Fore!!

Fran! You're a game girl! Go for it! I am also left handed but the really funny thing is I kick a ball with my right foot! Weird eh? Like all of us lefties, I've had to do many things the wrong way...I really struggled with piano because the melody was always on the wrong hand, Guitar...the same. bat sports were easier of course, but I can't remember having a problem with hockey stick really. Just HATED hockey! My dear Mum tried to teach me to knit left handed a few times but to no avail...my gran showed me right handed, and I got it straight away...Mum was annoyed! Lol! But when I think about it, us lefties do face challenges like that don't we? And guddle through somehow! I don't think teachers realise how tricky it makes some things for us...I don't think WE realise either! Enjoy yourself! :))

Thanks Karen!

This is one thing I’ve always done left-handed – the other is to use my left foot to push down on a spade or fork, don’t know why, I’ve always done it – tried using my right foot, but it feels really awkward.

(Just checked the etymology of “awkward”, seems to come from “turned the wrong way” via “left”. Typical right-handed bias – same in French, gauche = left via “to turn” – compare that with “adroit”, which just means “to the right”. Probably the same in most other languages as well!)

I play guitar left-handed (well, I hold it left-handed, can’t say I actually *play* it!) – my bro is left-handed, and he’d let me plink on his guitar. When I got one of my own, it felt natural to hold it the “wrong” way, so I got the bloke in the shop to re-string it. I shoot left-handed, because when I started, I couldn’t close my left eye and leave my right eye open to sight with; I could close my right eye and leave my left open, so I had to use that eye to sight with. Same with archery; maybe I was used to having my right hand forward and left hand back.

I also fence left-handed, but that was a deliberate choice. I realised that doing everything right-handed only exercised half my body and half my brain, so decided that thee next thing I learned, I’d try to learn left-handed, to give the other side of my body and my brain some exercise. Happened to be fencing, now it feels natural to stand “turned the other way”!

Years ago I had a trapped nerve in my right elbow, and I lost the use of my right hand, it had no strength at all. Then I really appreciated what it is to be southpaw! (although naturally left-handed people grow up with it, I was suddenly landed with it). Was hard even to turn a key in a lock cos it went the wrong way, light switches were on the wrong side of doorways – and try using a old-fashioned tin-opener or opening a tin of sardines or corned beef with the keys provided!!

Mum taught my bro to knit left-handed, though she found it hard; he “purled” where others “plain”; she really struggled with that! Remember once he got the cane at school, across his *left* hand – he put his right hand out but the headmaster wouldn’t believe he was left-handed, so he couldn’t write for days. Glad we’ve moved past that sort of thing.

There are left-handed shops (I can’t understand why ordinary scissors don’t work if you use them left-handed – it’s the same cutting action, after all). Even found a website “leftie frets” for guitar players, showing the chord fingering for left-handers – the usual advice is to use a mirror to reflect the “normal” fingering backwards.

I put “left-handed bias in words”, looking for other languages’ terms for “left” and “right” that translated as “awkward” or “skilful” but got lots of general “left-handed bias”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bias_against_left-handed_people

http://www.anythingleft-handed.co.uk/lefty_language.html

2.August 13th is “Left-Hander’s Day.” - http://facts.randomhistory.com/facts-about-left-handedness.html

oh! Latin "sinister" and "dexter" - how biased is that???

Ooh, well, i can enlighten you about the scissors, they are one thing that is extremely awkward for lefties...because the hole for your thumb is too small if you use your left hand! :))

...usually, not all scissors have different sized finger and thumb holes of course. I buy ones that don't.

...also, come to think of it, the blade is facing away from me, so if I were doing precision cutting that would be awkward too. That's why left handed crafters and tailors definitely need left handed scissors! ;))

And...I've just realised that I dig with my RIGHT foot as well as kicking with it! There must be a dis-connect at my waist..top half sinister, bottom half dexter! lol!

I can get my left hand into the scissor holes, but they do'nt seem to want to cut; the paper just gets folded over the bottom blade.

lol seems I have a similar "disconnect"! with digging, at least!

Well girls,this was very interesting, especally in my situation recently,As you may or may not know,I have had my left hand(fingers and thumb free,) encased in a plaster cast,up to my elbow,in a wonderful shade of purple ! my choice of colour :o) for the past five weeks...and I am a leftie too..or am I ?
I write my with left hand, but haven't really missed it,as I hadn't noticed how little I write these days..and managed to type,albeit slowly,using one finger on my left hand,..at an angle,as I haven't been able to turn my hand palm down,only sideways,,Lol..so the right one has been working so much harder..I have always used a knife and fork in the way most people do,but have had to eat,American style,and OH has had to cut up food I couldn't manage to break up with a fork..I really didn't like that aspect of it..I use scissors and pruners with my right,and either,wielding a trowel..I dig with my right foot..
The hardest things were the most simple tasks..not being able to get tops of Aerosols,toothpaste tube,etc ..holding a styling brush,as I could manage a hairdryer with my right..Anyway...plaster taken off yesterday,and both bones in my wrist have healed well..so I shall appreciate how we can adapt,if we really have to..but one thing you can't do,is wash your one free hand ,whichever you use ! :o) Oh,and I made a right pigs ear,of buttering bread,or spreading marmalade ..ok,if you prefer big holes in it ..ha ha..

Sorry to hear that, Bloomer! Glad the plaster’s off and you’ve got both hands back.

I did try writing left-handed, but couldn’t hold the pen as usual, I had to wrap my finger round it to stop it wobbling all over the place, and writing left-to-right was awful, kept smudging what I’d just written – right-to-left would have been much easier. I rarely handwrite these days, because I need to get so close to the paper to see – besides, writing is one thing, reading it back is something else!

I’ve seen “party” forks that have a knife-edge to cut food, but shouldn’t think it worth getting in a stock just in case!

The simplest things are often the hardest to do wrong-handed! Even brushing my hair and teeth; and, as you say, trying to wash one hand only is a real prob: I used to turn the bar of soap in my hand to get some lather, then make a fist and tuck my thumb in and work thumb against fingers. But drying one hand was equally problematical.

The human brain is remarkably adaptable; if it can’t work one way it finds an alternative route, though it takes some getting used to. Read somewhere that the *only* cause of habitual stammering is forcing a left-handed person to be right-handed – “retraining” sounds so mild, doesn’t it?

Sounds to me like communistic (left-handed, with all that care for members) golf club in the UK. Maybe you will meet Tymoshenko et al there.

I'm a leftie but not as regards holding golf sticks or rounders bats. Ambie dextrous at tennis and so on. good job you have 2 garden sheds Fran!

@ Kat, lol, I doubt if I could afford to move in those circles!

@ Dorjac, it's odd isn't it, what lefties naturally do right handed and what righties naturally do left handed. They're in the hall at the moment, trying not to use either shed too much for storage cos i want to be able to get in to work inside!

Never say never (or never say die?), Fran. First step is to enter the leftist party. They all started like that. Now they are playing golf.