I've only had one really itchy spell today, so things are looking up! I did have an antihistamine this morning, so perhaps that helped.
No, I didn't figure out what that stinger came off of. It wasn't a honey bee--I picked one of those out of a water trough this morning & inspected her stinger. Not a match! We do have a few big black hornets around, & I'm waiting for a chance to squish one of them so I can have a close look at the stinger...I think that rich maroon stinger will be recognizable if I see another like it?
The way my luck is running I'll trip over the hornet's nest one of these nights (after all, those big black hornets have to be living around here somewhere??) & I'll end up with a whole load of stingers to compare.