Burn, Baby, Burn.

I'm dusting off the ole keyboard to bring an update! We recently got home from the beach, and I can't wait to share about our trip! However, while I'm sure you associate getting a nice golden tan with being beachside, I'm here to tell you that - after trial and error, almost twenty-two years (woah) of life, and more than enough sunscreen, I am quite the opposite coming back from the beach, and here's why! 

Exactly a week before we left, my cousin and I decided to have a "pool day". The brightest light that my poor legs had seen prior to this day were the LED lightbulbs in our home. So, I thought, "What a great idea! We can chat all day while my skin bakes brown in the hot sun." Well, brown wasn't quite the outcome. In fact, BRIGHT RED wouldn't even do it justice. Ya'll, I was so sunburned from literally head to midsection, and from my legs down to my toenails, that my skin literally looked purple for a few days. It hurt to sit, stand, lay down, walk, breathe, or blink. It even hurt for my hair folicles to sway in the breeze (Actually, I'm not sure that's true because I didn't see the sunlight for 3 days after this burn happened.) I was so burned that I actually became sick. Nausea, fever, cold sweats, dizziness, headache. You name it. I was quite the mess! The morning after I decided to scorch myself, I didn't get out of bed for ANYTHING until around 4pm. Sadly, I avoided a shower like the plague because I felt like someone was throwing sizzling grease onto my body no matter how hot or cold the water was. Needless to say, I learned my lesson. My dad was probably angry because he always warns me about wearing sunscreen, but he never said much about it after this incident. I think he realized that I had punished myself enough. (Thanks, Dad!) 

So, by the time we left for the beach, I was almost back to my pasty self, except some of my skin was still peeling. Ah, who am I kidding - I was molting! I had applied self tanner (HEY, Jergans Natural Glow, I love you!) as a moisturizer to decrease peeling and to help with my "Natural Glow", but by the time we were leaving, that layer of my skin was peeling and it was simply a mess. Gross! 

So, now you have that backstory - I will say that THANK YOU VERY MUCH I stayed under the umbrella with 1,000 SPF on my body for the entire week, and I actually never took my coverup off. So, there you go, overachiever! I actually look nothing like I went to the beach. Blah! It wasn't worth having my veins fried to the point of shriveling up - and honestly, I felt as if I had cheated death -- no need to try that again ever anytime soon.

I would show you pictures, but honestly it's just brutal and I am trying to erase it from my memory. I walked like a hobbit for 3 days because I couldn't bend my legs. I slept without breathing for the same amount of time because if I moved at all the sheets would rub my burn, and I would wake up in an immense amount of pain. 

I did, however, finish an entire series on Netflix called "Switched at Birth", 

and for all of you who are interested in SLP, or learning another language, I HIGHLY suggest this. It really opened my eyes about hearing impaired people, deaf people, and hearing people as well. It has given me even more of a passion about my chosen field of studies, and it has given me inspiration and purpose behind WHY I want to know ASL (American Sign Language) so badly.

I will be back with an actual BEACH post SOON!