the rix mix

Every spring around now for about two weeks something gets in the air, a flower or flowering plant, that kicks up pesky allergies, & i get puffy-eyed, runny nose, sneezy, coughy, then it stops, I'm good all summer until something else does it for a couple of weeks in September. It's usually a minor annoyance, no big deal. I take an over-the-counter antihistamine if I need anything at all. We all know people with bad allergies; cats, pollen, nearly all perfume fragrances, food. The serious plant allergy people really suffer from April through October. But every three or four years these couple of spring weeks nail me. I stepped outside awhile ago & Wham!, I'm sneezing & coughing & my nose is pouring. The only other time that happens is from cheap perfume in an enclosed area. I've stepped into elevators, sniffed & immediately muttered Oh no, invariably there's some adolescent girl reeking of a super-cheat perfume knockoff probably from a store downtown selling gold jewelry, no-brand electronics, disposable cell phones & phone cards promising low per minute rates to Guatemala & India &, of course, imitation fashion perfume. if Beyoncé has a line called "Pulse," the store will have "Pulze." A short ride later I step out hacking & serial-sneezing & you just can't lose that stink indoors. The local newspaper headline today was about allergies, result of mild winter & rain & mold, etc. So I figure I'm still getting off easy compared to many other folks.

Labels: Elizabeth NJ, weather