...But it has nothing to do with lilacs. It's the reversion of the promise of springtime to the reality of late-winter weather. It's 70F one day to 40F the next. It's the oak pollen (in my case) or whatever YOUR "favorite" allergy is -- intrinsically debilitating, and necessitating sedating antihistamines when trying to counteract it. It's the chilly humidity that gets in your bones and also breeds molds and fungi ... including systemic candida.
Springtime makes you turn off the furnace and open the windows, then gets cold again. Then it's "should I restart the heater, or hang in there?" ... cuz you KNOW that if you re-light the furnace, the weather will get warm again, and if you don't you'll just want to huddle inside a blanket on the sofa as the cold wave lingers on....
Spring rains raise your emotional stress -- work/school commuting is harder -- and also your physical stress as mentioned above. Knowing how to dress when you leave the house in the morning can be tricky. Sunny warm spring days bring people out en masse, whose noise and boisterousness tend to take the pleasure out of a stroll at the MoBot, Shaw Nature Reserve, or Forest Park. Why is it acceptable to let your children SCREAM in public for no reason? My kids AND grandkids learned the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf before this ever became a habit with them.
When the vernal equinox rolls around, an awful lot of us in the temperate zone are ready for more light, more warmth, and the pleasures of fresh air and brightly-hued Nature. Unfortunately, there can be quite a wait before she's ready to reward us with her gifts.
I'll just sit here in the cold, damp gloom and be glad that May is almost upon us.
Oh Tess ... sorry you seem / are a little gloomy. April is notorious for changeable weather, but I love this time of year. Especially on those Spring like days when the flowers and trees are so glorious. Alas it is and probably never will be glorious if you suffer from allergies. I always 'feel' for students when sitting their summer exams here in the UK - many are during May when pollen levels are still high. It is so hard to concentrate when you are feeling way way below 100%.
ReplyDeleteHope you do feel better soon.
All the best Jan
:-) just ranting -- I've been cold for days!
DeleteWell, I love spring and fall. The air here is full of the scent of blossoms and the weather is perfect for enjoying the outdoors. Summer in Denver, OTOH, is much hotter than people think--it's often over 100 degrees. Light-skinned people can get a sunburn in 15 minutes. But I'm with you on parents letting their little howler monkeys scream and scream. My parents would never have let me do that.
ReplyDeleteFall is my favorite season, with spring not far behind ... but allergy season is SO MISERABLE!
DeleteI used to suffer terribly from allergies. Hope you feel better soon!
Delete:-) thanks! ...just as soon as the trees stop pollinating....
Deleteyou poor thing. :(
ReplyDeletesomehow, it's less oppressive when the sun is shining, as it is today! :-)
DeleteWeather can make one feel miserable. Florida heat does it for me. I guess it is not the best place for the people with pollen allergies because our pollen season is much longer. Fortunately for me, pollen is not my problem, unlike animal dandruff, dust mites and fragrances.
ReplyDeleteI can sympathize with the Florida situation -- when we lived in Texas it was MUCH worse.... it never gets cold enough to kill off some things, and the warm humidity encourages mold and mildew. :-) I won't even START talking about the mosquitoes and fire-ants....
Delete...or the ticks, fleas, spiders, & many other creepy-crawlies ;-) !!!
DeleteYep, last week we were still running the heat, but Sat night had to start the A/C when temps rose to 88, muggy & humid!
& I'm hopefully at the tail end of my spring sinusitis attack - not having to take a snort of nasal spray QUITE so often...
Thank you, ladies, for your understanding. I want to share some hints about dealing with allergies-connected nasal drip - oil (olive oil works fine) drops help a lot . When an oil is present in nasal passages, nose is less prone to being stuffed. When nose is stuffed due to a flu, add small amount of menthol or a eucalyptus oil.
DeleteI remember being addicted to nose spray for couple years long time ago. Since then I use it very sparingly.
lol, Val -- I remember.... heat one day, a/c the next ... mowing the lawn on New Years Day ... A/C ON CHRISTMAS! :-D looking out the window and having to THINK to know what season it is....
Deletethanks for the tip, Galina! i'm an enthusiastic neti-pot user, and sometimes I use a trace of tea-tree oil with the salt, but I've never though about OO! I have been known to put a little eucalyptus on a handkerchief, too....
I want to tell a story. When I just couldn't live without using decongestant drops several times a day to de-staff my nose, it was a socialism. In socialistic economy every item could disappear - socks, toilet paper, cheese, it was hard to buy a furniture all the time. One day every kind of a decongestant gone from pharmacies. It was a disaster, and when I started to complain to a pharmacist, she told me to get menthol drops - 1 or 3%(if I remember correctly) menthol dissolved in olive oil. I told her that such weak remedy wouldn't be much help. Her answer was "You are young and stupid, you want what works quickly instead of using what heals." I started to use the oily drops, and my dependency from decongestants was healed. I also saw the oil derived from peach pits as a nasal drip remedy in Russian pharmacies.
DeleteI want to add that it is important not to create a too strong menthol or an eucalyptus oil solution - it may irritate nose. It is the situation when the less is more. I also found on Amazon the drops which I brought from Russia - pinisol http://www.amazon.com/Pinosol-nasal-drops-10ml/dp/B00DB3R3D0.
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