Left-handed people

Im a lefty and so far I don't have anything negative to report. Oh yah my friends say I write like a chimpanzee but thats about it, I can't comment on that I don't even notice. Hey atleast it turns out readable.

Originally posted by superdude

So what is the thing you don't like about being a lefty? My top 3 are:
1) Eating with a group of people and not getting the left-most chair.
2) Trying to use scissors - I now use razor blades to cut everything
3) Writing with a pencil - my hand drags across what was written and smudges it all up, not to mention what it does to my shirt cuffs..

Yeah, I feel ya. I don't mind right-handed desks, but left-handed desks seem to bother right-handed people. I don't like things that ergonomically designed for right-handers (anything with a molded plastic pistol-grip), it feels weird in either hand.

Some things I have heard about lefties are:

they are the devil's children or something else relating to Satan

that the ration of lefties to righties is something like 1/8, but the ratio for lefties to righties is something like 1/4 (hence the whole "gay" thing)

they are more creative/artistic (I have a hard time with this one)


I used to work in construction and guys would always mess with me, like offering to sell me a left-handed hammer. Though, I have seen some weird stuff being sold, such as a left-handed keyboard (everthing is backwards like a mirror image of a regular keyboard) that I can't imagine anyone using

What I liked about the article is that it pointed out that the ratio of lefties vs. righties has remained pretty constant throughout history. I wonder why the ratio has never changed: if it was random, wouldn't the ratio have been 50/50 at one point?

I have a lot on my mind about this topic, and this is the first time I've had a chance to get it out. I'll try to keep it as short as I can, but be prepared to read or skip.

I'm lefty. That is established.

I have several lefty friends. Of the two females, one is bi, another is questionable but has had boyfriends, so she appears straight. Of the two lefty guys I know, one is just straight, another is uber-straight, putanero. I too am straight, not a pimp, but I like my women female. My best friend is righty and happens to be gay. No connection there.

I've had above-average grades all of my life (though I've been slacking off lately so I can enjoy my life and learn mostly just what I want/ need to). My lefty friends are smart, and I know of a lot of idiot righties. No connection there either.

As for my handwriting, I went to a Catholic school up until the end of 6th grade. They didn't force me to go righty, and I learned just like everyone else, only slanted the other way. Cursive, ya? I've been told that I have very good handwriting by peers, teachers, parents, relatives, whoever. That's cursive, my regular handwriting isn't as good, still decent, and I write in cursive still anyway. That seems to end that argument, too.

Sports? I have a disability there it seems that with sports and even some videogames, I can learn up to a certain point, but then I just stop- I don't get better. In other words, I can do almost anything, but only half as good. I'm also a switch-hitter for golf and baseball, as well as a righty kicker, but I play tennis lefty. I guess I drive righty too... but there's not much you can do about that. Kinda good, though, because I can keep my left hand on the wheel while shifting with the right. Heh, I can do -other things- righty too

My friends always say stuff like "You're just lefty so we feel sorry for you. Bullsh-t." It's amusing, but you never know when one of them is kidding.

I think we should file a lawsuit against everyone. Colleges, computer companies, car companies, roads, gun companies, office supplies... suppliers. How many lefties have had to use mice that were designed to fit the hand of a righty? After years of this, eventually someone's going to get arthritus or carpal tunnel. Saitek makes joysticks that can be adjusted for either right or left handers. I got one and my friend broke it. Arg. I have to change the mouse settings every time I log in on the school network. Then I have to move the mouse and pad. Geeze. We deserve to drive on the left side of the road, just because we're oriented to the left. How many of you have tried to shoot someone only to find that the gun is ergonomically fit for righties? Right-handed scissors HURT. And don't even try right-handed staples! Seriously though, it's all about computers these days - businesses and schools should be required to have ambidextrous mice just as they have to have handicapped access.

I believe that if blacks and gays and hispanics and women [read: minorities] can get into college easier and get preference for jobs based on absurd quotas, then we -the left-handed minority- should get this same opportunity. We are not only a minority, but we're disabled too. We have to use special or ambidextrous mice and can't write in pencil without smudging it. We're descriminated against in favor of the right-handed majority.

