The Creeper
OMFG, I am so farking itchy!!! This, my friends and associates, is the lovely vine called Virginia creeper. I thought it was pretty. I almost touched it when Lucas yelled, "Noooo! That's poison!" He didn't know what, just that I shouldn't touch it. So I didn't... then.
Unfortunately, a huge patch of it has decided to take over the area where we want to plant flowers near the house. It's an invasive vine and in our case, was also tangled up in m-f-ing grape vines. Even though I wore long pants, a long shirt, and gloves (in the farking one billion degree humidity), it got on me. The first rash appeared 2-3 days after exposure, one spot on my arm.
Then another spot on my arm. Then the other arm. Now it's on my foot, legs, chest, and back. Despite careful use of soap and detergents, including a separate washcloth for my precious region, it continues to spread. I looked it up online and to my horror, some people even plant this on purpose! It seems that only a very few people are actually allergic to its active ingredient, oxalate crystals. Figures. And as this is a true allergic reaction (as opposed to the contact dermatitis commonly caused by the urushiol in poison ivy), there's no telling when I will stop breaking out even without further exposure.
I'm only halfway done with the weeding, and there's plenty more of the nasty stuff out there. I need a hazmat suit. Caladryl, Benadryl, and baths--like the goggles, they do nothing! Also, I suspect the cat(s) may be bringing more oxalate back with them from the great outdoors. Argh.