# Bend your pinky, and the rest shall follow

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 13, 2000, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377 "2000-07-13T00:57:08Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![TheNerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TheNerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheNerd)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377/21 "2000-07-14T02:08:15Z")

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I too can curl my left pinky while keeping the other fingers straight. I can’t curl my right without moving the others, but I can then uncurl the rest of them while leaving the right pinky curled.

All of the other fingers can curl/uncurl independently.

I played trombone for several years.

Who here can hold a pencil in their pinky and index fingers such that the middle two are curled under and not touching the pencil? I can, but again only on the left hand.

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377/22 "2000-07-14T04:10:32Z")

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I can do all of the tricks mentioned in this thread with either hand (more easily with right), but then again, my fingers are majorly screwed up. I can also do things like bending the last knuckle of a finger independently of the rest of the finger. What I can’t do, is straighten all of them… If I try, the bottom knuckle on each ends up popping out. I understand it’s due to a combination of heridity and too much knuckle-cracking… the only musical instrument I play is bass tuba, which doesn’t require that great a degree of independent movement.

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**Author:** ![Mr.Sheepshead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@Mr.Sheepshead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Sheepshead)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377/23 "2000-07-14T05:24:00Z")

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But, I play drums (very well), I play guitar (okay), I play cello (mediocre at best), I type quickly, and am generally dexterous with my hands (lots of video games have helped). Could it be though, that I’ve developed more of a ‘grip’ style? With drums there is a certain amount of tenderness involved (believe it or not), but it’s mainly in your grip and wrist action. I’m going to try **SaxFace’s** excercises however, just to see if I can convert.

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**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bend-your-pinky-and-the-rest-shall-follow/25377/24 "2000-07-14T12:06:19Z")

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I can do it with my right hand. Comes from  
decades of crochetting; I have a permanent  
callus where the crochet hook rubs my  
right pinky.

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