Klarinet Archive - Posting 001076.txt from 2003/06

From: Bear Woodson <bearwoodson@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Left, Right, Mixed or Ambidextrous?
Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2003 02:03:18 -0400

Hello, Klarinet List.

When asked the question, if I am Left, Right,
Mixed or Ambidextrous, I'd have to say, "yes".
But then my circumstances are a bit unusual.

I was born very right-handed, and a total klutz
with the left hand. Then, about 20 years ago, in
my late 20's, I suffered nerve damage to the Ulnar
Nerve in my right arm, (from my elbow down to
the last 3 fingers of the right hand). I could barely
use my right hand for 2 years, and was forced to
learn to write left-handed. Since most people don't
know what the Ulnar Nerve controls, I'd just tell
them that I had Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

By the Mid-1980's my handwriting with the
left hand looked very similar to what the right
hand used to be able to do. During the course of
the 1990's I wrote a "Concerto for Piano, Left-
Hand Only, with Orchestra", and slowly regained
most of the use of my right hand.

I learned a bit about Mixed Brain Dominance,
Corpus Callosum function, etc. People who
switch handedness tend to get confused at first,
but may result with a higher IQ, once they are
used to it. The studies vary greatly, and some
people just get progressively confused as time
goes on.

To this day I still write left-handed, and do all
my Computer Mouse work with the left hand,
but I use a knife and fork, and do most things,
comfortably with either hand. On a few rare
occasions, I've had bursitis in the left shoulder
and couldn't use my left hand at all. I was sur-
prised how easy it was for me to write with the
right hand, at those times, and how it only took
a few minutes to make the penmanship as neat
as it was, many years ago. . . .

But Ah nayvir git to play the Clarinet, so Ah
nayvir git tew dew NUTH-thin! (*pout!*
*sniff!*)

Bear Woodson
Composer in Tucson, Arizona, USA

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