Allergies

Today the eerily hot and dry Santa Ana wind is blowing every last vestige of dust, pollen, mold or whatever the heck causes MY MASSIVE ALLERGIES (MMA). Even the usually yummy warmth of sun on my skin felt too hot, too dry, too painful today.

But MMA can happen any time of the year. Spring? Yes, mostly. Fall? You betcha - though why I don't know. Summer? Sometimes. Winter? Strangely, sometimes. I won't bore you with my exhaustive searches into what causes MMA - suffice to say I am allergic to many uncontrollable things.

Sometimes they manifest in uncontrollable sneezing, itching facial skin, wheezing breath, itchy eyes. I can even feel the top of my head itch. And sometimes the middle of my back.

But today it was a different flavor of MMA. I was blissfully spinning in my garage, listening to strange music with a fast beat, when my neighbor walked by.

"Great day!" she said. "It's like summer! But oh, I feel for anyone with allergies. They are going ot have a terrible day. Have you seen what's in the air?"

I had seen lots of dusty, polleny stuff blowing past my open garage door, but hadn't put two and two together. Upon hearing her pronouncement, I thought "OH NO". I rushed to the shower, washed off, snorted water up my nose, blew my nose...but to no avail. Achoo! Achoo! Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!....I sneezed so hard I ripped some skin inside my nose.

Joe advised a salt and baking soda mixture in water - he has this nose thingie that helps you pump water through your nostrils. I did it. After I felt like someone was baking inside my head. It did stop the uncontrollable sneezes for a few minutes - but not long term.

So now, I'm not having a systemic allergic reaction, just a "the inside of my nose is raw and every time air blows over it I have to sneeze" reaction. And the drips! Oy. Constant, watery drips. Sometimes it comes out before I can get to it. It just rolls down my lip and I have to get it with the back of my hand. Ew....

It is now about 4pm. The major sneezes have abated, but the drip, drip, drip has morphed into a headache causing stuffy nose. Stuffy sinuses I should say. My ears are stuffy. The backs of my eyes are stuffy.There are places inside my head that I can't really locate that are stuffy.

And I am out of drugs. At least the kind that work. I only have the kind that'll put me right to sleep in about 1/2 hour. No can do with kiddies.

Allergies are so stupid. They make no sense. They really don't serve me at all.