# A contest. Who has the most kitchen scars?



## Colbyt

Knives in dishwater got you written up when I was in food. The second time got you gone.

Burns are my most repeated stupidity.


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## wooleybooger

Nearly lost the use of a finger due to hitting the blade of a band knife while cleaning the band saw used for boneless cut. Took a hand surgeon to undo what the ER people screwed up, er, fixed and to sew the tendon back together. That was 10 years ago and to this day the sticky blade guide on that saw hasn't been fixed and occasionally hurts someone. I know a guy that is a meat cutter at that store.


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## mark sr

I get minor cuts all the time, usually I don't even know until I see the blood.


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## Startingover

wooleybooger said:


> Nearly lost the use of a finger due to hitting the blade of a band knife while cleaning the band saw used for boneless cut. Took a hand surgeon to undo what the ER people screwed up, er, fixed and to sew the tendon back together. That was 10 years ago and to this day the sticky blade guide on that saw hasn't been fixed and occasionally hurts someone. I know a guy that is a meat cutter at that store.


You win. That place is lucky no lawsuits.


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## wooleybooger

After getting the splint off my finger I said some very un-nice things to a manager there and walked out.


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## J. V.

I get cut once and awhile and thats to many times. I guess it comes with the territory.
Last year I sliced off the tip of my finger with one of those yoke style peelers. If you have ever used one, you know why and how this can happen.
Your fingers are in position for this accident. Peel a potato with one and see. But as usual it was operator error. Not the complete fault or design of the peeler.
It was brand new and way sharper than I thought it could be.
That finger took a couple weeks to heal up. Good thing it was my left hand. It did not interfere with kitchen duties.
And I am using it again.


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## wooleybooger

I have one of those with a ceramic blade. That thing scares the hail out of me. I hold veggies by their sides when using it. I wouldn't have it except wife threw away my old SS peeler and I couldn't find another in the stores. Of course she got a butt chewin' that she won't soon forget. Always doing stuff like that.


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## J. V.

wooleybooger said:


> I have one of those with a ceramic blade. That thing scares the hail out of me. I hold veggies by their sides when using it. I wouldn't have it except wife threw away my old SS peeler and I couldn't find another in the stores. Of course she got a butt chewin' that she won't soon forget. Always doing stuff like that.


Thats how you get cut. When pulling the yoke towards you (thats how they work) you can easily drag the blade over your finger tips. To easy to get cut. I asked about this on a cooking forum and it seems I'm not the only one that has had this happen.
I also loved those old types like below. But the new old ones are not very sharp anymore.










Anyone notice how easy it is to post pictures on the new forum?


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## wooleybooger

J. V. said:


> Thats how you get cut. When pulling the yoke towards you (thats how they work) you can easily drag the blade over your finger tips. To easy to get cut. I asked about this on a cooking forum and it seems I'm not the only one that has had this happen.


I can turn the blade to cut either direction on the peeler I have. Actually I have a Euro style peeler that can be used right or left handed and cut in either direction in either hand. I cut from heel of hand to finger tips. Seems less prone to injury that way.


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## Startingover

J. V. said:


> Thats how you get cut. When pulling the yoke towards you (thats how they work) you can easily drag the blade over your finger tips. To easy to get cut. I asked about this on a cooking forum and it seems I'm not the only one that has had this happen.
> I also loved those old types like below. But the new old ones are not very sharp anymore.
> 
> View attachment 631861
> 
> 
> Anyone notice how easy it is to post pictures on the new forum?


I have one of these. Then bought one only with fat black rubber handle. It doesn’t worry me as much as my box shredder that I used to make a coleslaw with 

now I just take things over to my daughters to use on her new processor (since I paid for half) but occasionally if it’s just some little thing I go ahead and shred it myself. I try to be real careful of my fingers when I get down to the
nub of the carrot or whatever.


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## BigJim

I haven't been cooking long enough to have kitchen battle scars yet. All of my battle scars are from wood carving, wood working and mechanic work, I DO have a bunch of them though.


