Episode 391: Police and Piercings

oh wow. so much to report.

i'm blogging in the daytime, which i'm not very used to. and i'm eating a bowl of chocolate cheerios. which, i happen to be very used to.

so i had kind of been keeping you updated on the status of my ear piercing. and how it usually gets infected every couple weeks. maybe every three weeks or so. maybe once a month, i actually don't know. only that it feels like i'm constantly cleaning it with alcohol. it usually is fine again after a week of alcohol cleaning.

however, about a week and a half ago, i suspected it was starting to get infected, so i began cleaning it. and as the days went on, it did not seem to be getting better. it seemed to be getting worse.

i woke up this past weekend (kara was visiting!) and my whole left ear was throbbing, swollen and bright red. MAN, it hurt. it had never hurt this bad before, even right after i got it pierced.

and so i began a more strict regimen of trying to fight the infection.

- kara said that when her earlobe piercing got infected once she used neosporin and it cleared up pretty quick. even though i had read that you're not supposed to use neosporin on piercings, i tried it.
- i had read about someone who would brew chamomile tea bags and wrap them around her ear. so, i tried this.
- tea tree oil! i read about lots of people who had killed infections by washing their piercing with tea tree oil. so i tried this. WHOA IT'S SMELLY. i haven't used it in over 24 hours and my bathroom still smells like tea tree oil. i had read that you should definitely dilute it before putting it on your skin, and then i had read that you don't need to dilute it at all. so, i started with like, 2/3 water, 1/3 tea tree oil. then the next time, i went 2/3 tea tree oil, 1/3 water. and then the third time i just used straight oil.
- i also continued to use the alcohol.

pretty soon, the bump on the back of my ear was so big that you could no longer see the end of the earring post. NO, i did not have an earring back on.

so, i guess i was kind of starting to get worried.

now, when i went to bed on monday night, this bump was white. like, full of gross pus infection things. when i woke up on tuesday morning, this bump was a lot more swollen AND purple.

i was kind of confused about the purple. so, i decided that after staff meeting i would see if i could get into the doctor's.

so, staff meeting ends at like, 2pm or so, and i head upstairs. Courtney suggested that i call Alice Peck Day Hospital to see if they could give me an appointment. now, ever since i have moved up here, i have not bothered to find a doctor. so, i am a doctor-less person in need of a doctor.

so, i call APD. i choose the 'same day appointment' option on the long list of automated options.

APD: Hello, this is triage.
JULIE: Hi... I'm hoping you can help me... I kind of recently moved to the area and haven't set up a PCP yet, but I do have health insurance..
APD: Okay.
JULIE: Um, well, I think my ear piercing is infected and I was wondering if there was anybody that could see me....
APD: Well, we're not set up to take patients that we've never seen before. The same day appointments are only for prior patients. You're best bet would be to go to the Dartmouth Emergency Room, but you should definitely get it checked out if you think it's infected.

so that was a bummer. they're not set up to take people they've never seen before? i didn't really get that. like, they don't have any blank forms.....? i don't know. but i DID know that i didn't want to go to Dartmouth Hitchcock because, although it's top notch, it's also a giant scary machine.

PLUS, an ER visit would have meant a higher copay. and, i didn't really think it was an emergency.

so, i did some googling for 'walk-in clinics' around here. there is a great walk-in clinic in Berwick, Maine that i have been to twice. they are awesome. and i recommend Jeffery.

the closest walk-in clinic to here was in Concord, which is like, 56 miles away. UGH. i decided i would make the trek.

so, i set off on my journey. i am ALMOST in Concord (like, a mile away from 93) when i get pulled over. YEAH. like, by a police officer. a state trooper, actually. i don't know if there's any difference. i was kind of worried, because i knew that i wasn't speeding. and i was also worried that i was not going to make it to the clinic before they close at 5pm.

so, the statie walks up to my car:

POLICE: License and registration.
JULIE: (says nothing)
POLICE: So, why isn't your car inspected?
JULIE: My car is inspected.
POLICE: Actually, it's not, and it's a $150 fine.
JULIE: Okay, but it is inspected.
POLICE: You have a '2' sticker on your license plate, but an '11' sticker on your windshield. So, to me that means that you were supposed to get your car inspected in February, but didn't.
JULIE: No, the car is supposed to be inspected in November.
POLICE: No, give me your license and registration and I'll explain it...

okay, let ME explain. even though i was born in february and that's when i SHOULD get my car inspected and registered, since i'm leasing this new car, it moves to the "toyota month," which is november. now, i had the new stickers in my car from when i registered it a few weeks ago, but i just hadn't put them on my license plate. why? well, basically because i thought it was lame.

i ALREADY had a 2011 sticker on my license plate from when i got my old car registered in february. now i was going to have to put a 2010 sticker BACK on, only to switch it to 2011 again in november? nah, that just seemed lame! so, i didn't.

