Happy July!
When I was a little kid, I was playing in the Guthrie’s back yard. Our ball went into a shrub and I reached in to get it. I pulled my hand out in a hurry because it felt like something burned me. My clearest memory of that incident was how puffy the back of my hand got. And it hurt. It lasted for a few days and went away. I remember being told I probably got stung by a caterpillar, but I don’t recall seeing one.
This little bugger got me on Monday afternoon and it’s such an annoying itchy mess on my neck. I didn’t know about the little hairs sticking in your skin just like the soft, downy “hairs” on some forms of cacti. I didn’t know you need to take a piece of sticky tape and pluck the little hairs out of your skin. The caterpillar landed between my collar and my skin and when my granddaughter told me it was there, I reached up and felt around which ended up pressing the hairs not only into my skin, but into the fabric of my collar. I wore the shirt for another two hours and every time I turned my head, I was poking myself over and over with more of those little barbs.
The particular caterpillar involved was most likely a Definite-marked Tussock Moth Caterpillar. This picture looks the closest to what I remember it looking like. I wish I would have thought to take a photo. Within an hour, the site started burning and itching a little. It was about as big around as a quarter. Tuesday there was definite spread and little red bumps. Yesterday, it was really red and there were definite hives. I did some searching online and there wasn’t any one remedy. It said to try over the counter steroid creams, or Benadryl cream. It said to wash the area and use the tape to remove the hairs. It suggested using cold compresses. It definitely said not to scratch the site. Yeah, right. I read that too late!
I downloaded the app from the Poison Control Centers last night, entered all the information I had, and was told what I am experiencing is normal and I don’t need to go to the ER. It said it was ok to use both the topical Benadryl cream as well as oral for a short period. Cold compresses would soothe the area. And stop scratching. It said it can take up to four days to resolve. As I write this, I’m at about 54 hours. I truly believe this was the worst of it and it’s going to start getting better now.. But I’ll tell you what, I’ll be on the lookout for hairy caterpillars and stay as far away from them as I can!
We went to the farm yesterday to mow. It started sprinkling on us as soon as i got off the riding mower. We headed home, put everything away, and the moment we walked in the door, the sky opened up and it poured the rain down, but it didn’t last long. We had several quick thunderstorms zip through but no real rain to speak of. We did have severe rains and flash flood warnings last night, so we’ll see what happened once the sun comes up today.
We drove to town late in the afternoon to buy a big tarp to put over my little ‘67 Franklin. The old one ripped apart in less than a month’s time. We got it covered just as the rain hit at home. We had ice cream for a treat, and that was the end of the day. Little enjoyed just hanging out in her room much of the day. Down time is important for a kid. Today, we need to walk for exercise. Then this afternoon we meet Frank & Beans at the farm for a run-through of how things work.
There’s always a story, isn’t there?
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“The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.”
Proverbs 22:3 ESV