Once bitten, forever smitten!
My husband went hiking with some of his friends yesterday and, of course, OF COURSE, he managed to get bitten by a tick.
I'm not a very good wife, I'm afraid, because the first thing I did when he told me was laugh. I did this for two reasons, the first of which was the aforementioned "OF COURSE" reaction. Of course! Who else would get bitten by a tick if not one of us? We are lightning rods for bad luck.
The second reason I laughed is because I didn't imagine it was that serious. For some reason, I thought a tick looked more or less like this little guy:
Yes, a rolly polly. And I imagined the rolly polly adhering itself to the skin, so that one would have to pull it off. Painful, perhaps, but not serious.
What Leon showed me, however, looked more like this:
Only, this insect had burrowed twice as far into Leon's hip and only a little bit of its body and back legs were sticking out. Leon didn't even want to show me, because he thought I'd be grossed out. And he didn't want me to help him, perhaps because I'd laughed. I spent the remainder of the evening apologizing and chasing him about the apartment with our camera and a pair of tweezers.
Leon managed to pull the tick out by himself, and we both think it came out in one piece. However, the area where he was bitten remains black, which sounds a bit scary. It's not quite yet Lyme disease scary (ticks typically need to be on you for 24-48 hours in order to infect you), but I think it makes sense for him to see a doctor.
He's not taking my advice, though, perhaps because I laughed at him. Ah, well, if he does end up with Lyme disease, that'll show me and my ill-timed sense of humor!
I'm not a very good wife, I'm afraid, because the first thing I did when he told me was laugh. I did this for two reasons, the first of which was the aforementioned "OF COURSE" reaction. Of course! Who else would get bitten by a tick if not one of us? We are lightning rods for bad luck.
The second reason I laughed is because I didn't imagine it was that serious. For some reason, I thought a tick looked more or less like this little guy:
Yes, a rolly polly. And I imagined the rolly polly adhering itself to the skin, so that one would have to pull it off. Painful, perhaps, but not serious.
What Leon showed me, however, looked more like this:
Only, this insect had burrowed twice as far into Leon's hip and only a little bit of its body and back legs were sticking out. Leon didn't even want to show me, because he thought I'd be grossed out. And he didn't want me to help him, perhaps because I'd laughed. I spent the remainder of the evening apologizing and chasing him about the apartment with our camera and a pair of tweezers.
Leon managed to pull the tick out by himself, and we both think it came out in one piece. However, the area where he was bitten remains black, which sounds a bit scary. It's not quite yet Lyme disease scary (ticks typically need to be on you for 24-48 hours in order to infect you), but I think it makes sense for him to see a doctor.
He's not taking my advice, though, perhaps because I laughed at him. Ah, well, if he does end up with Lyme disease, that'll show me and my ill-timed sense of humor!