More on why I tat....

I quit tatting sometime in my early 20's and didn't pick is up again until well after I got married and had the Stooges. In 2004, I started have some odd symptoms in my ear and my hearing. I went to my internist, then to my ENT who thought I had something called Ménière's disease, but sent me to get in MRI "just in case". And here is the happy MRI:

It turned out that I had a classic version of a non-malignant brain tumor. So I started having to spend a LOT of time in medical waiting rooms. This is when I picked up tatting again. I had to have something to keep my busy - those waiting rooms are dull! Plus it kept my mind off my troubles. And bookmarks make a nice thank you gift. I was blessed with many people who helped me and my family during this time.

I had the tumor removed in April of 2005 (it progressed pretty fast) and I have a lovely scar as a badge of honor for my craniotomy. I have recovered just fine from the surgery - you'd never know I had such a thing. But as a result of this, my left ear is both totally deaf and has no balance function. I can't use a hearing aid - they removed the nerve in the surgery. So I stagger a bit and avoid going down stairs. And I say "What?!" a lot.

I made a list of good things about being deaf in one ear:

1. If I lie on my good ear, I sleep great!
2. It only takes one finger to block out the Stooges' yelling, leaving a hand free to use my computer, or to swat kids.
3. If I sit next to annoying people and they're on my deaf side, they don't bother me much at all.
4. I can pretend I don't hear things and no one is the wiser.
5. I can use little headphones twice as long as most people, even when one side is broken.
6. And (my favorite) I can never be drafted! HA!

On the tatting front, I'm still working - slowly - on the hanky. But I signed up for Palmetto Tat Days. You should too! It's lots of fun!