Bent’s Old Fort, La Junta, Colorado, September 7, 2011.

The photo was used in the following video.  (It can also be viewed on YouTube.)

Some folks have it bad this year for some reason.

They cough and sneeze, sneeze and cough, and get the evil eye from others if they’re out in public because they are out in public when they should be at home instead of sharing whatever it is that’s making them sick with others.

Except they’re not sick and they’re not contagious.

It’s their allergies acting up.

Most years, at this time of year, allergies are not much of a problem for those who are allergic to pollens.  For some reason, this year, our allergies are acting up in the middle of winter.

Allergies are a result of an immune system issue.  The body mistakes relatively harmless substances, such as dust, pollen or mold, for germs and tries to defend against the invaders.  Chemicals, such as histamine, are released by the body just as they are when fighting real invaders – such as cold viruses or the flu.  For some, this can cause swollen sinus passages, a runny nose, sneezing and/or coughing.  Others, like me, have different reactions – such as itching and rashes.

Granted, it’s flu season and the media seems to have hyped the paranoia up for this years strain – maybe it’s warranted and maybe it’s not.

So when someone coughs or sneezes out in public, it’s only natural that some might be a tad concerned.

However, just because someone has a cough or sneezes, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re sick.

Their misery might just be from allergies.

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photo info: Some rights reserved by mcfarlandmo

Sunday Commentary.

Trail to Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, September 24, 2007.

The photo was used in the following video.  (It can also be viewed on YouTube.)

The north rim of the Grand Canyon is about 1000 feet higher in elevation than the south rim and has significantly more annual precipitation – on average 11 more inches of rain and 84 more inches of snow.  While the climate of south rim is desert, the north rim is sub-alpine, with “Spruce-fir forests characterized by Englemann spruce, blue spruce, Douglas fir, white fir, aspen, and mountain ash, along with several species of perennial grasses…” (Wikipedia)

Autumn was certainly present during our early October 2011 visit to the north rim.

Canyonlands National Park, September 23, 2007.

The photo was used in the following video.  (It can also be viewed on YouTube.)

Canyonlands National Park, September 23, 2007.

The photo was used in the following video.  (It can also be viewed on YouTube.)

2011 trip — On October 3, we moved on from Wahweap Campground on Lake Powell to  North Rim Campground at the Grand Canyon. The drive was about 130 miles, so there was plenty of time to look around after we got set up.  Unfortunately, it was rainy, windy kind of day — but there was a rather nice rainbow.  (View at YouTube)

Cascade Canyon Trail; Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, September 19, 2007.

The photo was used in the following video.  (It can also be viewed on YouTube.)

That’s my dog, Bruiser, over there, back in about 1970, when we lived on Kinsman.

In the four-and-a-half years I lived in Texas, we were always moving, it seemed, and lived on a bunch of different streets: Windemere, Cavalier, Gregdale (just a very short time – the house was owned by the trucking company my step-dad had been hired by and he didn’t last long on that job… or any other), – Beaumont Highway, Ticonderoga, Kinsman, and Edgehill.  I never really knew for sure why we kept moving, but I could guess.  Harry, my step-dad, seemed to always be changing jobs.  I suspected we moved on because Harry and Mom got behind on the rent.

I had moved to Texas in June, 1967.  I had been living with my grandparents for five years.

Two years earlier – 1965 – I had spent the summer in Texas with Mom and her new husband, Harry, but went back to Nebraska at the end of the summer. I was 13 that year.  I guess I had a bit of an “attitude.”

We lived in two different places that summer, both of them apartments in shabby buildings near downtown Houston.

My little  sister went to visit in 1966.  It was supposed to be just for the summer like I had done, but she stayed in Texas.  I don’t remember why it was she stayed after her summer there, when I had gone home after mine.  I suppose I probably could have if I wanted to, but, I had an “attitude” and just wanted to go back home.

In 1967, the Armour plant where my grandfather worked was closing down.  The jobs were being moved to Iowa. My grandparents decided they were going to sell the house and go to Iowa so that Grandpa would be able to keep his retirement.  They also decided it was time for me to go live with my Mom in Texas.  I was 15.

Before I got to Texas, Mom and Harry had gotten me a dog, Bruiser.

I didn’t even have a choice about that.

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Sunday Commentary.