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Sunday, January 27, 2013

Left in a Right World

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Right?
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Left?








Yes, I am left in a right world. I am a lefty. I and other lefties are the only ones in our right minds, you know. And that is because the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body.

Actually I am ambidextrous with many things and maybe that is because I play piano? It is the right hand that usually play the melody and the left is mainly accompaniment. I iron right handed, bat right handed when playing softball. Some things I can do with either hand.

I do write with the left hand, and was fortunate to learn to lay my paper correctly so that I do not write upside down as I see so many lefties do. That looks really awkward to me. But with a little practice I could write in mirror image as that the normal reverse of writing right handed. Righties write from left to right. So I would write from right to left and it takes a mirror to read it. Is that weird?

But this is a right handed world. Everything used to be made for right handed work, though today you can find many things made for lefties. Except, that I learned to adapt to right handed things, using my left hand. And now, to try to use the same thing made for a lefty does not work. Non-electric can openers are one example. I am able to turn the handle with my right hand as it simply does not work any other way. The computer mouse -- I have tried switching the buttons and using it with left hand. Doesn't work for me. Again, it may be the piano training.

I do require a left handed scissors and especially a sewing shears. I can sometimes use a scissors that has equal size finger holes that aren't angled but they are harder to cut with, plus wears a grove in my thumb.

I crochet left handed, but learned knitting right handed. Surprisingly, when I watch right handed people knit, the way I do it goes much faster than they do it. I do hold the right needle more still and make the left needle move more.

Trying to think of other right hand only things and not coming up with much right now. One thing is starting the push mower. The cord can only be pulled with the right hand while the left holds the handles together. Keys in the ignition - right hand only.

These are just some of the examples. If any of you are lefties, leave me a comment on other examples, or how you have adapted or what has complicated your life because of it.

3 comments:

  1. I too am ambidextrious, I think mine is from being hit in the had in Kindergarden when I touched things with my left hand. When I am upset I go back to left hand.

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  2. I am also left handed. When I was young, someone gave me some left handed scissors, but I had already learned to cut with right handed scissors (in my left hand), and I could never make the left handed scissors work. The angle I have to hold them is a little different, so it was easier for me just to use the right handed scissors. I do have to find ones that don't have too pronounced of an angle in the handles. I do a lot of things right handed, just because it was easier in school to do things like sports right handed, rather than have to figure out the left handed way and be different. But I am not good at sports things, so that may be part of the problem. I crochet and knit lefthanded. The person who taught me to knit sat in front of me, and I kind of mirrored her, but I don't know that I do it right. I onlu knit dishrags anyway, so it doesn't matter, they work. lol

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the comments. It is always interesting to hear of your experiences with being a 'southpaw'. I didn't mention that word in my original post. I wonder where that word comes from. We don't call right handed people 'northpaws'.

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