News Bulletin

Good news! The allergies I ranted about in my last post have mostly subsided. I don't want to jinx anything (cross your fingers and no, I'm not superstitious), but they have been at a very manageable level for the past few days. It appears that the change in allergy meds worked.

In other good news, I finally put up a shelf in my room. Very excited, because now I have a place for some of my extra books and my oxygen, clean-air producing houseplants. Which are all thriving, so far. Now, about my pumpkin... that might be a different story. I write "might" because I've been neglecting it yet again, and don't have any idea how it's faring. :(

Tomorrow I'm going to see the Capitals play the Vancouver Canucks!!

Lastly, I recently took one step closer to playing a greater role in saving the planet by signing up to volunteer in the area! Some weekend in the near future I look forward to helping clean up the Anacostia river. Among other things.

That's about it for this broadcast, check back later for more.

A Little Rant About Allergies

Because ranting is cathartic.

My allergies used to be normal. Excessive, but normal. As in, stuffy nose, sneezing, watery eyes... those of you who have them will know the basic symptoms. Now, for some reason, everything is bypassing my nose - which is very uncomfortable. I won't go into details, because it's rather gross, which is why I find it depressing, too.

The Ent doctor doesn't know why it started (sometimes viruses like the cold can last for a longer time, causing similar problems, but the only cold I've had recently didn't begin till the allergies had been worse for weeks), which means there's no easy fix. A change in medicine, he suggested, and guafenisine, which tastes nasty, in case anyone's interested. Neither of these things have cleared it up yet. The only other solution, according to the Ent, is to get tested for allergies so they can make me a "special sauce" and then give me shots - I've heard twice a week, once a week, for a year... Shots! Also, they have to monitor their victims for an hour after they administer the "special sauce", which means time off work...

I'm also wading through health insurance for the first time, and the plan I thought was great, really isn't that great if you've got to get expensive shots during office visits once a week for the next year.

The latest Green Guides issue has a short article on allergies... and how global warming contributes to them and makes them worse. As in, with warmer weather, the trees and flowers and grasses have longer pollinating seasons, which can make allergies last longer. More pollen can be produced, too. Not only that, but allergies evidently used to be an urban problem - until mass transit like trains transported the pollenating particles to the country. Then, in places like Arizona, which used to be a pollen and allergy-free state (it being desert), city planners started bringing in trees and bushes and flowers, etc to make it look less like a desert. Short-sightedly, most of those trees were male, which are the gender of trees that distribute pollen. Semen, if you will. Apparently, according to these city planners, having fruit drop on the ground was much more unpleasant. Hah.

So here I am, about to start the next, expensive, part of my life getting shots in the arm every week. Hopefully the inconvenience and pain will be balanced by some kind of correction of my allergic reactions to just about everything.

Fish Supper

Finally, after weeks of not having time or, admittedly, the inclination, to go to the grocery store, I grocery-shopped like it was my job. Kind of lost my head in the produce department, ending up with the usual bell peppers, bananas and spinach, but also asparagus, oranges and bok choi. I've decided I like asparagus and bok choi, both newly acquired tastes.

I even bought fish! That was exciting. At the fish counter I learned it's possible to get some of your "pound" of fish frozen, in individually wrapped packages. How cool is that? There's no way I can eat a pound of tilapia in one night, so it worked out well.

Per Nigel Slater's British recipe (because, let's face it, the British have to be the best at fish suppers), I fried my tilapia and made some fluffy mashed potatoes in lieu of chips (a.k.a. fries to the Americans). I can roast veggies, but chips are beyond me. Boiled some asparagus to go with it, and presto! Dinner was served.

I have regained my enthusiasm for home-cooked dinners. Not just eating them, but making them, too.

Filling in the Gaps Between Now and Nashville

Dear Readers,
(yes, all four of you!)

My sincerest apologies for disappearing for so long. While in Nashville, I had very limited access to the internet. I came back, found myself very busy, and then came down with a cold.

(As I watch the debate: entitlements? And who hasn't given up on social security already? Who seriously expects change without having to pay for it? There's an old saying about free lunch...)

In between now and Nashville, I have spent time in diverse ways. I'm going to start from the end, and work my way back to the beginning. This weekend, I went hiking in the Shenandoah. The main point of the expedition was to catch the predatory bird migration; according to my guidebook, thousands of hawks can be seen flying overhead in one day. Unfortunately, all we saw were black vultures circling high above us. The hike was short but sweet, and challenging, as that was day 2 of the cold. The trees have started turning here in Virginia, but I will need to go again when the leaves change and become even brighter. Nature is without a doubt the best part about hiking; it helps calm and center me, and lifts some of the stress from my life. The combination of dirt, sun, trees, fresh air, birdsong and insect noises creates a soothing environment. It also serves as an excellent reminder of the reasons to make changes to help save the environment. Fortunately, this time I did not run into any spiderwebs.

The cold started late on Friday night after I went out in Dupont Circle, to a lovely little wine bar called Veritas, which has fantastic customer service, a low-lit, pleasant atmosphere, and an obliging behind-the-scenes DJ. They even have wines from the very inclusive selection on tap! Had a lovely evening there with a friend. Space was limited, so we ended up sitting with two very nice young women at a small table. A very fun, but late evening.

Thursday was special. Thursday a coworker invited me to a Washington Capitals Season Ticket-Holders party at Six Flags in Maryland, where I got a hat signed by some of the players. Woot! Woot!

The rest of my life since Nashville has included much work, nearly enough sleep, and sadly enough, lots of television.

Yours truly,
Me

NashVegas!! (a.k.a. Nashville)

Didn't really see much of the NashVegas part, actually. Only, we drove down Music Square, where some of the big recording studios are, and I got some kickin' cowboy boots."These boots were made for walkin'..." That's right. That's what they do. I love 'em.

I will admit that Nashville does not appeal to me. What little I saw of it didn't feel like a city. Lots of distinct neighborhoods, some of them very beautiful (in one of the latter, passed by Reese Witherspoon's parents' house). Downtown, we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame, which brought back my childhood and made me feel very nostalgic for my country music-listening days. Nashville has one very unique aspect, as Music City - it has music boxes on the street corners! Classical music next to the symphony hall, country music next to the Hall of Fame. I started singing when I knew the words... Maybe I shouldn't mention that.

One of the most fascinating things I saw there was the print shop my friend (I hope she's watching the debate) works at which is the second oldest... in the city? Excuse my hazy details. There, they use old hand-cranked presses with block type and images that are arranged by hand. Some beautiful posters are made in that shop. There are also two resident, though shy, cats. Unique atmosphere, there.

Mostly, though, I spent time on the farm. Not Bob Evans style, however. Not sure if that jingle popped into anyone else's head... It's located on a beautiful property, with an excellent view of the sunset from the front porch, or even the hammock. Unfortunately I forgot about mosquitos while I was there, and came back with several bites. But, the sunsets were worth it. I watered some cows, which grow like house plants when watered, apparently. Let's see, I napped, hung out in the hammock (pun intended), read a lot, and washed plenty of dishes by hand. Essentially, I relaxed. Though not the beach, the vacation passed tranquilly.

Hurrah for using up the last of one's vacation time.