Here is the problem: There are thousands (and more unknown)types of fungi in the environment. They all cause different symptoms and can require different treatment protocol. The key to treatment is finding out the particular strain from which you are suffering. I have been dealing with kerion lesions all over my body for the last few months and I'm very quickly discovering that doctors and vets are CLUELESS in Mycology. They learn the very basics in med school and don't further their education. You have to be proactive with your health and do the research yourself. There are fungi out there that are zoophilic as well and you can pass infection between your pets and vice versa. You really have to see a doctor, preferrably a dermatologist and ask for a fungal culture. They will take a scraping of your skin, a biopsy, or hair samples and send it off to a lab to culture. There it will grow in a dish and go from there. Some fungi grow relatively quickly, others, it may take weeks for results. I just can't believe that the medical community isn't better educated. I went to the ER because I don't have insurance. I told the doctor about my symptoms, ranging from fatigue, hair and skin problems, all the way to arthritic joints. I also mentioned my 3 dogs have the same type lesions. I told him I thought I might have a systemic fungal infection and his response was "First of all, I'm not a vet, so what your dogs have is of no concern" and "Systemic fungus won't present this way". STUPID!! So...what does he do? Takes a skin scraping, goes and looks at it under the microscope and says to me that he didn't see anything crawling but he did see something that looked like it had 'branches'. Ummmmm, HELLO?!! Branches=Hyphae=FUNGUS!! So he prescribes LAMISIL and Bactrim (antibiotic). Well, if he knew anything about fungi, he would have known that antibiotic are the worst treatment for fungi. They kill bacteria and then the fungi have all the room in the world to grow. Making your infection even worse. Don't let a fungal infection spread, they can be very dangerous and I believe are the source of a lot of major illness. The post above me mentions the light and dark spots and not being able to get rid of them. I'm not a doctor but it sounds like Tinea Versicolor, which is a non-invasive fungus that can be treated with over the counter preparations with active ingredients such as clotrimazole or miconazole. You have to treat this for a long time and may never completely kick it. Don't start and stop any treatment because it can become resistant and stronger and your condition may get worse. Probiotics are readily available at any health food store or pharmacy. There are food products out there with them in it also. Not just any yogurt will suffice. It has to have live cultures in it and if it doesn't say that, it doesn't. I think Activia is a popular brand that has lactobacillus acidophillus in it. Just do your own research and take your findings to your MD. Hopefully, he/she is open to learning and listens. If not, seek out another doctor that is!!

Any size inflatable ball, Make sure the ball is fully inflated so there is no give Flower Pot big enough that when you set the ball in it that only about a quarter of the ball sets in the flower pot. You want to be able to set the ball in the pot and the ball does not fall out of the pot. This is important and so very helpful when working with a large ball You will need the following Couple of large Trash Bags Concrete Bonding agent.......Lowes, HD next to concrete dyes looks like Elmers glue. Bonding agent helps new mixture to stick to dried project. Use half water half bonding agent when you need extra hard hold or for really large projects Fiberglass drywall tape you can get this at lowes, home depo one roll last forever 1 sturdy plastic Flower Pot Do Not use Terra Cotta pot. I use a light mix works well 1 Part Portland Not concrete mix that you buy this has to be PORTLAND CEMENT 1 part peat moss 1 parts perlite 1 Part water This makes a lightweight but very strong project Vaseline Caution Do use gloves, Do use a mask when mixing as the dust is very fine and will get in your nose and mouth, use goggle over glasses trust me the dust will scratch your glasses 1 Make your hypertufa mix well and let it set 2 Place one opened trash bag in the flower pot so that the bottom of the bag is inside the pot let the rest fold over the sides. You will use the part of the bag that is hanging over to cover your Speer once done. 3 . Totally cover your ball with Vaseline be generous. Then rub what is on your hands into your hands really well. Your hands will thank you later 4 Locate the Air Valve on your ball, Place your ball in the flowerpot making sure that the air valve is at the bottom when ball is setting in the flower pot Getting started is the hardest part many people find it helpful to take a hand full of mixture and rub it all over the ball its helps the rest stick better Start applying your tuff to your ball. There are many different ways to start everyone has their own style. I usually start at the bottom and go all the way around the ball turning the flowerpot as needed and working my way up the ball. Trying covering your ball in equal amounts all the way around. The ball can get very heavy and will flip on you really quickly.. The bigger the ball the easier it will flip on you ******** It can be hard to get started DonÂt Give up Once your ball is totally covered and your feel itÂs held well then takes the part of the trash bag that is hanging over and brings it up over the project and cover. I then take the second trash bag open and cover the entire project again. Place in a safe place and let it set Now try really hard not to open the bags and look at your project for a week. Amount of time depends on weather After a week I then open the ball and depending on the size of my ball or what effects I want I will apply a second coat of mixture in a different color This is also where you pick up the project out of the flower pot and if the opening is larger then you want then you use the mixture with the bonding agent to fill in as much of this area as you want. Remember you will have to leave a large enough opening to deflate the ball and pull it out or not some people just cover the opening and leave the ball in. I always deflate the ball and pull it out. If you do not want an opening at this point you deflate the ball and pull out, take some very thin chicken wire and the tape, cover the opening and apply mixture on top and blend in with rest of hypertufa and you will have a hollow Speer. Depending on the size of your project closing the opening up you may want to take a two step approach. Patch in as much as possible leaving just enough room to deflate ball and pull it out let project dry for a couple of days in same fashion as above then deflate ball pull out then use chicken wire and tape cover remaining hole which should be no more then 3-4 inches across and cover with hypertufa Applying mixture really thick is not necessary I have many Speers that are no more then 1/2 in thick and they are very strong *******This part is important on the second coat or for closing openings instead of water in your mixture use half water and half concrete bonding agent. If project is really large also apply some of the fiberglass drywall tape to the Speer several strips from top of Speer to the bottom helps.. Do not apply a heavy second coat and DO NOT PRESS IT HARD OR YOU WILL CRACK FIRST COAT. The second coat is really just for special effects or to cover small areas you didnÂt apply enough of first time and is not necessary for Soccer ball, BB ball sized projects. . **** Remember the inside of your project will be very smooth you can always cut this Speer in half and use itÂs for future mold by simply lining it with a plastic bag. Once project has cured 2-3 weeks in a safe spot I then just unwrap them set them in the garden for several weeks and let nature take care of things 2 or 3 good rain storms and you can plant in them . If project is more than 1 inch thick some drill holes in the bottom will be needed for drainage If your mixture is to dry add a little bit of water and mix well continue to do this until you can squeeze a little water out of a handful If your mixture is to wet try laying your mixture on some newspaper for a few min and newspaper will absorb excess water or add more ingredites just remember to add equal parts of each . If your mixture continues to slide off your ball then it has to much water Happy Tuffing Ladies itÂs like being a little kid again and getting to play in the mud as long as you want. WARNING Tuffing is fun and will draw neighborhood kids by the dozen, so work in a secure place or be willing to answer lots of questions. This whole process is very confusing to children they just canÂt understand an adult playing in the mud like that and having a good time.