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## LS-6

Went bowling years agobowled 10 games and my thumb was sore from that.Went to my mothers house to BBQ a turkey breast.
Grabbed a porcelain dish off the top shelf of the cabinet not knowing it had a 11lb aquarium rock in it and boom on the counter it went cutting the tendon and both nerves in my right thumb and out came the blood wrapped my thumb in a paper towel and off to the emergency room I went Friend of mine I was with drove me there. Went to check in and told the nurse I need help now and she said we need your info first. Then the blood ran onto the counter and she said we can get your info later.
It took 3 surgeries grafting tendons etc to get my thumb back to 50% normal. To this day it's not right and gets cold fast during winter. I'm still leary of glass dishes to say the least to this day.


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## Startingover

LS-6 said:


> Went bowling years agobowled 10 games and my thumb was sore from that.Went to my mothers house to BBQ a turkey breast.
> Grabbed a porcelain dish off the top shelf of the cabinet not knowing it had a 11lb aquarium rock in it and boom on the counter it went cutting the tendon and both nerves in my right thumb and out came the blood wrapped my thumb in a paper towel and off to the emergency room I went Friend of mine I was with drove me there. Went to check in and told the nurse I need help now and she said we need your info first. Then the blood ran onto the counter and she said we can get your info later.
> It took 3 surgeries grafting tendons etc to get my thumb back to 50% normal. To this day it's not right and gets cold fast during winter. I'm still leary of glass dishes to say the least to this day.


How horrible.


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## Nik333

With me, it's doing dumb things, that I know are dumb.
Half asleep, I set the glass carafe from a coffee maker on the stove burner on warm. The coffee maker must have been broken. The heat melted the plastic handle, but, not visibly & it spilled on my abdomen when I lifted it. Pretty bad burns but small, maybe 3" at most. My biggest worry was their getting infected at work. Leaning against a bed happens all day long. Ow!!!

Does trying to open a beer bottle with a knife, on a boat in the ocean, count as cooking? I sliced my thumb. I remember watching the blood spray rhythmically in the air & thinking "Hmm, that's an artery!" 🙄


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## Startingover

Nik333 said:


> With me, it's doing dumb things, that I know are dumb.
> Half asleep, I set the glass carafe from a coffee maker on the stove burner on warm. The coffee maker must have been broken. The heat melted the plastic handle, but, not visibly & it spilled on my abdomen when I lifted it. Pretty bad burns but small, maybe 3" at most. My biggest worry was their getting infected at work. Leaning against a bed happens all day long. Ow!!!
> 
> Does trying to open a beer bottle with a knife, on a boat in the ocean, count as cooking? I sliced my thumb. I remember watching the blood spray rhythmically in the air & thinking "Hmm, that's an artery!" 🙄


Ouch. I assume a tourniquet was put on since you’re still here. Did u get stitches?


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## Nik333

Startingover said:


> Ouch. I assume a tourniquet was put on since you’re still here. Did u get stitches?


Yes. Pressure with a t-shirt. I called a hand surgeon I knew, but, he scolded me for calling him. It probably was a Saturday or Sunday. I went to an ER for stitches. The next time I saw the hand surgeon, I showed him the scar & he said I should have seen a hand surgeon! I told him I had called him and he had scolded me. Silence. 

I mostly have cat scratches. One Doc swore a scar on my chest was a biopsy! Talented cat!


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## mark sr

LS-6 said:


> out came the blood wrapped my thumb in a paper towel and off to the emergency room I went Friend of mine I was with drove me there. Went to check in and told the nurse I need help now and she said we need your info first. Then the blood ran onto the counter and she said we can get your info later.


 I had something similar happen when I sliced the tip of my thumb off with a table saw. As long as I hugged my thumb with my other hand it didn't really bleed but when I released pressure the blood flowed. I called my son and he took me to the ER. They was wanting all that info but a nurse walked by and said 'come with me'


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## Nik333

Startingover, I really don't use tourniquets because other tissues can be affected. I would use them only in a critical emergency. ( But, in thinking about it, for me, that was never in 31 yrs of Acute and Critical Care, even though people pull off arterial lines and jump out of bed to run. We were lucky to often have a Cardiologist looking over our shoulders, teaching, when we applied pressure. They encourage you to put pressure on the bigger vessels leading to where the bleed is.

We all have bad habits. I perch liquid in weird places, saying to myself, that's gonna fall! Then it falls. If you get a lot of cuts, here's a good map of hand vessels. Arteries go away from the heart and veins to the heart. You should be able to feel a pulse in the bigger vessels.









