South Carolina has begun to bloom and that means that the yellow monster called pollen has awakened! Just like that, no notice, no warning, just fine yellow particles covering everything. You go to bed with no pollen and wake up the next day to a colorful surprise!
The Evidence
During the last week, there were several lovely, warm, spring days. The kind that call you to take a break, sit outside and enjoy the warm dry air. That’s exactly what I did, enjoy the outdoors. What I didn’t realize was the monster lurking in the air!
On one of those days, just before preparing dinner, my head was hurting (not common for me) and I also couldn’t breathe through my nose. Realizing that my sinuses were acting up, I went straight for the allergy meds with pseudoephedrine (you know, the “hard stuff”). Within an hour I felt so much better. I couldn’t go to sleep, but the headache was gone and my nose was clear.
That’s when I knew ….. pollen season has begun. The yellow monster snuck in and caught me off guard. As I looked more closely at the screened-in porch, although barely visible, a fine dusting of pollen had appeared. A few days later and the pool and cars were now coated in an odd shade of yellow/green powder.
Timing
Apparently I missed the U.S. News Headline warning that allergy season is near – be prepared. It is a fact that the pollen season runs from March through October and some years can be worse than others depending on the weather patterns.
I guess all the focus on COVID left me unprepared for the yellow monster. Having lived in 3 states, South Carolina has caused me the most problems with allergies. Just when I thought it was safe to stop wearing a mask, perhaps I need to put one back on “outside”! LOL
The Battle Begins
Daily OTC allergy meds help most of the time, however when the headaches come, only pseudoephedrine will do! Thanks to the meth makers, it’s harder to get so I literally ration out the pills for only the most severe days.
Our weather has been quite dry recently, so some much needed rain does wonders to drive the monster into the ground (literally). My screened porch will be at the mercy of the monster so sweeping and blowing (with a mask) will be plan of defense there.
The pool will be on its own! I feel bad for our “pool guy” because his hard work at balancing the water is lost under the ring of yellow surrounding the edges. By May, it won’t be noticeable and we will swim without worry.
Final Thoughts
The warm weather and beautiful spring flowers come at a cost. Without the pollen there would be no flowering trees, shrubs and plants. It’s a collaboration between the wind, bees, flowers and pollen to create the beautiful landscape we call spring.
So for now, I will work hard to keep the yellow monster out of my house and always remember the following :