Monday the Twenty-Eighth

Dear "Sir",

Victoria, ever the pro-active, has gotten people in the ward together to cook. Her enthusiasm surprises me sometimes. We went over to some guys' apartment last night after choir practice (we left early) so they could cook for us. Not having been to their apartment before, we left when they did so we could follow them there. It was fun to watch them in the car ahead of ours; from our vantage point we could see their anguished hand-wringing when they pulled through a yellow light ahead of us, followed by joyful fist pumping as they saw through the rearview mirror that we managed to stay on their tail.

So last night I learned to make Navajo tacos, though I suffered a slight injury when the dough I tried to gently lower into the hot oil ended up backsplashing on me. We played card games and ate yummy fry bread, first with chili and cheese, and then with honey for dessert. It would have been the perfect evening if it weren't for a furry creature one of them owns.

I tell you, people without allergies have no concept of what it is to be allergic to something. They look at you with this weird expression, as if unable to conceive of a condition in which the proximity of a plant or animal can cause you to break out in a rash. It's uncomfortable to see an adorable little kitty cat, and be accompanied with the knowledge that even if that cute little animal is several feet from you, or has just recently vacated the space you now occupy, it can inadvertently cause you to leak many fluids from your face. It's unattractive and annoying and inconvenient to have allergies. And it makes people look at you as if you are a freak.

Not wanting to be an aural nuisance to the other dinner guests with my sneezing and sniffing, I took a Benadryl before going over to their apartment. I was hoping that since the guys were aware of my "condition," the kitty would not make much of an appearance. But Kitty came out to play anyway, and one Benadryl just wasn't cutting it, so I popped another one. Round about nine o'clock, after dinner had been consumed and the card deck was being shuffled, I started to feel the effects -- not in the desired, non-sniffy, non-sneezy way, but in the "side effects may include drowsiness" way.

So, here we have my options where allergens are involved. Decide against the antihistamine and be a sneezy, rashy mess? Or medicate myself and fall into a drug-induced stupor?