Happy Lefthanders Day

I'm not normally a big fan of  madeup holidays, but this is my day - a day to acknowledge the challenges of being lefthanded in a righthanded world and to note our creative contributions!
Supposedly righthanded people operate out of the left side of their brains, lefties out of the right side - thus the assertion that we are the ones in our right mind.
But seriously, we lefties make some adaptations that righthanders rarely consider. When dining, we instinctively go for the corner seat that leaves our left arm free, thus avoiding clashing elbows. We learn to operate appliances and power tools with dexterity - after ruining a cord or two. I grew up before manufacturers made ambidexterous appliances i.e. with the cord coming out from the top as opposed to one side. The iron was my greatest nemesis growing up. I melted more than one ironing cord before discovering irons designed for either left- or righthanded folks. That may explain my continuing aversion to ironing!
Righthanded desks may not be the problem for lefties today that they were in my student days, since I assume the majority of students are now taking notes on their laptops, not wrangling with a righthanded desk in their lefthanded world. But it may explain why some lefties have adopted the strange overhanded writing position. It's the only way to find some space, albeit limited, to rest your arm.
Cutting is another activity that most lefties find challenging. I've had a lefthanded fabric scissors since I was thirteen, and have made sure I've had lefthanded scissors onhand since then. Ironically, I learned recently that my own children didn't realize until well through their elementary grades that cutting did not have to be painful. Aha - a dose of my medicine - growing up righthanded with a lefthanded mother!

In honor of International Lefthanders Day, I decided to break out my lefthanded mug for my morning coffee. Alas, even my mug, produced by Lefty, Inc. failed me: the text, Everyone is born righthanded; only the greatest can overcome it, is positioned for righthanded pickup! It's OK - I've learned to adapt!