No, I'm not going to start protests. No, I'm not uber-serious. But yes, I am half serious about this. We're just as much a minority as all the other minorities, as well as disabled more than socially.

And I'm colorblind too, as is one of my lefty friends, how about you? (Ugh, feel sorry for me! )

[heh, and sorry for wasting your time if you read all this, and sorry to anyone I may have offended]

[edit on 21-1-2005 by SmileyMan34]

I hesitate to use the word "minority" because (to me) it's not fair to "real" minorities. It's just an inconvenience at times. I also hesitate using "disabled", it's not THAT bad (for me). I always wanted a left-handed gun, but they are usually too expensive (one reason I like revolvers). I work with archaeologists and there seems to be a higher ratio among them (including students), something like 2/5. Maybe a spacio- thing. Just a thought

Originally posted by amb1063
i write,eat,bat,use sissors all with my left hand............only things i do as a righty would be shifting gears in a car w/a manual transmission and use a mouse.

Another south-paw here...I use my left hand to write, eat, brush teeth, peel and chop veggies and meat, crackand beat eggs., but use scissors with my right hand only. Also, when I played guitar I played right handed too, as well as use the remote control. But I can't write with my right hand (legibly anyway). Am I ambidextrous? I tend to be more creative and artsy - have a flair for languages (English, French, Portuguese, some Italian)...but am lousy at math and sciences.

I tried to teach myself to throw right-handed. I can pull it off but it feels so dam unnatural. The same with writing. If ambidexdrious means "able to use either hand", I would say I am (technically). But I still consider myself a lefty.

Do you use your left or right hand to master....oh nevermind

Originally posted by poonchang
I hesitate to use the word "minority" because (to me) it's not fair to "real" minorities. It's just an inconvenience at times. I also hesitate using "disabled", it's not THAT bad (for me).

I agree, but with people going so liberal today, it's worth a shot, heh.

I am a lefty and nothing is wrong with me...

I was ambidextrous....(until I broke my arm as a kid and then didn't use it for a while).

I can still write pretty neat with my left hand, but it isn't as easy as it used to be. I do perform many tasks with it though without even thinking about it, and I still use two hands to eat (Fork in left, Knife in the right), etc. Can't draw with the left anymore though...at least not well, hehe....

When I was a kid , I was lefty, but the teacher in the Cathaloic school said it was wrong .. Gotta love those nuns. Anyways, So I did everything in school Right everything outside of school Left. So now it depends on the task to what hand I go for first. Kinda cool actually

Wow! A lot of lefties here also show some ambedexdrious skills as well. I wonder how common that is among righties? Or if it's just attributed to adjusting to a right-handed world?

Originally posted by poonchang
Do you know anyone left-handed? I ran across this article:

The Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda (GBG) Theory of Left-Handedness was presented in 1987 (Geschwind and Galaburda, 1987a; Geschwind and Galaburda, 1987b; Geschwind and Galaburda, 1987c). The GBG Theory proposes that right-handed children have developed normally; they exhibit leftward symmetries in language areas. In contrast, left-handed children have suffered complications, which have led to anomalous cerebral dominance. Subsequently, motor coordination shifts to the left side in these children. Though comprehensive alternative has been advanced, the GBG Theory has been a subject of much debate.

The GBG Theory ultimately suggests a decreased survival fitness for left-handers. Speaking from an evolutionary point of view, what possible purpose would this serve? A species evolves to adapt for better survival. Therefore, if left-handedness were less favorable, one would expect the amount of left-handers to decrease over time. This does not appear to be the case.

Have you heard anything interesting about south-paws? like, they're usually creative or gay or whatever?

[edit on 21-1-2005 by poonchang]

I'm left handed and that theory is crazy! Some studies show the exact opposite and show lefties as being gifted. So who's right?

Also the theory about left handers living shorter lives is a crock of mess too. They got that theory because when you look at people over like 60yrs old or so you see many more right handers than left handers so they came up with theory that left handers die earlier but what they don't realize is that people older than 60yrs old or so grew up in a time when left handedness was severely punished and discouraged and many parents would force a left handed child to become right handed when they were too young to even remember they ever had a preference for the left hand. As soon as the kid learns to eat they make him use the right hand instead of the left etc, till the kid just uses the right hand thinking they are right handed and never remember being forced to become right handed so you have older people of the older generation where more are or seem right handed. The later generations stopped doing that so you see more lefties in the youner generations. But of course the right handed people who looked at that just assumed the worse and assumed that left handers live shorter lives. LOL!

