Back when I was a working-stiff, I tried Loratadine (the active ingredient in Claratin) for my seasonal allergies. It left me feeling spaced-out so I abandoned it after a few days as not working for me.
The drug keeps getting very solid reviews. It lasts for 24 hours and is (mostly) non-drowsy. One downside is that it does not kick-in very rapidly. One source says it takes three hours after taking before it is effective. But if you are taking it once every day, that washes out.
I decided to give it another try. So far, I have not felt spaced-out. I wonder if I had an ear or sinus infection that caused the feeling-weird. Those are common comorbidities during seasonal allergies and it is very possible that it wasn't the drug that was causing the side-effect.
Air Quality
Fires in Alberta are impacting 2.5PM levels in the air over a swath of states from North Dakota to Kansas.
 |
| Tomorrow's forecast for 2.5PM levels |
More of an issue for me is that the Orchard Grass (
Dactylis glomerata) is on the verge of pollinating. Orchard Grass pollen is my kryptonite.
Another trial run at lugging buckets scheduled for Monday morning
"Dad, I am at a yard sale and this guy is selling 5 gallon buckets. Do you want me to buy some?" Southern Belle asked.
I asked the price and it was less than half the price of new. "Sure, buy four of them for me" I told her.
The picture in my head is that I will drill hole(s) in the bottom and decant my 4 gallons/tree into the bucket, then go back for another load. Repeat but with the second set of two. With a median (improved) round-trip of 200 feet, the first set of buckets will need about two minutes to drain...which is the bogey I will use for selecting hole size/number.
The first set of buckets will bet "caterpillared" forward to trees five-and-six and so on.
A job delayed
A job delayed is a job made more difficult...usually.
I have a nursery row that needs to be hand-weeded. Not my favorite chore.
It is overgrown.
I am watering it in the hopes that wet dirt will make it easier to pull up the weeds, root and all.
AI, then first hit from a common search engine
It is safe to assume that the results you get from AI is "filtered" to favor answers that are convenient for the sources funding the programming and hosting.
Cicadas are reputed to taste like asparagus
According to the internet, cicadas taste like asparagus...or nuts...or shellfish.
There are eleven species of cicadas that are common in Michigan. They all have distinct preferences in terms of foods that they eat as larvae.
Some species feast on oak roots. Others prefer pine. Some favor sycamore roots. Still others prefer cottonwood or willow...or perennial weeds.
I think I will pass on the air-fried cicadas this year, again.
Taking loratadine every day all year has changed my life. It can take up to a month to reach full potency in your system as your histamine levels gradually respond.
ReplyDeleteIf I miss a week at the wrong time of year a sinus infection that expands into bronchitis or an ear infection is predictable.
I just counted the number of tablets left. I have been taking it for 16 days.
DeleteMaybe this season will not be a train-wreck.
Allergies...the bane of our existence! And as we get older, we seem to get more of them.
ReplyDeleteI do not move full 5 gallon buckets by hand very far. I have found a dolly with the (all-terrain) wheels works very well. If the buckets have lids, 2 at a time. Wheelbarrows work pretty well, or a wagon.
ReplyDeletesam
Not sure which method you are using, but I would highly recommend the sublingual loratadine tabs. (Claratin RediTabs, 10mg) They dissolve in about a minute and I normally start feeling allergy relief within 30 minutes. They save my bacon every year during the allergy season.
ReplyDeleteDEpending on the size of your newly-discovered cart, you might think about getting a food grade IBC tote tank. You can pick these up used pretty cheap, and it's a way to move a 2-300 gallons at a time of water. I have a large one on my little trailer that I fill up at home and take out to the land when I'm planning to burn brush, then I drag it behind my tractor. A friend does the same with his, except to water newly-planted trees on his ranch. Easier than stringing hoses !
ReplyDeleteBest stored in a dark barn though, or else the tote tank plastic will start to degrade in UV light, the more direct, the quicker.
DeleteERJ, I cannot confidently comment on cicadas, but crickets fried tasted pretty much like sunflower seeds. Not bad at all. I do not recommend grasshoppers as they are rather bitter.
ReplyDeleteI took a course in Wilderness Survival at the local community college.
DeleteThe instructor informed us that late one evening, he and his buddy were consuming home-brewed beer on their screened-in porch.
They heard Junebeetles "popping" against the screen, perhaps due to the light or the "incense" they were burning.
It seemed like a good idea at the time. They collected a handful of the stunned beetles and sauteed them in butter.
The instructor reported that EVERYTHING tastes good after burning a certain kind of incense...but you better have toothpicks handy because the insect legs get stuck between your teeth.
There was a Victorian who tried, over the years, to eat everything available. The most vile-tasting was the mole.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, oddly enough, cookies flavored with Mole's asses are considered a delicacy in some places.
DeleteGroan. OK, I'll play along: How does the rest of the mole taste? And does it go as well as chicken does with Mexican mole sauce?
DeleteRelated: I recently thought about the possible taste of groundhog just before dispatching the snarling beast. I decided I'm not that hungry yet.
I think I am taking the same for my hayfever here. It says 10 mg Loratadin on the pack, so it is probably similar. Trouble with antihistamines is that they make me extremely aggressive, not sleepy at all. I find I need to take two of them per day at this time of year.
ReplyDelete