Itching

I'm lying in bed when I randomly scratch my chin. There, I've done it again. The third time I start to wonder. Soon I notice an itch on my hip. Now my head itches. Guess what my first thoughts are:

1. I have head lice.
2. I have ringworm.
3. My skin is dry from too-hot baths and winter weather.
4. All of the above.

And the answer is...
all of the above. Before you label me as paranoid and skip to another blog, humor me.

1. The case for lice: A friend of my fourth-grade son has head lice, as have several children at their school throughout the school year. Yesterday a note came home warning of the perils of head lice and suggesting adequate preventative measures. Feeling itchy, I ask myself? Yup, I'm convinced it's head lice.

2. The case for ring worm: My 7th grade son came home from wrestling with a three inch, thrice-wrapped bandage on his inner elbow. Major injury? Unraveling the bandage revealed a dime-sized patch of ringworm, and a massive red irritated patch of skin reacting to all those bandages. Apparently it's a occupational hazard of wrestling--one greatly feared by all wrestling coaches. Hence the huge bandage. Itchy hip? Must be ring worm. Which by the way, isn't a worm at all, but fungus. Sure, now you feel better about it.

3. The case for hot baths: Being in the energy saving business, I'm hyper-aware of striving to be energy efficient. Every light in my house has compact fluorescent bulbs. Still I'm constantly turning off switches. No crack goes unsealed. In the house that is. We recently installed a fireplace insert. Yet as winter yawns and stress builds (see recession) I have been indulging in long hot baths. Since then our water bill has gone up $30. Hey, it's cheaper than a massage! But bad on dry itchy skin.

The verdict?: Stay tuned for further updates. But my rational self (yes, I have one) is expecting number 3.