Eons ago, during my former acting career, I kept my fingernails pretty darn nice. It was insurance for that big movie role I would nab one day. Cough. Sputter.
Gail, my nail technician, who served wine on Friday afternoons if you happened to make an appointment then, had a mantra she tried to instill in me whenever I ambled in for her to “fix” one of my broken acrylic gems. “Your nails are jewels, not tools.” The mantra stuck with me, but the application of it did not.
A friend we’ll call, “Pat,” confided that she uses her thumb nail as a screwdriver, so she has to maintain its length for that purpose. Yesterday I found myself using my ragged nails as a caulk smoother, wedge to try and remove caulk, and of course, as a screwdriver for taking off electrical plates I missed. It also works to scratch stickers from glass. I accidentally jabbed myself with a screwdriver, too, so I have a nice chunk missing on my forefinger. And, I did an ample amount of gardening in the morning without gloves, insuring dirt resides with the caulk and paint, thus requiring that hurtful nail brush.
Gail even gave me a bottle opener one Christmas with that clever saying etched on it. Maybe I’ll dig it up and hang it from my neck to remind myself to use tools, not my nails! (Or for ease in opening a cold one after a long day of caulking and painting?)