I'm giving everyone the virtual thumbs up

Why?
Because I want to.
It's also a tribute to all thumbs everywhere in our profession.
I think we should have a national "massage therapists: kiss your thumbs" day.

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb Meets Another Massage Therapist's Right Thumb

This was actually from a couple of weeks ago when I got to meet my fellow blogger, Christina (of lucrativepain) when we went to lunch.
See that tree in our front yard? It's now covered in snow and the whole neighborhood is white.

Friends are a good thing to have, especially massage therapist friends.

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb Wishes Everyone a Merry Christmas!

Yep, Artie likes to dress up in a Santa outfit every Christmas.
He's nice and snuggly buggly in his wee suit.

Have a good one y'all!

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb on Labor Day Weekend

It's a tradition, isn't it? Labor day = grilling day, so the picture above is of Artie about to fire up the grill. If you click on the picture, you'll get a close up view of Artie's little apron, complete with all the accoutrement necessary to be able to flip, nudge and poke.

Artie hopes everyone is having a great weekend!

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb Celebrating July 4th

Just in case you don't know it- AMERICA ROCKS. Artie knows it!

A Massage therapist's Right Thumb looking for J.R.

Annie Liebowitz, eat your heart out!

Yes, people, that IS Southfork in the background and YES, that IS a wee cowboy hat on Artie.

No sign of J.R. I think he's too busy putting up solar panels.

If you're wondering why the picture is so bad, it's because the cops out Southfork direction don't like it when cars stop along the road in front of it to take pictures, so I had to take it really fast!

Can you imagine the conversation if I had been "caught"?

"S'cuse me, ma'am, why are you stopped along this road?"
"I'm taking a picture of my thumb with a cowboy hat on with Southfork in the background."
Just how would the conversation progress from there?

Gaelic lesson #47 "fear glas", pronounced "far glass", meaning "green grass" - Texas looks like Ireland these days since we've been having so much rain!

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb watching hockey

Injury prevention is always at the top of Artie's mind, even when relaxing. The reason is obvious: injured thumb = not able to work = no income = starve to death on the street.

So Artie is extra careful, even if it just looks like that puck is going to come flying out of the T.V. screen, it's good to have a thumb-sized helmet.

Gaelic lesson #44 "haca", pronounced "hawk-a" meaning "hockey"

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb celebrating cinco de Mayo

Following a little guitar playing, a couple of shots of Tequila and a siesta, Artie then dove thumb-tip first into a bowl of guacamole. Yum!

I thought that this day commemorated Mexico's independence, but it doesn't! It's actually a celebration of a battle nearly 150 years ago.

I learn a new thing every day!

Gaelic lesson #41 "taobh theas de teorainn", pronounced "teev hass d'terreen", meaning "south of the border"

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb doing Yoga

Yep, that's downward dog - thumbstyle.
(Plus the cutest wee yoga mat in the world).

Artie is very aware of all the benefits of yoga - increased flexibility, stress reduction, increased strength and body awareness.

Gaelic lesson #36 "madra", pronounced the way it looks! meaning "dog"

Dragon Tamers on Cruise Ships - I salute you all!

Yes, this is one massage therapist's thumb with another Massage therapist's thumb! Artie made a friend on the cruise.

I went for a massage on the cruise. One of the perks of being in this industry is that we can learn from others and I find that if I write about massage then I usually come up with improvements that can be applied to my own business. So I always write a review of my massage visits where some analysis is done and a wee "to do" list is the result.

Gaelic lesson #22: "Cara", pronounced "kara", meaning "friend"

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb on Formal Night on the Cruise

Yes, that is VINTAGE Yves St. Laurent.

Someone still needs to explain to me the difference between "Vintage" and "Old" (EXCEPT when you're talking about wine), other than the fact that it just sounds better.

Expect to see Artie's vintage dress on eBay soon - where people will be bidding more for it's "vintage"-ness!

Gaelic lesson #20 "guna", pronounced "goona", meaning "dress"

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb on Vacation

Artie knows the importance of adequate protection from sun damage (since we come across so many people who have had skin cancer) and so uses a big hat AND a parasol. Sunglasses are also a must as a preventative measure against macular degeneration.

Gaelic lesson #19: "Gloini greine", pronounced "Gloynee greyneay", meaning "sunglasses"

A Massage Therapist's Right Thumb on St. Paddy's Day

Yes, that is a tiny Guinness.
This year Artie celebrated St. Paddy's Day on a cruise ship sailing around the Caribbean.

Gaelic lesson #18 "Seamrog", pronounced "shamroag", meaning "shamrock"

Introduction to an MT's right thumb

Name: Right Thumb
Nickname: Artie (it's a play on R.T)
Interests: Opening things, expressing positivity ("O.K." or "Everything's cool"), scratching the side of a cat's face, palpation, alleviating pain in people
Moved by: abductor pollicis brevis, adductor pollicis, first dorsal interosseous, flexor pollicis brevis, opponens pollicis, abductor pollicis longus,
extensor pollicis brevis, extensor pollicis longus, flexor pollicis longus
Fears: Cuts, bites, mutilation, being severed from right hand and hyper extension which leads to no longer being able to work (Artie's nightmare)
Hopes: To be the Jason Bourne of Trigger Point therapy
Friends: Right hand, especially right knuckles since they share the same interests in trigger point handling

Gaelic lesson #6: "ordog" pronounced "ordoag", meaning "thumb"