After years of participating in Open Studios, I have come to believe the Open Studios Goddess demands a blood sacrifice every year.
In my earliest years, this would usually occur during the framing process while cutting mats, now having lost count of the number of sliced fingers I’ve suffered. These sacrifices of course happened when a new, very sharp Exacto blade had been installed. Nothing but the best for the Goddess! If I managed to NOT bleed on a white mat, I was happy. My left index finger suffered slices on the outside edge while holding a straightedge - that little side pad just hanging over a bit. Not a biggie - just rinse with hydrogen peroxide, goop with a little dab of betadine ointment, and tape it together. Amazing how these things heal! I’m beginning to think my index finger is like a starfish, regenerating a new appendage when needed. I am now extra cautious with my blades (and fingers).
This hasn’t kept the Goddess from extracting blood, though, with sharp glass edges abounding, frayed hanging wires (Boy! Those ends are pokey!), and lethal wood splinters. So okay, this year, I made it through most of the matting process without slicing off a body part. The OS Goddess took note, and waited patiently until I was removing staples from an old frame, lost my grip on the dang staple, and skewered the pad of my thumb with the needle nose pliers. They’re called “needle nose” for a reason. My old tube of betadine ointment is almost gone. Plenty of peroxide and bandaids, though. My sacrifice for this year has been extracted in full.
In my earliest years, this would usually occur during the framing process while cutting mats, now having lost count of the number of sliced fingers I’ve suffered. These sacrifices of course happened when a new, very sharp Exacto blade had been installed. Nothing but the best for the Goddess! If I managed to NOT bleed on a white mat, I was happy. My left index finger suffered slices on the outside edge while holding a straightedge - that little side pad just hanging over a bit. Not a biggie - just rinse with hydrogen peroxide, goop with a little dab of betadine ointment, and tape it together. Amazing how these things heal! I’m beginning to think my index finger is like a starfish, regenerating a new appendage when needed. I am now extra cautious with my blades (and fingers).
This hasn’t kept the Goddess from extracting blood, though, with sharp glass edges abounding, frayed hanging wires (Boy! Those ends are pokey!), and lethal wood splinters. So okay, this year, I made it through most of the matting process without slicing off a body part. The OS Goddess took note, and waited patiently until I was removing staples from an old frame, lost my grip on the dang staple, and skewered the pad of my thumb with the needle nose pliers. They’re called “needle nose” for a reason. My old tube of betadine ointment is almost gone. Plenty of peroxide and bandaids, though. My sacrifice for this year has been extracted in full.
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