Backstage at APT

Last Thursday was, in some ways, our first day of the new season. At least it was the first day we had seasonal staff in any of the shops. A carpenter was beginning to build a piece of scenery for As You Like It. The sun was shining and it was shaping up to be a great day of work on the hill. Alas, it was not to be. 

Shortly after I arrived at work, he came down to my office with his boss and a nail. The nail was going through two of his fingers. He had misfired a nail gun, and it had shot about 18 inches through the air and his forefinger, stopping only half-way through his second one.

He and I spent the morning at a nearby emergency room, where the nail was removed and given back as a souvenir. I’m not sure what we expected to happen at the hospital, but after an x-ray, they pulled a regular pair of pliers out of a sterilization bag, and tugged on the nail until it came out. That was pretty much it. From the time the nail went into his hand to the time it came out, he never winced. After a hearty lunch at Culvers, he and I got back to work.