It was the winter of 2010, and I booked a trip with friends to Upstate New York. One of our stops was at the apple farm to try their apple cider donuts. These were too good not to try. The donuts were soft and fresh from the oven. I accompanied these with a glass of apple cider. It was an apple type of day.

I also tried their apple cider ice cream. This one was super creamy and not too sweet, just perfect. The next stop was to do the actual apple picking, and we turned it into a photo shoot. We had a blast taking pictures by the apple trees and being silly. It was a fun-filled day. My friends and I ran around the farm looking for the best spots for our mini photo session. Some people ended up with poses of walking on the farm holding a basket of apples or eating them. Others decided to do funny poses by the apple trees. There were a total of 4 girls. We had so many laughs that day. I opted for doing mine under one of the apple trees, and as you will see soon, it was not the best idea.

Shortly after, we headed over to a dinner for a meal, since we had only eaten apples and apple-inspired foods all day. We built an appetite. We kept talking about our hilarious photo shoot and how silly everyone looked. It was a wonderful day and evening with friends. Then we returned to one of my friends’ houses to pack our things and sleep over for the night. We watched some movies and had popcorn and cupcakes. Those were the days were calories were non-existent and I hardly gained any weight no matter what I ate. I have always had a sweet tooth, and being with great people just kept building my appetite.

The next day, I had breakfast with my dear friends and took the bus back to return to NYC when my neck started itching on the way. I paid it no mind and fell asleep on the way home. Then things started to go downhill from there when the itching wouldn’t stop. The itching on my neck kept progressing, and I was at work the following day when a co-worker noticed the visible rash. The rash did not show up right away, but rather more like a day or two. I visited a dermatologist who diagnosed me with ringworm on my neck. Ringworm is a fungal skin infection. The doctor explained that I probably got it from infected soil (aka: photo session by the apple tree). I was given antifungal topical and oral medication, and my skin was clear in 2 weeks. I never did another photo shoot like this again; I learned my lesson. However, I still crave those apple cider donuts. It must be the texture of grainy sugar with a hint of fall! Better yet, I think it was due to being around people who saw the best in me and whom I appreciate to this day. As the saying goes, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away”; the only thing is that when it came to getting ringworm, not even the apple could save me. HA!