POLICE: Well, actually, you're right, it is in November. But why haven't you put these stickers on your car?
JULIE: ....I guess....I just didn't want to.
POLICE: ......So, where do you live? Lebanon?
JULIE: Yeah.
POLICE: Well, this has a PO Box address on it. Do you live in a PO Box?
JULIE: I live on Abbott Street.
POLICE: Okay, cause a PO Box would be kinda small.
JULIE: No kidding.
POLICE: Okay, sit tight, I'll be back with this.
JULIE: Sure.

so, he's gone for a while. i'm worried i'm not going to make the doctor's. and then finally he comes back.

POLICE: Okay, I'm giving you a written warning. Where are you headed?
JULIE: To Concord for a doctor's appointment.

(i said 'doctor's appointment' because i wanted him to think that maybe he was making me late for something important.)

POLICE: And what are you going to do when you get there?
JULIE: I'm gonna put those stickers on my car!
POLICE: Great, have a good day.
JULIE: Thanks, you too.

and i put the stickers on my car. i lost. how could he have even seen that the '2' on my license plate didn't match the '11' on my windshield? i don't know. he was like, one car behind me and in the other lane. whatever. maybe i was a little mean to him. but, he was kind of mean to me, so i don't feel bad.

ANYWAYS, back on the road.

i find the clinic! after a bit of confusion as to which building, i finally get there. and WALK IN!!! i had made sure they took my insurance before leaving my house, so i knew i was going to be all set.

although, i was nervous because i had never used my health insurance before. like, MINE. it was the first time i was using it NOT being on my dad's. it was mine. i was the adult.

CLINIC LADY: Hi! What can we do for you?
JULIE: Hi!! Well, I think my ear piercing is infected.
CLINIC LADY: Let me see.... (shows her my ear)... WHOA! Yeah, that doesn't look good. Okay, we'll have someone take a look at it! Do you have insurance?
JULIE: Yes!
CLINIC LADY: Okay, so, just let me see that card so I can make a copy of it, and you can fill out these forms and we'll be good to go!
JULIE: Thank you so much!

so, i go and fill out the forms. and bring them back. it's a $15 copay, so that's not bad.

JULIE: These forms are all set...
CLINIC LADY: Hey, rock on! Alright, just sit tight and I'll be out to get you.
JULIE: Great!

so, i wait like, five minutes and then she comes out for me. and i go into the room. she takes my temperature, (98.4) and my blood pressure, (118 over something - which she says is great!). then she says that Danielle will be in to see me shortly and that she is a sweetie.

and then like, one minute later, Danielle comes in. and yes, she is a sweetie. and she looks at my ear and says,

DANIELLE: So, this is all healed over in the back.
JULIE: It is?
DANIELLE: Yeah, there's no more hole for the earring to go through. Are you wearing an earring back?
JULIE: No.
DANIELLE: Are you sure?
JULIE: Yes.
DANIELLE: Okay, because if you are, then it's trapped inside there.
JULIE: I'm definitely not wearing one.
DANIELLE: Okay, good. So, you have two options, either we could open this up now and drain it out, or, you could go home, soak it in warm water and Epsom salt and try and do it yourself.
JULIE: .....Umm....I think I'd feel better if you did it.
DANIELLE: Okay. And either way you're getting antibiotics. Alright, let me go get some numbing medicine.

okay now i was getting nervous. i didn't really know how this was all going to play out. and she comes back with this huge kit.

DANIELLE: Don't worry, I'm not going to use all these things. And I'm not going to use this big needle, I just need to get the medicine out.
JULIE: Okay, good!
DANIELLE: Alright, I'm going to give you this tiny needle to numb up the area. It will probably feel like a beesting and then burn a little after. Well, you got it pierced, so it will probably feel like that.

and now i'm nervous because i've never been stung by anything, so i don't know how that feels. but, it only pinches a little. and as soon as she sticks the needle in she says,

DANIELLE: Wow, there's stuff already coming out! Wow, lot's of stuff.
JULIE: Like....what kind of stuff...?
DANIELLE: Pus. Wow, you got this infected pretty good!!

and she's standing there for a while, draining all this stuff out. it didn't really hurt, which i was glad of. probably because she numbed it first.

