life lessons
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A couple weekends ago I was in a WWII reenactment at Rockford, IL. Around bedtime, I walked out of my tent to go pee in some brush behind camp. I had taken my boots off just a minute before and they are a pain to get back on, so I just stumbled out in my socks. It was dark, but I knew where I was going. As I stood there relieving myself on a log, I felt a sharp pain in my foot. I thought I stepped on a thorn. I jerked my foot back and was fine. Not a moment passed, though, before my foot had the stabbing sensation again. I lifted my foot off the ground, but the stabbing was still there, and now all over my foot. I ran back into the tent, where two of my friends grabbed flashlights to investigate the problem. I could see little red spots here and there, but they didn't seem like they could generate the kind of searing pain I was feeling. After sitting around the fire with the guys for about an hour, I could finally relax enough to sleep. In the morning, my foot still hurt slightly, but only when I was running or jumping. However, as I was getting dressed, I noticed a guy taking a leak at the same spot I was the night before. I looked down to tie my boots, and when I looked up, he was running and tripping over tent ropes and stakes. When he got back to his tent, he looked as though he was performing the macarena. Then he violently tore off his clothes. At that moment I knew what it was. Bees. Lots of them. He ended up being stung over 20 times, but was completely fine other than the pain. We searched the site, and we found remains of watermelon rinds (last nights dinner, improperly disposed off). The fruit was covered with yellow jackets. I concluded that they were the culprits for my mishap the night before, and could count 6 stings, mostly on the inside of my left foot. Over two weeks later, and my big toe is still partially numb. I doubt it will ever recover. Wonderful.
Moral of the story: Always dispose of your garbage in appropriate receptacles. Also, wear boots to go pee in the middle of the night.
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A couple weekends ago I was in a WWII reenactment at Rockford, IL. Around bedtime, I walked out of my tent to go pee in some brush behind camp. I had taken my boots off just a minute before and they are a pain to get back on, so I just stumbled out in my socks. It was dark, but I knew where I was going. As I stood there relieving myself on a log, I felt a sharp pain in my foot. I thought I stepped on a thorn. I jerked my foot back and was fine. Not a moment passed, though, before my foot had the stabbing sensation again. I lifted my foot off the ground, but the stabbing was still there, and now all over my foot. I ran back into the tent, where two of my friends grabbed flashlights to investigate the problem. I could see little red spots here and there, but they didn't seem like they could generate the kind of searing pain I was feeling. After sitting around the fire with the guys for about an hour, I could finally relax enough to sleep. In the morning, my foot still hurt slightly, but only when I was running or jumping. However, as I was getting dressed, I noticed a guy taking a leak at the same spot I was the night before. I looked down to tie my boots, and when I looked up, he was running and tripping over tent ropes and stakes. When he got back to his tent, he looked as though he was performing the macarena. Then he violently tore off his clothes. At that moment I knew what it was. Bees. Lots of them. He ended up being stung over 20 times, but was completely fine other than the pain. We searched the site, and we found remains of watermelon rinds (last nights dinner, improperly disposed off). The fruit was covered with yellow jackets. I concluded that they were the culprits for my mishap the night before, and could count 6 stings, mostly on the inside of my left foot. Over two weeks later, and my big toe is still partially numb. I doubt it will ever recover. Wonderful.
Moral of the story: Always dispose of your garbage in appropriate receptacles. Also, wear boots to go pee in the middle of the night.
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