Lake H20? Hell NO!

The 4^th of July holiday weekend was traumatic - for me and my butterfly.  Friday afternoon, I left work and headed to the lake for the long weekend.  Somehow, I managed to cut my toe on what I can only assume was a rusty fishing hook, locked my keys in the trunk with the high tech security enabled, got lost on a boat in the dark without lights, and could not even set off my own fireworks due to the dry conditions. 

My butterfly had it worse though.  Even though I tried to avoid the stagnant lake water Saturday (day 5) with my swollen, oozing ankle, it was impossible with 100ºF+ temperatures and blazing sun.  The third or fourth time I jumped in the water, all the skin from my blister peeled off exposing the tender skin underneath-ouch!  I washed it with warm soap and water every time I got out of the water and reapplied sunscreen to avoid infection and hyperpigmentation, but it was really uncomfortable. 

Yesterday (day 8), the swelling and redness were so bad that even the smallest step was painful.  I was certain I had infected the area with some flesh eating bacteria and I would have to have my leg amputated.  As it turned out, I was just overreacting as usual.  It’s just the beginning of the next phase – the scab.