Portrait of Nemesis

[Bob_B]

...Actually, my nemesis: Toxicodendron radicans, known more commonly as poison ivy. I am hyper-allergic to urushiol, and have learned from past experiences to pretty much stay out of the woodlands from May to October. If I venture into them, I walk as one treads through a mindfield, look, step, look, step, etc. Judging from what I've seen recently, 2017 looks to be a banner year for poison ivy in Maryland. So, to appease the PI gods, I present "Portrait of Nemesis" in the hopes that they leave me alone and I avoid all contact with the plant for this year.

Thanks for viewing, and please feel free to leave comments.

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

Nice shot, Bob.

I am reminded of my first time away at summer camp as a kid. One my first day I got my hands in some poison ivy and then rubbed my eyes. I ended up in the infirmary for a week, with some ointment and bandages on both eyes. It was, as they say, a learning experience.

A good photographer friend of mine has a poison ivy website: http://www.poison-ivy.org/ .

Eric

[Jeremy Roussak]

I am reminded of my first time away at summer camp as a kid. One my first day I got my hands in some poison ivy and then rubbed my eyes. I ended up in the infirmary for a week, with some ointment and bandages on both eyes. It was, as they say, a learning experience.

Nasty. Just as well there wasn't a meteor storm while your bandages were on. Or any triffids.

Jeremy

[Bob_B]

Thanks Eric. My worst started out on a drive in my 1973 convertible Jensen Healy roadster on a warm afternoon after playing racketball in San Diego. (Stay with me here.) I had not showered after the game, opting instead to do so at home, a 30-minute drive away. My route took me along a brushy woodside where someone was burning a brushpile. I took no notice, driving through the smoke that blew across the highway. When at home -- a condo at that time -- I didn't immediately shower and talked with a few friends near the pool under the warm sun. Little did I realize that the smoke I had driven through was from burning poison ivy (or sumac) that now clung to my body. Three days later, I erupted in a full-body rash, especially in every nook and cranny of my body. I swelled up like a balloon, and itched all over and I do mean all over, especially in those areas where 'the sun don't shine'. Three IM shots of anti-inflammatory steroids, numerous, hourly soaking baths, and a month eventually freed me of the swelling and itch, and left a lasting memory of that Jensen Healy and the need to shower promptly.