Nails aren’t just for looks

Nails aren’t just for looks

When mine break, I freak out—but not for the reason you think.

As a so-called tomboy growing up, every time I heard an assumption made about a female—whether in person or on TV—I would roll my eyes, growl, and sometimes even become quite cross with people. One of the worst offenders to me was when they’d have a girl character squeak, “Oh no, I broke a nail!” if she chipped a fingernail.

How bloody insulting! As if that’s what women really worry about, right? We’ve got our kids, our jobs, our homes, bills, families, lives, and hopefully interests—yet we’re going to throw a fit over a damn fingernail. Let me tell you something, folks; this generalization doesn’t apply with all women, and certainly not with the majority that I know.

That said… I do freak out when I break a fingernail.

I know, what a hypocrite, right? But it’s not a vanity thing. In fact, my nails are very rarely painted—ever since I found out about the chemicals and formaldehyde they put in nail polish, it just hasn’t been as attractive to me. The reason I hate it when I break a fingernail is that it throws my hands off balance when I type. My nails are what I often type with, and when I do some heavy duty cleaning or hang up pictures or whatever, I sometimes break one—and then when I type, my hands feel lopsided. Not fun!

My nails also come in useful every day. They are my pocket knives; I use them to open letters or plastic wrap or tiny toys for my daughter. I use them to score clay when we make sculptures. My nails come in handy for everything from cooking to picking out splinters, scraping tiny things out of holes or scratched surfaces (such as a Lego head from a crack in the table), and so many other things! Breaking off one of my nails is like taking my husband’s Xacto knife away from him.

Each nail even has its own best uses; my thumbnails are the strongest, for example, and I use them the most for opening things. My right ring finger was very useful when I had to clean out a broken tooth—now repaired with a crown, thankfully—that floss simply would not reach. My forefinger nails are likely the most useful in daily activities, though when I type, I must admit it is my pinky nails that must stretch the furthest, enabling my small hands to comfortably reach each key, that I rely on most. And it’s my pinky nails that I broke this week while doing some heavy duty spring cleaning and furniture moving!

So the next time you think that breaking a nail is a trivial offense solely related to beauty, think again. We’re humans; we have a use for everything.