Also left handers are not learning diabled, I was always the smartest one in all of my clases in school to the point where the teacher didn't even want to call on me if I raised my hand they would be like "I know you know, let's give someone else a chance to answer." LOL! I was the one who helped the teachers grade the papers! LOL! Also there are more lefties in Mensa than righties and Mensa is a group of gifted and genius people. Not saying lefties are smarter than righties, I'm just showing that lefties are not less smarter than rightites. More gifted people and the best actors are left handed. I could name them but the list is toooo long! LOL Sylvester Stallone and Bruce Willis are two of my favorates. I could go on and on but I will stop now.

Originally posted by amb1063
geeshhh what an OUT THERE study. never even HEARD of that one.

when i was a small child my kindergarden teacher tried to force me to be a righty.........and my mom went through the ROOF........i'm a lefty always have been.

let's see...........i have a creative flair, i'm totally type A personality,have above average IQ, hetero ALL the way,atheletic............and i will tell you this......being an athelete...........we REALLY can put one over on the righties.....

i'm a tennis player.............and people automatically SERVE to my forehand.....return to my forehand.........because they think they're being clever and sending it to my weaker side

some matches its taken the person well in to the match before they even REALIZED i was a lefty. lefties tend to have alot more spin and kick on their serve and that really throws the opponent too.

only thing i've noticed is that lefties seem to have handwriting like an axe murderer........not EVERY lefty but it sure seems like alot of them did in school........not sure if it was because of those danged spiral notebooks we had to use and tried to write with our hand dangling over the spiral bound side...........i've seen lots of lefties that really turn the paper at an extreme angle when they write as well...........

i don't...........i write in the same manner as a right handed person.....

i write,eat,bat,use sissors all with my left hand............only things i do as a righty would be shifting gears in a car w/a manual transmission and use a mouse.

i don't find it more stressful being a lefty nor do i think i'm some genetic aborrhation............

i'm just ME.............so it infuriates me to see this crap on lefthanded people.

but that's just ME and my type A personality............

angie

I totally agree! I think the only reason why lefties have a bad handwriting some do not me, is because of the inadiquiteness of the teachers! They don't know how to teach a left hander so they try to force them to be rightites. Plus I read some older lefties tell how the teacher, when the kid refused to use their right hand, still insisted that they hold the paper at the angle the righties hold theirs, which is unnatural for us, so their handwriting got horrible because of it. I write just like a righty but with my left hand like a mirror image of how righties write. I did always hate those spiral notebooks with the rings on the wrong side! They drove me nuts. I do everything lefty except use the mouse too because most computers have the mouse to the right and it's too aqward to try to switch the whole table around and rearrange everything to put the mouse to the left. LOL! And of course driving I have to drive right handed that's how the car is made. But in things where I have a choice, I do them left handed.

Originally posted by jeepin4x4girl
I think the theory of left-handed people being short lived is a bunch of rubbish. What kind of proof do they have of this anyways? Have they documented and studied lifespans of ALL left handed people out there?
I highly doubt that.

No they haven't. I read about that and what they did was just look at the handedness of the older generations and since they found very few lefties they assumed lefties live shorter lives! Instead of using common sense and realizing that it's because left handedness was severely punished by teachers and society when the older generations grew up so more lefties were made into righties.

[edit on 1/23/2005 by Leading Lady]

Originally posted by marg6043
Well my husband is left handle I hate it sometimes specially when we have to seat next to each other in restaurants.

Now he has a terrible hand writing.

Now he is not gay

and he has not learning disabilities, actually he borders on fanaticism on micromanagement what make him great for finding mistakes, and saving the government money.

Now he can not stop me from spending

When my son started to used his left hand as a toddler I forced him to learn with his right and he has not problem.

By the way my husband's father is also left handed.

Aaawww you should never make a leftie become a righty, it messes with the wiring of our brains same as it would forceing a righty to become left handed. Most studies are beginning to show that it's best not to try to switch a lefty, but I'm glad your son was okay from it.

