On pairing in general: For a long period of time when I worked at bigger companies (before co-founding my current venture) I pair programmed 90% about of the time.
For the most part I really enjoyed it, we alternated pairs quite frequently and I worked with people at a range of seniorities. I really enjoyed alternating between playing the role of teacher vs learning from someone much better at the (insert programming language, database, business domain).
I think during that time I also had some of the most stimulating and deep conversations about software development. When pairing, pairs have a deep shared context that's hard to replicate in other scenarios.
There are some drawbacks though, the main one being it's extremely full on and emotionally tiring. I'd class myself as a high functioning introvert and after a day of pairing I needed some serious regenerative quiet time!
My advice to someone considering this suggestion would be to try some pairing now with friends or colleagues and get a feel for it and see if it works for your personality and working style.
Hah, I'm stealing that phrase to describe myself too!
I've never "formally" done pair programming, but have sat and coded/reviewed with colleagues for short stints, and generally found it OK.
From time to time I have to do full days (or several days) of workshops, and find those really tiring and emotionally draining. I always think I fare better 1-1 with people though, so if pairing was a necessity, I'm sure I could adapt.
Wow, that's some impressive out-of-the-box thinking!
The OP's situation is something I worry about, as I'm worried my neuropathy will reach a point where I can't use my arms to type/mouse all day. I spent some time researching speech input for coding a year ago, and found a few fledgling solutions, but I'd need to expend a lot of time to get something remotely workable.
Your idea is, if I may say so, genius, and having that as a backup sets my mind greatly at ease, so thanks.