"If the marijuana community uses it, it must be invaluable" Since it is the number one cash crop, I listen. "..... and I think it's safer to assume/imply there ARE fungus gnats in the neighborhood than imagine there are not." I haven't seen a fungus gnat in a long time. "That's all wonderful if you need a wetting agent and don't mind the smell of rotting alfalfa and tobacco" You have a despicable habit of making up hypotheticals and then pretending that they are real. You don't anything about the smell of rotting alfalfa and tobacco because you never tried it. Besides, many houseplants are outdoors right now where it doesn't matter. Incidentally, did you stop beating your wife? ", but it seems like a lot to go through when the grower has absolutely no idea whether or not what might be in the alfalfa/tobacco juice is actually needed by the plant." No, it is less work to perform a controlled experiment than it is to decipher your excessively verbose BS.

Very interesting thread! I have relatively thick, straighter than straight hair. On one half of my head that is. The other side likes to do a little flip thing just to annoy me. And to make matters worse I have a huge ridiculous cawlick that runs down the back of my scalp and when my hair goes flat, the cawlick parts like the Red Sea. I find that the more conditioners that are in shampoo's the flatter my hair is. If I use conditioner after I shampoo my hair is horribly limp. THEN it gets all dry and brittle and even more flat. THEN I buy more expensive shampoo's and conditioners to try to fix it only get battered hair. So, I stopped with the expensive shampoo's and started using dish detergent - not all the time but at least once a week. Then apply a little conditioner and my hair is great. When I shampoo with regular shampoo, I will use a vinegar rinse and NO conditioner at all. The dish detergent (usually Sunlight) gets out all the hair products and conditioners that weigh the hair down. My hair has never been healthier-looking (for dead cells lol) and I colour my hair - myself. Hair salon dyes have too much conditioner. I don't use shampoo for colour treated hair just ol Sunlight and regular conditioner and my colour doesn't fade. My hair stylist are always commenting on what good shape my hair is in and when I tell them what I use - they stop with the sales pitches on their products. LOL I've recently started using Sunsilk Anti-flat shampoo and conditioner and I like it. It is weightless and very mild and my hair does seem to be fluffier longer when I use it. deb ab, I've often wondered about those got2be products. I need something that won't flatten. I use the worse products - Final Net hair spray. My hair is short and spikey (perfect style for straight hair) but I have a hard time finding products that will make the spikes last longer and not flatten. I envy people with curly hair! I have a hard time getting a good hair cut and am always looking for someone who specializes in straight hair. One little slip up when cutting straight hair and it is so noticeably. That's why I got the spikes - so you can't notice if it is slightly off kilter. Who knew I'd have so much to say about hair? lol BJ