Vermont Achievement Unlocked: Mild Frostbite

So on Monday we had a bit of a snowstorm. Nothing too bad - quite a bit of snow, but the light & fluffy kind. We ended up with maybe 12" overall.

Mondays are my day off, and so I was home with the dog, cleaning the apartment and watching home renovation shows.

I took her for a walk when I got up. Nothing really intense; just 30 minutes or so around the block, taking a couple of double-back routes to get us both some fresh air.

It was 0 or just below; cold, but not anything I hadn't done before. I was wearing appropriate boots, hat, gloves, long coat, etc., and jeans.

I got back into the apartment, and jumped into the shower. I was quite cold, obviously, but again: nothing out of the ordinary.

The tops of my thighs started itching badly under the hot water of the shower. Then they started burning. I was a bit weirded out but didn't get worried until I got out of the shower and noticed that the skin on my legs had swollen so badly I couldn't see my kneecaps anymore, just dimpled wrinkles. The skin was an unbelievable lobster red.

So, um, whoops? I must've been walking into the wind the entire time, and out there just long enough, with not enough layers on the one part of my legs.

Needless to say, I promptly put on Smartwool tights underneath my jeans and didn't leave the house for the rest of the day.

Two days later, they seem to be fine, with just some residual sensitivity. I have been carefully applying moisturizer to try and keep the skin healthy, and after the first day the random burning sensation stopped.

Still, that's a first for me! Obviously I'm pretty good at layering up, and obviously I've worked outside in much colder temperatures, but it serves as a good reminder for how careful you have to be, even about the little things!