Every time I hear someone say they’d prefer to deal with a situation like pulling off a Band-Aid (i.e., doing it quickly so as not to prolong the pain), I remember a time when *I* said something like that.
It was a few days after I’d had a decidedly minor surgery, but not so minor that it hadn’t necessitated a hospital stay during that time. At this point I was bored and I was eager to go home, and the last obstacle standing in my way was the removal of my post-surgery bandages (which were attached to me via some sort of adhesive).
So the doctor comes in, makes the usual small talk, then asks me if I want the bandages removed “fast or slow.” Naturally, I say fast.
That’s when he looks at me like he’s really seeing me for the first time. “I was kidding,” he said with deadly seriousness. “Fast would kill you.”
Candles & Curses 