Simply Belle

As I approached new year with an upbeat attitude, I was immediately hit with storm of allergies in no time.  And to tell you the truth, I am not sure how I am going to handle it again this year. It seems like it came earlier this year, and has worsened.

Many people who haven’t experienced the debilitating effects of allergy to a person like me, may think that it is nothing serious. That it can easily be remedied by over the counter drugs like Benadryl, Chlor-Trimetron, etc. Problem is these drugs bring no relief to my allergies. They simply don’t a thing. And neither those that they sell at health food stores. I also availed of the 2-year allergy treatment since July 2008 from an allergy doctor here in town, which is done orally rather than a regimen of allergy shots, but I haven’t felt any relief.

I don’t want to succumb to another Kenalog shot because of its side effects like halting my monthly period for more than half a year, and still hasn’t showed up to this day. The Kenalog shot did the trick alright as far as allergy is concerned as I was allergy-free for six months after I took it. Yes, it felt good being able to breath through my nose, sleeping through the night, being able to eat the food I love without going into a coughing fit for hours.

Going through coughing spell is no fun at all. First, I feel my throat is sore, then becomes constricted, and eventually the coughing begins and can last for hours especially at night when I am trying to get some sleep. Then wheezing kicks in, and the more I wheeze, the more I cough. Nose becomes completely clogged that even drinking a glass of water is a chore. Why? Try swallowing water while your nose is pinched and see what happens. Or worse yet, try blowing clogged nostrils. It makes a squeaking nose in your ears as if it is creating a detour for the air passage. You feel like you are drowning, gasping for air constantly. It is a terrible feeling.

The only thing that seems to help for me is by drinking juice of fresh fruits and veggies that my husband lovingly fixes every morning, and eating mostly raw food. At least I don’t go into coughing fit like normal food such as adobo, chili, pizza, fried chicken do to me. I found out that I can also take simple food like rice and steamed veggies, fresh organic chicken soup, split pea soup but devoid of spices and salt. Well, it is better than not being able to tolerate food at all.

I am also working on having my mercury fillings removed as my daughter thought it might be the cause of my allergies. I have six mercury fillings from years ago, and, indeed, that is a lot of mercury lurking in my body. Could be it the culprit?

Juice anyone?

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my beautiful flowers in Catanduanes

Happy Thursday everyone!

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New York, London, or Gay Parie? Hardly. Stephanie Mae grew up in a small town in rural Arizona. There,  in the rarefied mountain air, she composed many of the tunes you find on her CD, Pokerface.

It started one afternoon while life guarding at the municipal pool. She discovered that the melodic splashing of all the twittering, laughing children somehow instilled in her mind the basis of the tune, “At The Edge.” Then, While washing dishes one evening, she put together a few bars of ” Crazy” to the musical background of pots and pans scraping against the sink. And as a president of the high school Key Club, the tune Poker Face found its way into her assembly while she was listening to the clanking of donations dropping onto assorted piles. On these occasions, she would rush home to her piano and finish composing her new songs while they were still fresh in her mind.

As time went on, her passion for music gripped her so deeply that at any moment, she might set the piano to jumping and the walls to shaking when she pounded away at the ivories. Members of the family would have to flee to the far corners of the house to protect their ears. Are those signs of a genius?

It is often said that music and mathematics are interrelated. And when a person is exceptional in one branch of knowledge, she might do well in the other. So it is true with Stephanie Mae. Her aptitude for mathematics earned her a scholarship at Stanford University where she is currently pursuing, of all things, a degree in Bio Mechanical Engineering! Well, a girl has to earn a living, doesn’t she? But you can bet that she crams in plenty of music appreciation courses into her busy schedule. And she spends quality time with her friends in the Every Day People A Capella choir.

Stephanie Mae is now in her senior year and can’t wait to graduate. She plans to start her own recording studio where in her free time after work, she can sing and burn CDs to her heart’s content. Bravo! We expect to see and hear a lot more of Stephanie’s extensive talents in the near future. That is, unless she plans to go to grad school. Stay tuned.

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