As much as I anticipated the arrival of the Suka, I haven't paddled it much. So I decided to organize a day of kayaking with friends to really show it off. Everything was set for June 8 - two groups (renters and owners), a rest stop (Damien's live-aboard 29-foot sail boat) stocked with beer & snacks, and stellar weather.
I sailed with Damien, Sylvain (our co-worker visiting from France) and Amber (also a colleague) on Saturday - not much wind, but a nice day out on the water. I left snacks & beer on the boat for Sunday's crew. After we hit the dock, we headed up to the Somis Ranch (aka Lisa & Mitch's place) for a Saturday evening bbq.
I got an early start on Sunday morning, and was in the garage doing some gear maintenance. I was cutting a zip-tie with a sharp knife, and banged my left thumb. "Ow," I thought. Then I raised the digit in front of my face and bent it - oh boy - I sliced it right to the knuckle bone. That's not good. I thought briefly about just bandaging it up and paddling anyway - then the bleeding started. Maybe not.
I headed to the only emergency room I could think of (bad thing about being in a relatively new town) to see if I really needed stitches. The triage nurse said 'yes.' So I got on the phone (while trying to not bleed all over myself), trying to let my friends know I wouldn't be there, and figuring out how to get the two groups of paddlers to connect in my absence.
And then I spent two hours in the ER waiting to get stitched up. The doc was nice, but the local (sh**, that hurt) didn't fully work, and two of the six stitches were through un-numbed skin. Not the funnest experience of my life.
I managed to make it to Damien's boat in time for the post-paddle festivities. Guess it will be a few weeks before I paddle again!
No photos of this one. Which I now TOTALLY regret - could have grossed you all out!
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