Pollen Season

It is great to have the warmer weather back again. Even though it was a mild winter, the snowfall was at a minimum and the bitter cold did not last for weeks on end, the warmer, less volatile weather is welcome. The grass is green again and the sound of lawn mowers can be heard periodically. The trees are blooming and the dreary brown of winter has given way to the green leaves of spring. The tulips and daffodils have already done their thing and the thoughts of annual flower planting are bouncing around in people’s heads. For those that do their vegetable gardens it is still a bit early to plant but there is no reason to delay in tilling the soil and getting the area ready for planting. It seems that so many things in life have the good and the bad and there is some balance needed between the two. With all of the good things about spring there is the bad as well……pollen.

To some people, pollen is just a six letter word that doesn’t mean much to them. For many others though, pollen is a very dramatic six letter word. Instead of flowers and trees blooming on trees, pollen brings on the dreaded allergy season. For those allergy sufferers out there you can relate to the scratchy throat, water eyes, runny nose, sneezing, coughing and all around miserable feelings. Claritin, Zyrtec and other allergy medicines fly off the shelf in pharmacies as people look for relief in whatever manner possible. Tissues always need to be nearby because you never know when the nose will start running like a faucet or a sneezing fit will come over you. Even though allergy season is short lived it seems like it lasts forever.

Let’s forget allergies for a minute. Then there is the yellowish green film that gets over everything outside. Your car seems to be like a chameleon and changes color with the season. Outdoor furniture needs to be wiped down daily. Screens on windows need to be cleaned regularly. Also, if you keep the windows open in the house to let in that nice fresh air, that layer of pollen seems to take over the inside of the house as well. It seems to be an endless battle against the powdery stuff.

Maybe I am just getting older but I do not remember any of this pollen battle when I was a kid. I do not remember my parents complaining about what a mess everything was and how the house always had a film on the furniture. I am sure it was there and I probably just did not care. Allergies did not affect me then (they certainly do now) so I was oblivious to those that were battling with their symptoms. Maybe my parents just accepted the pollen and knew that that nothing could be done and they just dealt with it. They may not have liked it but then again, it is what it is.

So for those fellow allergy sufferers, better days are coming and keep tissues and a dust rag handy.

Until the Next Tom’s Take…