Cast off!

'Tis more than a bit unnerving to watch a doctor go at one's arm with a rotating blade. Somehow, though, despite working with a blade that resembles a pizza cutter, doctors always manage to avoid slicing the patient while removing a cast. I'm happy to report that, while the left arm is not perfectly straight (as the doctor forewarned me), it's probably straight enough not to need to be hidden with a long sleeve. The arm does look a bit like a snake shedding its skin, though--after roughly 5 weeks in a cast, my left arm is shedding bits of dead epidermis all over the apartment, leaving a trail rather like Hansel's and Gretel's breadcrumbs.

To celebrate my newfound freedom, I went home and gave myself a full shower and shampoo (under the watchful eyes of my home attendant). Then came the acid test: In a minor feat of fine and gross motor coordination, I managed to put on pair of pantyhose for the first time since breaking both wrists, thereby proving my readiness to attend a Bar Mitzvah celebration scheduled for this coming Shabbat morning in shul. Finally, Mussaf with a minyan!