Sneezes and coughs

 Hi there

I've often wondered why I sneeze and cough more when I'm in two places:

1     the library

2     the bus

Once-upon-a-time I was a bridesmaid.  The bride, as she walked down the aisle, gave a delicate little sneeze - ch-ch...

When I sneeze, it's AHHH-TISH-OOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Dittto for coughing.  My friend goes:  cough, cough....

I go:  COUGH!!!!COUGH!!!!COUGH!!!!COUGH!!!!   COUGH!!!!COUGH!!!!   COUGH!(repeat at least 5 more times). 

Pre-covid, I hopped off many buses because fellow bus passengers stared at me in horror and shuffled in their seats while trying to blend in with the wall -  anything to keep away from me and the germs that I don't have.  Hayfever causes my sneezing, and the cough ....?  My doctor calls it an 'old lady cough"-  I've often wondered if he could have been more gracious and named it an "old person's cough"?

Librarians have never liked me either.  Is it the mustiness of books that causes me to cough and sneeze?  Who knows?

But after covid, everything's got so much worse.  I get glares from all around me.  Over and over again, I've stood up from my seat in the bus and all but screeched, "Hayfever, it's hayfever!"

Oh dear....

I got a black eye. But how....?

 Hi there

Two weeks ago I got a burst blood vessel in my eye and for some reason, I also ended up with a black eye.  My friends had the most hilarious time, making up reasons why I got it.  But, for the life of me, I can't fathom how the black eye happened.  

I did have a nightmare where I dreamed I was being attacked, and I woke up screaming and fighting.  Had I injured myself?  No, that was just too silly.....

I wondered if I should still be taking my Eye Clinic-prescribed eyedrops.  I went to a pharmacy at 9 am-

"Hello, I've got a burst blood vessel in my eye.  And a black eye.  I just want to know if I can still take my eyedrops?"  Easy-peasy for the pharmacist to answer, I figured.

"Um, better ring the Eye Clinic," said the pharmacist.

I rang the eye clinic.  "Someone will ring you back about it," a nurse said.

I waited.  And waited.  And waited for the phone call.  At 3 30 pm, I rang my doctor and got an appointment for 5 pm.

"Oh, I don't know about your eyedrops," said the doctor.  "I'll ring the eye clinic."

"It's Friday," I said.  "They close down early."

But she had the magic way to reach the on-call ophthalmologist.  "Take the eyedrops," the ophthalmologist said.

On Monday, I got a call from the Eye Clinic.  The nurse said, "I forgot to follow-up on your phone call to us.  Sorry." 

What a lot of trouble for such a teeny enquiry....

above:  Hataitai Beach area.  Because of my eye, I didn't swim for a week.  Pity, because the couple of days we've had lately without wind, rain, and storms were the days I burst the blood vessel.

H

Tourists to Aotearoa

 Hi there

I'm always confused when some northern hemisphere tourists are upset by our cold wet windy and, in certain  areas, snow-y weather - 

 "But it's August," I say.  What did they expect?

 " Yes, August is when we always take our holidays. "

 "But August is the dead of winter in New Zealand.  You should have come in February."

 " Huh? "

If I didn't want to be immersed in a snow-y Christmas card scenario I wouldn't visit the Northern Hemisphere in the midst of their winter, so why come to Aotearoa in August? ... unless these tourists want to don mittens and windbreaker jackets, and ski on our mountains (yes, NZ spawns world champion snow-boarders and skiers).

And don't forget that though we're officially in the South Pacific, Aotearoa-New Zealand is just about the closest country to the South Pole (though Argentina will dispute this)...

Election next week

Hi there

It's all go....  Our big political elections are next Saturday.  The two main parties - Labour and National - and a bunch of smaller parties are wearing themselves out, racing up and down the country, visiting schools, factories, farms, outdoor markets, etc.  The present prime minister came down with covid and had to stay confined at home for five days - what, no electioneering?; is there some sort of conspiracy theory here?

There's been lots of back-biting.  I remember times, in the past, when no one party would lower themselves to sling off so horribly about another party.  Nowadays ...  the gloves are off.  

One thing that I can never understand is why so many people vote in advance of official election day.  I would never do this.  What if, between my vote and election day, there was some giant scandal to do with the person or party I'd voted for?  I couldn't claw back my vote ...

  ***

I went for a return walk from Lyall Bay to Island Bay last week.  The sky was so beautiful.