Emergency surgery

I've been learning some xhtml programming and making a few little changes around here to make it feel more like home. I don't know if it's something I tweaked but now I'm having trouble posting to and viewing this journal. (I'm calling it a journal instead of the b-word because I want to see some different g-word a-words. If you read the last few posts you'll know what I mean, know what I mean? *nudge* *nudge*)So, I'm going to try some "surgery" on this j-word and see if that helps. I mean b-word. Now i'm just confusing myself.

Speaking of surgery: this morning we almost had to perform emergency surgery on Havilah and a toy in which her finger got stuck. Michelle called me at work, and everyone at home (with the possible exception of - no, wait - with the almost certain exception of Simcha) was badly shaken. This new toy is - well, was - a plastic baton, all glittery with shiny tinsel tassels on the ends. Havilah had removed the tassles and stuck her finger in the end, and could not extricate it. Michelle was on the phone with a friend when Havilah came to her crying, and Michelle made the mistake of saying absently to her friend, "Gee, I hope we don't break her finger getting this thing off."

Havilah said, "You mean you're going to have to break my finger off?" Michelle had to explain that she had been hasty, had not meant what she said, that it was just a manner of speaking, and that she was only worried about hurting Havilah - just a little bit, there was really no risk at all involved in it. Needless to say this succeeded marvelously in comforting Havilah not one bit. Then Michelle got out a knife, to cut the baton shorter - she meant well, really she did. Havilah's heart rate was perfectly normal at this point - compared with the average hummingbird's. This did not help her finger, which was already swelling when she first went to Michelle for help.

Michelle tried soap and cold water and they did not help, so she called me. I told her to try to get the finger cold so the swelling would go down. I also told her to try some cooking oil. Havilah freaked out once again because she thought the cooking oil would be hot. She once burned her fingers at the stove, so she has a fear of hot things now. This too failed to work right away, so Michelle told me she was going to bring Havilah to the hospital. I told her to wait and I took my luch break early to go home. By the time I got there it was off. Whether it was the oil or the cold water that did the trick, we're not sure.

Havah was still a nervous wreck when I got home. Michelle was holding her and we both told her how proud we were of her and how she was so brave. I said it with perfect sincerity since on occasion I have had to deal with Michelle myself, so I knew exactly how Havah felt. (Ha ha Michelle, just kidding. Please don't kill me.)