There’s a lot of zucchini floating around these parts. By a lot, I mean literally tons. If you could see the cooler at work, you’d understand.

Part of my job is to try to encourage people to take these vegetables to use immediately or preserve them for use during the winter.

Last weekend, I decided it was time to practice what I proclaim.

Armed with a recipe for zucchini bread, I ventured into the kitchen. I shredded the zucchini, sifted my dry ingredients and set out to get the wet ingredients ready. Thank God I had everything placed on the back part of the counter.

That detail is important in what happened next.

I put the required amount of oil in a large bowl and decided to get the mixer set up before adding the eggs and such.

One thing you need to understand at this point. I have a glass top stove. It’s been around for probably 15 years. To clean these things, you use razor blade-like contraptions to scrape off the crud that spills over in a family of non-kitchen savvy people. For 15 years, we’ve kept this contraption in the drawer next to the stove without incident.

I think you can see where this is going.

The beaters for the mixer were in the drawer next to the stove. I pulled on the drawer. It was stuck. I reached in like I’ve done thousands of times before to push whatever was catching out of the way.

Instant pain.

I jerk my bleeding hand back and wrap it quickly with a dish towel.

The razor blade contraption was what was holding the door open.

I kept direct pressure on it for longer than I should have, hoping that the bleeding would stop and I could avoid my first trip to the emergency room since I was four years old.

No luck.

Three hours later, I came home with four stitches in my left index finger.

So far, this escapade has cost a $125 co-pay at the ER. Today, I’ll pay a $15 co-pay at the doctor’s office to have the stitches removed.

So much for free zucchini bread.

And yet, I have so much to be thankful for … but that’s tomorrow’s story.