DANIELLE: So, did you do this yourself, or did you go to a place to get it done?
JULIE: I went to a place. And, I've had it over a year.
DANIELLE: Oh!! It's not a new piercing?
JULIE: No, not at all.
DANIELLE: Wow, that's weird.

and she wrote me a prescription for antibiotics. and put a bandaid on my ear. no more earring. she said she could try to push the earring through if i wanted. but she didn't really seem to thrilled about that idea, and neither was i.

so, goodbye earring! so far, i don't really miss it.

BUT!! let me tell you about these antibiotics that i am on.

- 500mg
- four times a day
- for seven days!!

2000mg A DAY!!!! holy crap!!! i couldn't believe it when i saw the bottle. that's a lot of medicine for my little ear. it must have been about to fall off, or something.

and i looked up the drug online and it said that most people get an dosage of either 750mg twice a day, or 250mg four times a day.

I ALMOST DIED!!!! oh, that earring. i went 23 years without a single piercing, and then i get one, and the whole thing goes to crap.

NEVER AGAIN will i put an unnecessary hole in my body.

so, i've started taking the antibiotics. i've taken three already. four times a day is a lot. and Danielle told me to still soak it in warm water and epsom salt. so, i've been doing that. and she said that more stuff will probably still come out, and do just keep working at it.

aren't you so happy to know all this?!?! i bet you are. it's like the time i blogged through having the stomach flu. that was great too, right!?! oh, you all are so lucky to have me in your lives.


ANYWAYS. i was talking to kara yesterday on the phone before going to the doctor's and she said,

KARA: I mean, you want to get it checked out before you go see Crash Kings.
JULIE: Yeah, that's a good point. So that if Tony starts making out with me, he won't be totally grossed out.
KARA: Yeah, like, what if he wants to brush your hair behind your ear?
JULIE: Like the kid in Zombieland!
KARA: Yeah! I mean, that huge purple bump might be kind of a turn off.


which is a perf segue, because TONIGHT i am driving to Boston to stay with Ryan at her apartment! and then TOMORROW, we're driving to West Chester, PA to see CRASH KINGS. at The Note.

aaahhhh it will be sooooooooo great!!!!!!!! no JET this time, ONLY Crash Kings. well, and this other band, which we'll probably miss.

and after the show in PA, we're driving back north to NYC to stay with one of Ryan's friends. and then hang out in the city on friday! so great! oohhhh i'm so excited. we are great adventurers.

i did laundry last night. i washed all my pillowcases. wasn't that smart of me? i think so. i probably don't wash them enough, which could be a reason for the infection, i suppose. also, Ruby Tuesday walks all over them to try and get me to wake up in the morning so she can have her breakfast. that probably doesn't help.

ALRIGHT. i have things to do! before i leave this evening.

i haven't been to a Crash Kings concert since The Paradise on 9 March!! this is the LONGEST i've gone since the show on 31 January!

okay, let's play a fun game. let's see if Julie can name all the dates of the CK's shows she's been to. READY, STEADY, GOOOO!!!

- 13 December, The Middle East
- 31 January, Great Scott
- 4 February, The Collosseum
- 6 March, Northern Lights
- 7 March, Starland Ballroom
- 9 March, The Paradise
and soon to be:
- 15 April, The Note

so crazy, right?! so awesome.

ok, i'm gonna go now. perhaps eat something else. this entry has taken me quite a bit of time. it's like, 3pm now. tree! treepm.

hope you are having a lovely day. i will try and update you again soon. maybe like....in boston? or nyc? i don't know. you can keep you eyes open for Twitter/FB status updates as to my whereabouts.

OMGI'MSOEXCITED.

i think i'm going to embrace the dresses these next few days. it's supposed to be super nice weather. i might pack some dresses to wear. although, the dresses i'm thinking of don't have pockets. eh, i'll think of something. DRESS WEATHER! my fave.

dresses are also easier to pack than shirts and pants. they are generally better in every way.

OK! time for me to go do something productive. although, i consider this productivity. i wanted to let you all know about my piercing saga.

alright, i will talk to you at a later time and date. hopefully not too much later. take care. drive safe. i will drive safe. and hopefully not get pulled over again for nonsense reasons.


lovelovelove!