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December 28, 2005
Black Henna Nightmare
I want to blog about this, but it is hard to just report about it without going off on a profane tirade and getting very agitated. But I decided that I am going to try.
Before we went on the cruise to Cozumel I thought of henna tattoos as some innocent, temporary fun. So when the kids and I were in Cozumel we decided to get henna tattoos from a local vendor - one that was located right at the pier by all of the other touristy shopping areas. After the "tattoo artist" applied the "henna", I remember thinking that they seemed awfully dark, but didn't really have much reason to give it any further thought as I had never once heard anything bad about henna or henna tattoo artists.
Twelve days after we got them (yesterday) my 5 year old little boy developed an unbelievable rash on the tattooed area. The ink/henna had almost entirely faded, but now in its place was a raised, welted, blistering mess in the exact shape of the tattoo. It feels like he has been branded with a hot iron. It was itchy and painful for him. To see a picture of his arm you can click here, but be warned that it is kinda graphic if you are easily disturbed by such things. I want to post it because I really feel like I want to try to do something to prevent this from happening to others, although I realize my dinky blog is not exactly the best place to achieve that.
What happened? Since researching this I have discovered that my son is having an allergic reaction to a dangerous chemical called para-phenylenediamine (PPD) that these so-called henna tattoo artists put in natural henna (or sometimes there is no henna used at all) to make it appear darker. Who decided it needed to be darker, I have no idea, but they seem to be rather free to lure innocent victims in for some seriously severe health issues. This chemical causes severe allergic reactions in many, many people and is even banned in some countries. It is commonly found in some hair dyes and a handful of other seemingly unrelated substances.
[The following is NOT a valid treatment for this rash, but it illustrates the level of unawareness about this allergy, even by pediatricians. Read the comments section for how we really treated it] My son is now on an oral antibiotic and I am putting Bactroban on the area twice a day. I will also have to apply some Mederma to try to lessen scarring when the bulk of the rash subsides. Not to mention the fact that he has to avoid coming in contact with PPD for the rest of his life or risk suffering much worse consequences than he is currently enduring.
I feel so terrible. It is still very hard for me to believe.
**READ COMMENTS SECTION FOR MORE INFORMATION AND UPDATES**
Posted by Jamie at 11:48 PM | Comments (9)
December 23, 2005
Frito Lay Sweepstakes
This is going to be short and sweet (maybe?) as there is much wrapping and cleaning to be done, but I needed to share my latest discovery.
Now, I must admit that I have known of the existence of this band for probably a couple of years at least. And quite honestly, I did something I am not proud of; I harshly judged them before listening to them. The reason? Do you know how many times I have googled for images of the real Lazlo Hollyfeld over the part several years?!?! No?!
.....well it has been lots, I assure you. And yes, I realize that he is a fictitious character, what's your point?
So anyway, everytime they stood between me and my long-haired Jon Gries I would get very irritated. Plus, how dare they decide that they are worthy of such a great band name! PLUS, they buried all of my beloved Lazlo Hollyfeld google returns. We hate them.
Then tonight I found their MySpace page. They are actually listed as a friend of one of my friends on MySpace. It is a very cool friend, so I decided I needed to give them a listen. Finally.
Much to my pleasant surprise, they are very good. I am even deeming them worthy of the greatest band name ever that they have chosen for themselves - which, if you know me (or if you have been paying attention during the rest of this entry), is a huge deal. I have always had a special place in my heart for Lazlo. (RIP Laszlo)
Now we just need to figure out how to get them to Texas.
Posted by Jamie at 12:13 AM | Comments (8)
December 17, 2005
Has Anybody Seen My Land Legs?
Well, we are back. Although everything is still moving like it was on the ship, so I am not 100% sure about that. [insert woozy.wav]
We had lots of fun....especially the kiddos. It was really cool to spend so much time with family members we rarely get to see. We have a pretty cool family. Rock on! :)
We went to Progreso and Cozumel. It rained in Cozumel while we were there, but not too badly. However, the recent storms have had a devastating effect on the whole island. The trees are just completely and entirely destroyed, everywhere. But the sun came out for a bit and we played on the beach for awhile.
The water got a little rough Thursday night too and a few people in our group got a little seasick. But nothing too severe. I got a very nice massage and mini-facial the last day - whoo-hoo! If only I could have that every morning...
Pics to come...
Posted by Jamie at 07:57 PM | Comments (1)
December 10, 2005
Unintentional Online Poker Pushing
Ugh. Well I am almost outta here, but for the few and proud that like to comment in my blog I wanted to let you all know that I have had to turn on comment approving - too much freaking blog spam. I hate that guy. What is so great about online poker anyway? Texas Holdem...??? Please.
Also, I've changed a few things over there to the right...see? -->
Posted by Jamie at 11:34 PM | Comments (5)
December 08, 2005
Bipolar Blog
Q: What kind of an idiot throws her back out 5 days before going on a cruise*?
A: The me kind. Ugh.
This is painful and vicodin and muscle relaxers apparently make me nauseous. And I am at work. Joy.
I sure do whine a lot...let me think of something happy to say...hmm...I know!! We went shopping and bought lots of holiday gifts for neighbors and teachers the other day. That was fun!!
...ow....
*Note - "5 days before going on a cruise" = yesterday
Posted by Jamie at 09:40 AM | Comments (4)
December 02, 2005
GG 2nite @ KK, got it?
GG tonight.
You know when.
You know where.
Be there or be line segment-y.
Posted by Jamie at 03:34 PM | Comments (4)
December 01, 2005
Send Me Your Links
Wanna help me? Technology Bytes has a new section on their website where we can add links to our favorite Windows, Mac, or Unix support sites. So I thought I'd see if anybody that reads my blog would want to help me help them.
The best part is that if you come up with something really cool, you will make me look really cool when I add the link. What could be better?! However, if you do not wish to contribute to my conniving scheme to attain geek adoration ::snort::, then you can go ahead and add the link yourself. Which is just as groovy, but just know that you do need to have an account on the geekradio website to add links.
And just so you know...there will be a link to this blog on the site as well, so either I am really bad at scheming or I was just kidding about trying to gain false geek cred.
Ugh. I know, I'm such a dork. Tee-hee!
Posted by Jamie at 08:39 AM | Comments (0)