I have seasonal allergies. I have since I was about 16. I get the stuffy and runny nose, related sore throat and weepy eyes, and sinus pressure headaches or infections. I hate the fall because of it.

Yesterday was the worst so far this year. I skipped the kids' swim lessons, because I'm sure I would have jumped and hid from air...no..because it's very loud in the pool area, especially if you have a headache. I had a killer headache. So I was moving slow, and helped very little getting the kids ready.

The rest of 'em went to lessons and then stopped by the house to fetch me for our weekly COVID tests. I was waiting on the porch, actually enjoying the outdoor cool, even though it likely didn't do much for my sinuses. It really couldn't get any better. We went for our tests, easy enough, and returned home, where I tried to kindly sulk, took a nap (which helped a lot more than sulking), and just was.

It all took hold, no doubt, because of the nature park thing on Friday. Spending so many hours outside in the fall kills me. It's the only reason I loathe winter yard work. There's some catharsis in keeping a yard, and clearing sticks and leaves before the snow falls. I don't mind the edging and seeding and fertilizing after the birds leave, to try to give grass a shot in the spring. I don't water my lawn, so really, that long winter food is what makes my yard sturdy at all.

This morning we trekked for our local Colombian restaurant for some delicious breakfast. The service was slow, which was only bad because I sat for too long with empty coffee cups, and the kids got really impatient (and hangry) at the end. Food was eaten, tempers settled, and we meandered home along the river parkway to catch some of the leaves (that someone else gets to rake, or ignore...it's a parkway) changing colors. Home again, I settled in to do a little computer maintenance while the kids soak in some tablet time. 

There's no football today, 'cause the local pro team has a bye week. It's cold, and will be cold all day, and probably all week. Highs aren't likely to break much past the 50F° range for a while, at least not in any long spans. It isn't snowing yet, but the leaves are tumbling off the trees in the back yard like snow would fall. The big maple in front, as green as July. Well, maybe a cold, dry July, but still greener than all the other trees around.

I'll probably be tasked with taking them to a park later, but we'll see. It's cold, after all. I've got a killer headache, although not as bad as yesterday. Maybe some key clacking without Zoom will fix my ails.

Except a bit of hayfever-ish headache, proven to be nothing serious by our "not-infected" COVID test results from yesterday, everyone is healthy.