Last Friday, on my way to do errands and my produce-room shift at the co-op, I had a totally uncharacteristic accident on my bike and went over the handlebars after braking to stop at a red light. It turns out I had cracked my elbow and I don’t have a lot of rotation-movement in my left wrist. A closed fracture of the radius, it is. Maybe 500 microns long. I’m in a sling right now.

Me in the exam room of Urgent Care

It’s really just an inconvenience, though. I’m lucky that I’m not a construction worker or server or any of the thousands of jobs where this kind of injury would render me useless. It also makes me realize how ableist I usually am and how normal cognitive function kind of assumes able-bodiedness in everyone. I mean, it’s tough to use a zipper with one hand, wash dishes, operate a motor vehicle, etc., but people do it anyway. In a way, I kind of feel spoiled and guilty for bowing out of tasks due to this super-minor injury. I hope it affects my normal mindset, when I’m healed, to consider how I can be less ableist in the future. I’ve broken both my clavicles at different times when I was much younger, but at those times I hadn’t developed the ability to think in terms of privilege and so everything just went back to normal as I healed.

One of my roommates was in a major bike accident over the summer where she was bed-ridden for weeks. Another friend, a long time ago, was in a car accident where a highway girder was lodged inside one of her legs. I’ll be fine in 6 weeks. Meanwhile, I’ll think about ways that I can use my able-bodied privilege for the common good of those who don’t have that luxury.

In other news, I’ve finished tracking for the (double) album that’s been in the works for at least three years: Tensor Tympani! The time spent at home convalescing over the weekend enabled me to finish lyrics and vocals for the two remaining songs, and now all that’s left is some final touch-ups and mastering.