One of my reasons for going to the doctor yesterday was to have her look at some lumps which had appeared in the palms of my hands. I knew what she would say because I had already checked Doctor Google and I knew they were called Dupuytrens Contracture and were associated with people who are descended from Vikings. The disorder is mostly found in people from Northern Europe, places where the Vikings settled. Of course, my father's family came from North-Eastern Scotland and, apparently, on a clear day, you can see Norway from there.
The doctor was happy to confirm the diagnosis and mentioned it is often called Viking's Disease. I was quite pleased to have such an exotic disorder and asked whether it was rare. "Oh no," she said, "It's very common." That wasn't what I wanted to hear; I was hoping to have acquired something unusual that I could casually drop into conversation.
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