacco
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Feb 18, 2011 - 08:37pm PT
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I called my Mom while my thumb was being torn off!!!!!
GNAR!
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Feb 18, 2011 - 08:40pm PT
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You'll be hitchhiking in no time! truly amazing.
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D.Eubanks
climber
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Feb 18, 2011 - 08:49pm PT
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Glad for ya John.
Looks like the work of a very good surgeon.
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High Fructose Corn Spirit
Gym climber
Full Silos of Iowa
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Feb 18, 2011 - 09:30pm PT
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A medical tour de force, for sure!
Hope you get all articulation, strength and feelings back.
Your thread's reminded me to mind ALL my appendages while climbing.
Thanks John.
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