Born Without...

I know what I am about to write may tick off some extreme feminists. But, it's my opinion, so I am not sorry. :) I believe that there are some things that are innately feminine and masculine. That's not to say that both genders may possess the same qualities but overall, there are some things that are just born into us. For instance, I believe that females are born with nurturing, caring, and loving abilities that make for a great mother (like mine!). Whereas males are born with the "fix-it" attitude, whether it be toys, electronics, or problems, they try and "fix-it."

That being said, I think I was born without one specific thing that I think all girls are born with. The ability to paint nails. I don't have that skill. No matter how hard I try, it always turns out the same...the top part of my finger is painted...skin, nail, cuticle, and most of the time knuckle. Kalar's sister Corean found out about my lack of skill last Friday. (By the way, for the newbies, Kalar is my boyfriend...the one I moved to Minnesnowta for.) My lack of talent in that area is so bad that I have developed a method for the 3 or 4 times a year I do paint my nails. I make sure I do it before bed. I let them dry and then in the morning shower, I scrape off the paint that covers my skin. Mission accomplished, beautifully painted nails for work that day and no one is the wiser.

On Friday, the day before Valentines Day, Corean and I were visiting Cindy in the hospital. While the t.v. show F.R.I.E.N.D.S was on (BEST SHOW EVER!) Corean decided she wanted her nails painted and she requested I paint them for her and in turn, she would paint mine. As I internally freaked out, I somehow calmly said, "Sure." I grabbed a towel to put in my lap as I sat down and faced her. We picked out a nice dark red color. I grabbed her hand, and began. With every mistake, I took my fingernail and tried to scrape off the wet color on her skin. By the time I was done, not only did Corean have the red all over her hands, but somehow I managed to get it all over my hands, fingers, palms, knuckles, back of my hand, etc. I looked at Corean and could tell she was confused at my lack of painting abilities. I told her about my absence of skill with the brush. I apologized and explained that I probably should have warned her ahead of time. She said she noticed what I was doing but didn't have the heart to ask me...she said she could see how hard I was concentrating. When it was her turn to paint my nails, she did it perfectly. Point proven...painting nails is something that gals are born with. Well, all gals except me! Now I know what you are thinking, practice makes perfect. Well let me put it to you this way, I am 29 and have been trying to paint my fingers and toes since I could hold a paint brush. You would think I would have developed that skill by now.

***By the way, Cindy is doing extremely well! She was able to go home for a couple hours this past Saturday and Sunday. The doctors say they don't want her to get too comfortable at the hospital. They wanted to remind her what she was working towards. She said she remembered most of the house, but a lot of it she didn't. The longer she was there, the more familiar it became. She is still working on a lot of her motor skills and relearning to write and tie her shoes. She is just a miracle!