Body Anatomy: Upper Extremity Vessels | The Hand Society


Blood vessels are multi-layered tubes to take blood from the heart in thicker, higher pressure arteries and back to the heart in thinner, flexible and lower-pressure veins.



www.assh.org





But, that said, check to make sure the bleeding is slowing. Don't pull off the dressing or cloth, leave the original clot on. Otherwise, you're defeating the body's work.

Having a sports wrap around the kitchen, as well as bandages & gauze is a good idea. As I wrote before, when I was bitten by a German Shepherd twice, I found that I couldn't put pressure on my wrist and calf at the same time. Hope you aren't that wild with a knife!


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## Startingover

Nik333 said:


> Yes. Pressure with a t-shirt. I called a hand surgeon I knew, but, he scolded me for calling him. It probably was a Saturday or Sunday. I went to an ER for stitches. The next time I saw the hand surgeon, I showed him the scar & he said I should have seen a hand surgeon! I told him I had called him and he had scolded me. Silence.
> 
> I mostly have cat scratches. One Doc swore a scar on my chest was a biopsy! Talented cat!


Nice article. Thks


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## BayouRunner

I’ve lost count of the times I’ve cut myself. At camp though this one fella, it was his turn to cook. When he was cutting up the onions he literally cut off a piece of his thumb and I saw and actually heard it hit the plate. He quickly removed it, dealt with his thumb and went back to cooking a little later. He made Jambalaya. I called it Thumbalaya and refused to eat a bite lol.


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## Startingover

BayouRunner said:


> I’ve lost count of the times I’ve cut myself. At camp though this one fella, it was his turn to cook. When he was cutting up the onions he literally cut off a piece of his thumb and I saw and actually heard it hit the plate. He quickly removed it, dealt with his thumb and went back to cooking a little later. He made Jambalaya. I called it Thumbalaya and refused to eat a bite lol.


He musta had a high tolerance for pain. I get whiny over a paper cut. No, i wouldn’t have eaten it either


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## BayouRunner

Oh he whined a while. But when a group of guys get together we don’t cut you any slack. Thumb or no thumb, it’s your turn to cook lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## de-nagorg

I be late to the show.

At the age of 6, my grandmother instructed me to never put a knife in water.

Said it dulls the blade just sitting there.

She insisted that I learn to clean the knife immediately, sanitize it, and put it back where it belonged. 

This has been a habit for 60 years, and not once have I ever gotten cut by a hidden knife in the sink. 

Time for you to get a new habit, don't ya think ?

And my knives are just as shiny as they were new, so many years ago.

Now for the scar story.

At 15 I was butchering a deer, and using my grandfathers old bone saw (manual power), to cut up the carcass into freezer sized parts. 

Well the saw cut through the leg that I was holding in my right hand, right into my hand at the spot between my thumb and index finger, about a half inch deep.

Here it is 50 years later, and I can still see a faint scar. 

The bone saw is in a closet, waiting for it's next victim.

They sure made things to last 100 years ago.


ED


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## Nik333

@Startingover, I was just eating some hard-frozen Super Fudge Chunk ice cream with a sharp knife, in the dark. It's not so easy to do, but, when my hand jerked & I saw the blade in the light of the laptop, I thought of your thread.
So, I thought "this is stupid!" and put the knife down. 
Thanks!


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## Startingover

Nik333 said:


> @Startingover, I was just eating some hard-frozen Super Fudge Chunk ice cream with a sharp knife, in the dark. It's not so easy to do, but, when my hand jerked & I saw the blade in the light of the laptop, I thought of your thread.
> So, I thought "this is stupid!" and put the knife down.
> Thanks!


when I was 14 I was babysitting three little boys. One got a cut on his forehead. It was bleeding a lot so the neighbors took us to the hospital. The neighbor gave me a cloth and said put pressure on the wound. I thought that would hurt him so I only pretended to an held the cloth loose. Yeah it kind of bled a lot but he was fine.

I’ve eaten with a sharp knife, cutting an apple with a parry knife then putting it in my mouth. Yikes.


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## mark sr

Startingover said:


> I’ve eaten with a sharp knife, cutting an apple with a parry knife then putting it in my mouth.


 Who hasn't done that!


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## de-nagorg

mark sr said:


> Who hasn't done that!


