For as long as I can remember I’ve had sensitive sinuses.
In elementary school I had to have a couple of sinus surgeries due to polyp growth caused by a diagnosis of acid reflux. Visiting my ear, nose and throat doctor was a regular part of my childhood. I don’t know if that’s the cause of my sensitivity all these years later or if it’s even related at all.
What I do know is that with every change of the weather and seasons, I can feel it in my head. For days. And people around me can hear it in my voice. Also for days. Weather changes do not bode well for me.
So you can imagine the impact that the 30-degree swings we’ve been experiencing have had on my sinuses these last couple of weeks. I bet I’m not the only one.
Overall, I’ll be thrilled when the weather breaks for good and warmer temperatures and longer days are here to stay for a few months. I’m growing tired of the cold, dark and dreary winter days and nights. Hello March: I’m glad we are another month closer to summer.
I miss leaving the house without a coat and walking the Rivergreenway or swinging at the park. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m generally a fair-weather fan of our outdoor amenities; cold just isn’t my thing. But when it gets warmer out, you will likely find my son and I outside a lot — especially now that we live closer to one of Bluffton’s parks.
And at least we have technology to keep us connected when winter weather and illness get in our way.
Because of some germs that my little guy and I were passing around last week — which culminated in, you guessed it, a sinus infection for me — I had to miss the county commissioners meeting. That is a rarity for me; I think I’ve only missed a few in the almost nine years I’ve been covering county government. But I am thankful for a strong internet connection and the meeting’s livestream that allowed me to cover the meeting as normally as possible, even if I wasn’t able to be there in person.
Having that option is nice when it’s a last resort and when it works.
Relying on technology to cover meetings doesn’t always end well. There have been a couple of recent meetings that I considered covering remotely for one reason or another but when I decided to show up in person instead as planned, the technology wasn’t cooperating. I would have missed some significant dialogue had I logged in off-site.
That’s the risk we take sometimes in this job, given the workload and scheduling conflicts.
And dealing with unpredictable, all-over-the-map weather is a risk we take living in Indiana, where we can experience all the seasons in one day.
My sinuses hurt just typing that.
jessica@news-banner.com
