Cankle

Since I seemingly have nothing better to blog about today, I figured I'd shoot out an update on how that cankle of mine has been doing.

(If you have issues with feet, I advise that you not read this blog post (or look at the following images, crummy as they turned out in the horrible lighting with a bad camera resolution)... ahem, Kari, Ticcia, Danika, Alex!)

Background: on our recent trip to Earth University, located in Guacimo, in the Limón province of Costa Rica (located in the right-hand side of the country), I was attacked by mosquitoes and hormigas (ants) and flesh-eating bugs. Particularly on my left ankle/foot. I was stupid and went out in sandal-clad feet on farm tours in the campo on the first day visiting the EARTH campus (in the cacao plants, gardens, fields, compost, herbal gardens, and amidst cows and pigs, etc.). Needless to say, my feet were pretty bit up (I counted over 20 bites that evening).

My bad. I should have worn socks and closed-toed shoes. (Which I did the next day.) Wearing just long pants didn't save my tortured left foot from blowing up to an abnormal size that completely hid any evidence of me ever having had an ankle. Tinctures, Ibuprofin, antihistamines, hydrocortisone and other topical creams and anti-inflammatories had almost no effect on my plagued ankle:

Tuesday and Wednesday, the heat and swelling of the humid Caribbean environment, as well as my lavender tincture of course, helped cure the itchiness. But arriving back to the CRC Wednesday evening, and then all day and night Thursday, I found the urge to itch irresistible! Usually I don't have a problem restraining myself from scratching bug bites. But oh how badly these bites itched! By this morning, the swelling had gone down, the itchiness subsided, and I can now see my left ankle bone again. But the scars and welts of the bites still remain.

To those who normally swell up and are attractive insect bait: I apologize for my complaining. I understand your plight and do not mean to blow my experience out of proportion, fully realizing that my hardship is just a glimpse into the suffering you regularly experience when camping, go on beach trips, or are hiking through humid jungles. (Em, I feel your pain!)

K, that's enough about that.