Short List

Consulted a doctor by phone and he said that it sounded like I'm experiencing hay fever and called in a prescription for a nasal spray and also suggested a 24-hour antihistamine.

Other stuff, Benadryl and decongestants, haven't been doing anything except for making my breathing feel even funkier. I was hopeful about Claritin and also suspicious. What could be in that little royal blue pill?

Took the pill on Wednesday at 9:15 p.m. and at 3:00 a.m. on Friday woke up itching like a madwoman. I've taken Claritin once, about 10 years ago, but it was not the 24-hour version but I'm adding all versions to the list of things that I'm allergic too...

Went to Gloria's on Thursday and she made Polenta Puttanesca and had also bought ingredients for a Chickpea Artichoke Salad which I put together when I got there. I didn't think that I would like the chickpea concoction but I did.

Chickpea Salad on Bed of Spinach

The Puttanesca

Fast forward:

Went to Zumba today and I felt just fine. One of my Zumba buddies told me that she'd had the flu for two weeks; lots of nasty bugs in The Lou...

I'd been wondering if I should cancel the massage that I had scheduled over a month ago. Yesterday, I felt pretty decent and thought that I'd turned a corner, wrong!

Ever had a massage while congested? It is not relaxing at all and there's something about having your head in a face cradle that makes the congestion worse.

I must have had about six cups of water during the first part of the day plus coffee and tea. The congestion would not ease up but it was too late to cancel the appointment.

Talked to therapist to let her know that I didn't have a cold but...

She was so cool and told me that she'd gotten sick right before vacation and started using essential oils etc. She discussed ways that we could deal with the congestion and told me if I needed a "nose break" not to worry and she also gave me some essential oil (peppermint and ?) to rub on my chest; it helped immediately and me start thinking about the theme song to Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. ...It's a miracle.

Ended up not needing a nose break but I did need a bathroom break because of all the water that I had been chugging.

Looking for a diffuser is on my short list.