Just think how it would be if you had to go your life as a lefty when your brain processes things in a right handed way? LOL!

Originally posted by marg6043

Originally posted by superdude
By the way, my son is 2, and I still can't tell which hand is his favorite. He uses both hands for everything. Sometimes right, sometimes left.
Marg I have to ask, why did you decide to have your toddler stop using his left?

Because I tought that it was not reason for him to used his left, everything is a learning thing, you can teach your son to used both hands or one or the other.

I choose the one that is the most commun.

There's a reason why lefties are left handed though. It's not that simple. I know you meant well so I'm not downing you. His brain and body is wired for left handedness. People can adapt to using the right hand but we are at our best when allowed to do what comes natural.

Originally posted by superdude

another "lefty" checking in here...

No problems for me... well, I need to make more money, would like to have a home that is paid for... hmmmm play unlimited golf every day...

Yeah, I think you speak for just about everyone here on those wishes.....
BTW, still plenty of room here on the Birds bandwagon.

So what is the thing you don't like about being a lefty? My top 3 are:
1) Eating with a group of people and not getting the left-most chair.
2) Trying to use scissors - I now use razor blades to cut everything
3) Writing with a pencil - my hand drags across what was written and smudges it all up, not to mention what it does to my shirt cuffs..

Yeah, that's why some left handed kids developed the hook writing or wierd position because in school they would be punished mercilessly for smudging and smearing when writing. I also hate sitting in a group table and not having the left most seat! LOL! Bumping elbows while eating and sometimes almost grabbing the wrong water glass! LOL! Those darn righties do everything backwards!

Originally posted by poonchang

Originally posted by superdude

So what is the thing you don't like about being a lefty? My top 3 are:
1) Eating with a group of people and not getting the left-most chair.
2) Trying to use scissors - I now use razor blades to cut everything
3) Writing with a pencil - my hand drags across what was written and smudges it all up, not to mention what it does to my shirt cuffs..

Yeah, I feel ya. I don't mind right-handed desks, but left-handed desks seem to bother right-handed people. I don't like things that ergonomically designed for right-handers (anything with a molded plastic pistol-grip), it feels weird in either hand.

Some things I have heard about lefties are:

they are the devil's children or something else relating to Satan

that the ration of lefties to righties is something like 1/8, but the ratio for lefties to righties is something like 1/4 (hence the whole "gay" thing)

they are more creative/artistic (I have a hard time with this one)


I used to work in construction and guys would always mess with me, like offering to sell me a left-handed hammer. Though, I have seen some weird stuff being sold, such as a left-handed keyboard (everthing is backwards like a mirror image of a regular keyboard) that I can't imagine anyone using

What I liked about the article is that it pointed out that the ratio of lefties vs. righties has remained pretty constant throughout history. I wonder why the ratio has never changed: if it was random, wouldn't the ratio have been 50/50 at one point?

Yeah back in the past they thought lefthandedness was somehow associated with the devil! Anyone who knows me knows that can't be farther from the truth! LOL! And they wonder why they see more righties in the older generations! Oh and BTW I am no where near being gay or bi! I am strongly and strictly heterosexual. They really don't know why lefties are left handed, I think it's just nature's way of breaking up the manatony!

[edit on 1/23/2005 by Leading Lady]

Originally posted by poonchang
Wow! A lot of lefties here also show some ambedexdrious skills as well. I wonder how common that is among righties? Or if it's just attributed to adjusting to a right-handed world?

I think it's more because of adjusting to a right handed world. A lot of things we have no choice but to do right handed like with certain tools etc. But when all things are equal and we have a choice left hand is the first preference. I can do more with my right hand than righties can do with their left. Most lefties can.

I know three "lefties"

All are lesbians, and all are dyslexic. Must mean I know alot of lesbians eh?

But then again, one is American Indian, one is an Army Brat Caucasian, and one is something I do not remember at this time hehe.

Myself, when I went to train for boxing, I used both hands in order to become ambidextrous.

Likely, when I was a child, my everloving parents probably smacked me upside the head if I even picked up something with my left hand, thus, I am right handed.