A couple of weeks ago I came down sick rather suddenly. For part of the day I just felt a little off, and then I started violently shivering just before the usual time I leave for work. By the time I dragged myself home I wound up in layers of sweats, my big fuzzy robe, a heating pad, and a blanket and then passed out on the recliner for a few hours. When I logged in to work the next day to send the message that I was staying home sick, there were already four other messages from people in my department saying the same thing. Later that day I called in to one of our meetings to get at least a bit of work done, and one co-worker who hadn’t called in sick had to sign out because he was suddenly hit with the shivers and fever.

I felt much less awful after a couple of days, but didn’t begin to feel actually well until this last weekend – about eleven days after it all started.

And now, I’m just dealing with hay fever. I’ve written (many, many times) before of my frustration at being unable to distinguish a really bad hay fever day from the early stages of a head cold. This is a slightly different frustration. I’m just finally feeling well, except I’m not feeling great because my head is stuff up, I get random sneeze attacks, my eyes are watery… you know the drill.

Yes, it’s fall. Yes, it’s getting cold and most of the trees are losing their leaves and there are very few flowers in sight anywhere. And the pollen count is pretty low. But the pollen count never seems to include fern spores. And here in the Pacific Northwest we have ferns growing naturally everywhere. They’re a more primitive plant and they don’t pollinate, they spore. So every year this time, when the pollen count is dropping to almost non-existence, I get a round of bad hay fever symptoms while the ferns are going crazy.

And next month is mushroom season!

Pass me another box of tissues, please?