I am NOT a Vampire

That's what my mom has been accusing me of lately. Vampirism. I just can't seem to get a tan.

It has always been a basic rule of thumb that come summer time... I get dark. I've got a a whole whopping 1/8 Native American that combats with my predominantly Irish/northern European genes, and it causes me to turn nice brown. I recently came across a lot of old pictures of me and my darkness that only comes along in summer. Back in the day (before people living on the beach allowed things like skin cancer actually affect our daily activities), mom and I would compete on who could get darker, with my grandmother usually crushing us.

But something very strange happened... I don't really tan anymore. In fact even for me to get really sunburned, I need to be outside for multiple hours w/out sunscreen. Or I will get real dark, and it fades in a day or so. Its sort of freakish, and makes me look all pale and sickly all the time. Hence, vampire.

And then last year, as I was prepping for dosimetery (one day I will look up the actual spelling), I read the laundry lists of I-131 side-effects, and what would you know, it can apparently affect your ability to tan.

So that there is your random tid bit of the day about weird side effects of I-131.