The battle against rosacea

You can't really tell by this picture, but my rosacea, which I had managed to successfully keep in check for so long, has returned with a vengeance on the left side of my face. I'm doing everything that the doctor tells me to do - wash my face using mild cleanser, use the prescription face medication (MetroGel 1%) twice a day and faithfully moisturize against the dry, cold winter air, but it's come back anyway. I'm extremely disappointed and frustrated and I don't know what's causing this most recent flare-up. I don't know if it's diet or the rigorous exercise I do or my hormones or what, but it does seem to be at its worst during certain times of the month, indicating to me that it's purely a hormonal thing, and that seems to be something that nothing much can be done about. I've been exercising for over a year now with no adverse affects to my rosacea. Sure, I've kind of kicked it up a notch and gone to work out a bit more during these long cold winter months in an attempt to keep off the usual winter weight gain, and maybe that's a contributing factor, but I hate the idea of not exercising just to keep my face clearer. It just frustrates me to no end feeling like a teenager battling acne again at my age. I hate having the red blotchiness on my face when I have always felt like I'm not terribly attractive to begin with, and this just exacerbates the feeling. I do not want to take oral antibiotics for the rest of my life, and besides, my doctor dislikes the idea because it would put me at risk for an MRSA infection, the methicillin resistant staph that can eat flesh and cause other bodily damage. I don't care to take antibiotics a lot anyway because they tend to wreak havoc on my digestive system and I just don't want to go there. Overuse of antibiotics is the reason we have superbugs like MRSA and others. So I may either seek out alternative medicine to deal with this or consult a dermatologist and see what they may offer in the way of solutions. All I know is that I want the clear skin I had at one point last year, and I don't know if there's any way to test for possible irritants that are causing these flare-ups, but I want it gone and soon. I simply hate it and find it embarrassing.

KSU'S OFF TO THE BIG DANCE!

Kent State handily defeated the University of Akron in last night's MAC Championship basketball game, 74-55, earning them a spot in the coveted NCAA Tournament, known fondly as "The Big Dance". This year's team has four dominant players reminiscent of the 2002 championship team that went to the NCAA that featured Trevor Hufman, Demetric Shaw, Eric Thomas and Andrew Mitchell. The "Big Four" of this year's team are MAC Player of the Year Al Fisher, Chris Singletary, Mike Scott and Haminn Quaintance. It sure would be neat if this team could repeat the success of the 2002 team that went deep into the NCAA, all the way up to the Elite Eight, before being defeated by Indiana 81-69. It'd be even neater if this team managed to go even deeper than that and make KSU Basketball history. Of course, if that does happen, Coach Jim Christian will be courted by other colleges and universities with big fat offers of tons of dough, just like when Stan Heath took the team to the Elite Eight. He was courted by Arkansas and left to go there. Christian has already fielded some other team offers, but he's stayed loyal to KSU and turned them down. I just wonder how long that will last. Well, we'll know very shortly who KSU is playing in the first round of the NCAA's and I'm sure that everyone will be able to guess who's going to win that round. If KSU is pitted against some big time school, they're going to have to hustle to win or just hope that they don't go down in flames and give it a good shot. Well, as I write this, the selection show begins very shortly, so we'll know very soon who's playing whom in this crazy thing called "March Madness". I am sure that there is, as usual, a "Selection Sunday" party someplace in town where the faithful have gathered to find out the brackets and how KSU is "seeded" in the tournament. So stay tuned - it should be an exciting and nerve wracking week for the basketball faithful!

ADDENDUM: Kent State University drew 9th seed in the Midwest division of the NCAA tournament, one seed higher than the legendary 2002 team that went deep into the tournament to the Elite Eight. They drew the UNLV (University of Nevada-Las Vegas) Rebels as their first opponent in the tournament, and if by some miracle they defeat them, they will face the victor of the Kansas-Portland State contest. The Kansas Jayhawks are the #1 seed in the Midwest division, so if Kent and Kansas do end up somehow facing off, it's going to be a tough go for the Flashes. Stay tuned....March Madness continues!