Sunday 23rd December 2018

Christmas Eve. Eve.

Apparently.

You will have read from my previous posts about allergies that Sunday was difficult. It was. I try to be positive, but as you will see, my back forced me to abort a walk, which I had started to help ease the allergies. One way or another my body was going to make me suffer.

And yet it started so well, up at six, drink coffee then watch MOTD, goals, upsets and all. We had croissants. More coffee.

And it was great.

I sat at the table working away, editing or writing, and the sneezing started. One after the other with barely enough time between sneezes to get a breath. And in a few minutes I was struggling to breath.

I tried everything, the magic box and probe, drugs, standing up, and none of it worked. It seemed my shaving had set it off, the gel on my skin, then once shaves able to get in through my pores.

Whatever it was, it was grim.

We had lunch, Jools went out for a walk, I stayed in as I knew I could not go far, then me being fed up, I go ou out once she returns, setting off along the street and the track beyond.

As soon as I was outside, my breathing eased and my nose cleared.

But at the start of the fields I realised that my back was getting more and more painful, so I would have to beat a retreat back home, and once inside, in a mere ten minutes the congestion returned.

We played Uckers in the afternoon, me winning that rubber, before I listen to the amazing Everton v Spurs game which ended 2-6. Yes, you read that right.

We had dinner, played more Uckers, Jools won, but by that time I had really had enough. I sat quiet, in my own world of misery. And then Jools said, should we treat it like congestion? Nothing to lose I thought. She found a Sudafed nasal spray, I give two huge squirts in each nostril and went back to feeling miserable.

Jools went to bed early, and I settled down for what seemed certain to be me being up all night. And then I noticed my nose had cleared a little. Then some more, the second nostril cleared, and it was like getting flu, in reverse, as the last feeling was a peppery sensation, and then, clear as a beall.

In half an hour I had gone from being so congested, that using the sinus douche thing almost pushed my eardrums out of my head.

I watch the recording of the EFL while I sip on a glass or two of Vin Santo, dipping almond biscotti into the sweet nectar.

I was free of the allergies.

A weight was lifted, I felt so happy it took over an hour before my Extasy subsided enough to allow sleep to come.