Allergy Season Baby!

Pardon me, while I wipe the sneeze spittle off my keyboard! Allergy Season baby! Gotta love it. Really, I do. I seem to only be allergic to a few strains of pollen. This year is particularly bad however. There are a few groves of Globe Willows nearby, I am allergic to their pollens. Here in western Colorado, the Globe Willows, and the "rabbit brush" are the first things to turn green. We have had a nice string of beautiful weather lately. The day time highs are in the 60's or better. Today, I got a touch of sunburn while repairing my dogs chain link kennel. The first, and only burn of the year! It's good to be native!
Allergies are an interesting ailment. I know, and have known people with them all of my life. I was probably about 15 or 16 before my first case of Poison Ivy. I had been taught what it was, what it does, and to avoid it by my grandfather at his retirement home on the reservation. I was about 8 or so then. I didn't listen! I had to learn for myself. I remember secretly touching the plants, in an attempt to catch the dreaded rash. Don't ask me why, I was only 8 and can only speculate what oddity had invaded my thought process. To my dismay, at the time, I failed to react to the oils in the plant. From then on, I thought I was immune. I later learned that the rash associated with poison ivy, was caused by an allergic reaction to the plants oils. I had not yet developed the allergy.
Throughout the remainder of my pre-teens and into young adulthood, I often made bets with friends, to touch the plants. Knowing that I was immune to their oils, as a kid however, I rarely got to collect when I didn't get the rash. It wasn't until I was about 15 or 16, when it finally caught up with me.
My friends and I were at a local swimming hole, Hulberton Quarry, when everyone stepped around a small batch of the plant. Believing that I would never get the dreaded rash, I waltzed right on through it. After a period of a day or two, my calves began to itch tremendously. Upon inspection, I noticed some small red splotches. It wasn't enough, however, to triage what was coming. I had written it off to some mosquito bites or something, (another poison I am relatively immune to.) After another day had passed and the itching and redness hadn't, I asked mom! I showed her the growing rash on my legs. "You have Poison Ivy, Sonny!" she said.
To date, that was the only case of Poison Ivy I have ever had. I learned my lesson quickly. Living in an arid climate, that is something that I don't have to worry about. Poison Ivy, Oak, and Sumac, can't seem to tolerate the dry conditions, therefore, I am safe! I still watch where I am walking, when in the woods. Instead of those irritating plants, we have rattlesnakes, wild hogs, wolves, bears, coyotes, and mountain lions. Although rarely a problem, be aware of their existence!
When I was about 23, I developed my first case of seasonal allergies. At first I thought I had a spring case of the flu. My eyes burned as though I had been up all night at a gentleman's club. My throat was soar, as if I had smoked a whole pack of cigarettes the night before, and my nose ran like Carl Lewis! This went on for about a week. I lived with my cousin at the time, and he was dating the daughter of a doctor. I asked her about it, and she laughed and then gave me some allergy pills. It seems that she had the same problem.
For the past nine years, I have fought a losing battle with pollen. Some seasons are worse than others. This Spring is the worst yet. I have never really encountered the sneezing that is generally associated with allergies. This year however, it seems that I have been inflicted with those symptoms also. I have been sneezing almost non-stop for a few days. My only relief is at work, in Telluride, where there is still enough snow on the ground to keep the trees from blooming, and the snow bunnies on the slopes! I suppose it would help if I took some medicine for that. I just always forget.
Don't let the beautiful weather, and nature pass you by just because you too suffer from seasonal allergies. Take a moment to stop and sneeze on the roses!