Me. It is already in my hand after cutting the piece off, . Instant finger food.

ED


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## Startingover

Haha. Worse would be if I cut my tongue an couldn't talk.


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## de-nagorg

Startingover said:


> Haha. Worse would be if I cut my tongue an couldn't talk.


That is severely handicapped! For a woman.

ED


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## wooleybooger

Startingover said:


> I’ve eaten with a sharp knife, cutting an apple with a parry knife then putting it in my mouth. Yikes.


Yeah eaten apples that way with a pocket knife. The trick is to use a blade at least 2/3 the length of the apple and finish with the slice on top of the blade and partly off the back (unsharpened) top of the blade. You pull it off with your teeth or lips. No problem, done it many times.


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## Startingover

de-nagorg said:


> That is severely handicapped! For a woman.
> 
> ED


I KNEW after I wrote that someone would comment! LOL


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## mark sr

I thought about this thread while waiting for the bldg inspector at my son's house. The pears on the tree looked appetizing. So I got one that looked to be bug free [it was] and cut off slices with my pocket knife.


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## Startingover

de-nagorg said:


> That is severely handicapped! For a woman.
> 
> ED


I KNEW after I wrote that someone would comment! LOL


mark sr said:


> I thought about this thread while waiting for the bldg inspector at my son's house. The pears on the tree looked appetizing. So I got one that looked to be bug free [it was] and cut off slices with my pocket knife.


fresh pears 🍐 yum


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## de-nagorg

mark sr said:


> I thought about this thread while waiting for the bldg inspector at my son's house. The pears on the tree looked appetizing. So I got one that looked to be bug free [it was] and cut off slices with my pocket knife.


I wish that I could grow Pears here, but alas, it is too cold most winters and kills the tree.

There was a Pear tree out in the prairie, in SE New Mexico, as I grew up, someone had planted it near a water tank ( dirt), and I could go out there in the fall and eat ripe pears until I got sick, if I wanted to.

Those store bought ones just don't compare.


ED


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## Startingover

Lots of apple orchards in Ohio and used to be pear trees. I don’t know about now.


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## Friz Freleng

Try washing things under a running faucet with a Dawn soap dish and a microfiber pad one at a time. Ditch/forget the sink full of dirty dish water.


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## Startingover

Friz Freleng said:


> Try washing things under a running faucet with a Dawn soap dish and a microfiber pad one at a time. Ditch/forget the sink full of dirty dish water.


Normally I do one at a time but they’d piled up. Never again. Monday night I put a Marie Callender’s pie in the oven and the crust started to get too dark. I was hurrying so took a strip of foil - reached in the oven to cover the crust and got a another blister along a finger.


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## de-nagorg

There is a reason for that adage.

HASTE MAKES WASTE.

Never hurry, we forget things, and get scarred.

Most of my scars are from other places than a kitchen, but I have scars from head to no left foot anymore, due to haste.



ED


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## Nik333

Startingover said:


> Normally I do one at a time but they’d piled up. Never again. Monday night I put a Marie Callender’s pie in the oven and the crust started to get too dark. I was hurrying so took a strip of foil - reached in the oven to cover the crust and got a another blister along a finger.


Wait until you're old and they turn off the oven/stove!
Just kidding.


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## rjniles

Slicing corn of the cob, sliced the tip off my thumb with a mandoline.

Sent from my Lenovo TB-X606F using Tapatalk


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## Nik333

rjniles said:


> Slicing corn of the cob, sliced the tip off my thumb with a mandoline.
> 
> Sent from my Lenovo TB-X606F using Tapatalk


Pretty. Can you play it


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## Startingover

Or maybe


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## wooleybooger

Startingover said:


> - reached in the oven to cover the crust and got a another blister along a finger.


 Yup something similar here. Pulling a rack out of something out to baste or something. Did it quickly so didn't realize until after I had pulled it to the stops I was barehanded. I didn't say nice words.


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## wooleybooger

rjniles said:


> Slicing corn of the cob, sliced the tip off my thumb with a mandoline.
> 
> Sent from my Lenovo TB-X606F using Tapatalk


I have a cut resistant glove, bought for another purpose, that I use to protect my thumb while using a mandoline. Dawned on me to use it after cutting tip of thumb several times.


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