It was early in the morning and Angelica and I couldn't find our monkeys, and it started to rain. I decided to take one more pass around a set of trails to try and find them before heading out of the forest because of the coming storm. This turned out to be a silly decision, mainly because this meant that Angelica was a few trails away and without a radio. So, I was walking up a hill in the rain, when I slipped on the mud or a root and fill down. Somehow I dropped my machete straight through my hand and sliced my left thumb right open. I looked down and saw a lot of blood dripping onto my pants. I immediately grabbed my thumb with my other hand. I was in total awesome survival mode. I can now safely say I am good under pressure in weird situations. This was odd, because I then couldn't use either of my hands, one being useless and one holding onto the other. I looked around my body to see what I could use to wrap my thumb in and found nothing. I couldn't rip any part of my clothing or use my machete, now lying in the mud, to cut any part of clothing or something. I felt very useless and actually was laughing at myself with my hands tied. Then I struggled to get to my feet, left my machete lying on the trail more out of spite and anger with it after being a good friend always at my side for 5 months and now this. I yelled for Angelica that I needed help but she was too far away to hear me. I ran out of the forest with both my hands held in front of my face (because
of the spider webs, which even in a dire situation I didn't want on my face) and onto the larger main trail. There I tried to keep my hands above my hand to stop some of the blood flow. Then I stood there for a while laughing at myself as I tried to reach my radio which was to my side and my back. I let go of my gaping wound quickly and reached for my radio, and clumsily called back to CIES. I finally reached Dan and told him I needed help and that I was coming back. I had him wake up Lydia to help me with my finger and told him that he needed to go into the forest to find Angelica, so she wouldn't be out there alone not knowing what was going on. I was very focused on things that needed to be done. Then I ran down the trail with both my hands over my head. I looked absolutely ridiculous. Luckily there were no tourists on the trail or I would have scared them to death. And sadly all the rain had washed the blood off my pants and hands, or else I would have looked truly badass.Lydia took me to the infirmary here where they looked at my finger and rummaged around in my thumb, much to my dislike, and then gave me three stitches to close up the wound. Regretfully I didn't bring my camera with me to the infirmary! The giant needle to numb my thumb hurt much more than the initial cut, which actually didn't hurt at all I noticed, and then I watched the doctor stitch me up, which I found fascinating. The medico didn't seem too concerned about my thumb, and I think if I went to someone in the States I would have gotten a couple more stitches and better care instructions, but alas, that's what I get for living in the jungle. I think if I cut a finger other than my fat thumb it would now have only 9 digits.
Then I went to town to get some antibiotics, pain killers, and 2 tetanus shots i
n my ass (a nice ending to an already horrible morning). I took about a week off from work, finally took my stitches out a few nights ago, and am now working on some self-prescribed physical therapy for my thumb. It's still healing. The nerves in my thumb are slowly repairing themselves. I have a weird numb, tingly sensation in most of my thumb that is preventing me from being able to eat and write, and play guitar, with my left hand, which may I remind you, is pretty important considering I'm left-handed. But I'm managing alright now. I'll have a badass story and a badass scar when I get home.On another note: My good friend from high school, Shosh, and two of her friends
, came up here to visit last weekend. She is studying and working in Buenos Aires for the time being, randomly, and it was great to see her. I took them all around the park for free and then to town one night. They loved the falls. We were fortunate to see 3 different monkey groups also! A very rare sight. They were lucky. It was nice to see a different face for once and also crazy to think that we've been friends for about 10 years and we're both in Argentina now. I'll be hanging out with her in Buenos Aires next week when I'm done with work also. And now we're winding things down in Iguazu!WILL BE HOME MARCH 2ND!!
