The Monster in my sock

I used to have the very bad habit of biting my nails. I don’t think I did it because of nerves; I just didn’t like how they felt at the tips of my fingers. I also hated to have to file and paint them. Within seconds of polishing I would somehow smudge a nail and have to start all over again. It never failed, while taking the polish off the smudged nail I would accidentally smudge yet another freaking nail.

Later in life I’m now able to afford a manicure, a real one at a salon. From time to time I will pamper myself and enjoy an hour or so of having Lucinda, the nail technician at my favorite salon, turn my nails into something beautiful.

At the other end of the spectrum there are my feet, a whole other story. I will not let anyone go near them in a salon and it isn’t because I am ticklish. It’s because of two words. Nail Fungus. This fungus has decided to take up residence in the big toe of my right foot. Even though it’s only one toe, it’s ugly and I will spare you the details of how it looks.

While getting my fingernails painted recently, Lucinda reminded me of a special sale she was having on pedicures. If you are getting a manicure you could also get the pedicure for half price. I have to admit I was tempted but the shame of exposing this wretched digit was more than I could bear. I leaned over closer to Lucinda and very quietly said, “I would love a pedicure but I’m really embarrassed about my big toe. I have some type of fungus”. In her sweet Spanish accent, she said, “No worries Ms. M. we see that all of the time.” So, for the first time in my life I decided to expose my “monster toe” to the public.

Pleasantly there was no reaction from her and I slowly became comfortable with Lucinda cradling Monster Toe while attempting to file it. As luck would have it, Lucinda was called away to work on another customer and in turn she asked a co-worker to come finish filing my toenails. Fortunately for this woman, Lucinda had already completed the necessary chiseling required to get Monster Toe looking somewhat normal.

A few minutes later, Lucinda returned and picked up where her co-worker had left off. As the co-worker got up she pointed to Monster Toe with a look of disgust and said “Lucinda, Su dedo del pie! Eres una mujer muy valiente!”

Lucinda, her toe! You are a very brave woman!

Just Lovely…