"I come to shave you, Sir"

One of the most embarrassing thing about preparing for surgery, is the shaving around your groin area. When I was being prepared for surgery in RAF Cosford Hospital in the UK, a male orderly carried out the job in a bathroom. Conscious of shaving an officer on the most private anatomy, the orderly engaged me in a serious conversation about the Japanese occupation. Half way through the precedure, he decided to hand me the razor to finish the job myself, sparing me of further embarrassment. I thought it was very decent of the chap.

When I had my gall bladder removed, now in a civilian hospital, the male nurse came to my room and asked to shave me. I thought that was odd because my gall bladder was no where near my groin. Anyway the chap insisted he had to shave so I let him shave. I felt rather foolish about that.

This time round when I was being prepared for my hernia operation, a Filipina male nurse, immaculately dressed in his green uniform came to my room and asked, "I come to shave you, Sir". He was very pleasant about it. Then he asked me which side will the operation be. I told him on the right side. Then he told me, " I will shave only the right side, Sir". I thought it was odd and stopped myself from laughing. Then I told him he might as well shave both sides. I thought that if he had shaved me only one side, when the surgeon lifts up the cover, he would end up on the floor in hysterics! That could be pandemonium in the operating theatre with everyone laughing. How embarrassing!

Till then....