The Nose as Simple Decoration

Lots and lots of people don't like their noses; mine suits me just fine.  Yesterday, however, I discovered that it has been nothing more than a decorative item on my face for, oh, say six months or so.

We have had day after day of rain and cold, but I ran anyway until yesterday when I had a headache that had all the earmarks (literally, it would seem..) of a sinus problem, and my ears had been stopped up since my last trip to Querétaro, snapping, crackling, and popping but not opening.  Thanks to my husband's nagging and some internal impulse that was yelling "Alright already!!!", I went to the ENT specialist we see--it's more fun in Spanish, he's known as an otorrinolaringólogo--only to discover that whatever could be blocked up in the ENT zone, was.  It was so acute that he gave me a wonderful shot that opened up my nose almost within five minutes, and I was shocked to discover what it was like to breathe without opening my mouth.

It was even more of a shock to find out what it was like to sleep without my nose stopping up on the side upon which I was sleeping, forcing me to turn to the other side in order to open up each side by turns.  My treatment will last at least a month, and the pills I take at night keep me up, but they keep me up and alert, so maybe I can take a night class somewhere.  I can't wait until the weather is decent enough to go for a run just to see if this makes a difference or not.  Maybe juiced up with my allergy pills and a big dose of bronchial inhaler, I can increase my distance and speed!  Add a cup of coffee to that, and man alive, I may be a contender!