Whiff

A sufficient number of roses have now opened that, when sitting on the back porch, I occasionally catch a whiff of their perfume. Their timing, however, has been singularly bad. The pine trees have begun spreading their pollen, and every time I smell the roses I also inhale a dose of that. This makes me reluctant to spend much time outside.

The ponderosa pines have the most offensive pollen, and it not only makes me sneeze, it makes me ache— especially my head. Sneezing with a headache is not fun at all. I'll be glad if the rain predicted for next Friday arrives, though by that time there probably won't be much pollen left for it to wash out of the air. At least it will wash away whatever remains on the ground.

Today was the peak of the current warm cycle, and the high came very close to 90. Starting tomorrow we return to the low 80s, and then the 70s for most of the week, with next Friday promising to drop into the low 60s.I look forward to next weekend's cool temperatures almost as much as I do to the rain that is expected to accompany them. After that I won't mind the next rise. It might bring another crop of roses, which I'll be able to enjoy without the interference of a bunch of tree spooge.

A can of chili beans for dinner tonight, I think. The house is still a bit warm for any serious cooking.