It’s been so long since I’ve been sick that I almost forgot how miserable a little summer time cold can make me. I remember now, though, and I don’t like it one bit.

I think this old cold started out as a hay fever thing. There are so many allergens in the air that I’ve been looking into Santa Fe dehumidifiers or other air cleaning devices. I really have to do something because I don’t want to be sick like this again.

In all fairness, though, our home air quality is much better than it was just 15 years ago. Back then, we heated our house with oil and that’s just a little less dirty than the coal furnace that was in this house several decades before that. The biggest problem was that the coal dust from that old furnace has settled into the walls. When we remodeled, we were shocked at how much coal dust was in this house.

Anyway. I’m feeling better and looking for ways to not let this happen again. It’s bad enough that the outside air wreaks havoc on my sinuses; I need the inside air to play nice with my health.

My oldest son was always more slender than his younger brother. He could eat everything in sight and still not gain weight. And eat, he did! That kid had quite an appetite.

But something happened on his way to adulthood: my son’s metabolism slowed down before his appetite did. Extra pounds began to add up and now as he approaches 30, he’s trying to slim down.

Just working outside at his job has helped a lot but he’s also been looking into supplements. He’s had me search online for diet pill reviews and ratings, hoping to find something that will make the process easier.

A few things about this are significant. First, I’m totally shocked and in a state of disbelief that I could even have a son approaching that age. This must be due to a calender glitch or something.

Second, what makes this otherwise bright young man think that if something out there really did make weight loss easier, his mother would not have discovered it already?

Finally, I love reminding my darling son that he used to claim that he’d never get fat, that he’d always be in tip-top physical condition, even when he’s “old like you and dad.” HAHAHAHA!

Payback is golden.

Nick has inherited my terrible sinus problems. I feel so bad for him. Like me, his sinuses get so clogged up that he ends up with an earache. Nothing is worse than an earache caused by sinus problems.

I found some homeopathic ear drops at the store for him yesterday. He was so miserable he was willing to try anything. He was shocked that the drops worked. The box said they were gentle enough for a baby but strong enough for an adult. And they were!

Now I’ve used and even formulated “natural” products using dried herbs, essential oils and other ingredients like olive oil. I’ve had a good bit of success with natural acne treatment and I swear by helichrysum essential oil for scarred or aging skin. I guess I just never imagined a homeopathic remedy working for earaches. But it did, and much to our relief.

About this health thing. I’m looking at various diet pills and I’m doing some research. The over the counter stuff is very different from the stuff I remember from a few decades ago.

Most of these diet supplements are packed with a number of herbals as well as trace minerals and vitamins. I’m not sure if they’re completely safe but it seems they’re much safer than the ones we bought back in the 70s and 80s. I’m just not ready to jump into any of them yet.

I took a little break from my weight loss program to test how well I could maintain my weight. I’m happy with the results.

After tinkering a with my diet here and there, I was able to maintain a steady weight for over two weeks. I did gain a few pounds the first week or so, but soon found the problem foods and got on track.

Now I’m back to losing again. My high protein, low carb plan includes protein drinks that definitely help me to control my calorie intake. Interestingly, when I try to lose weight the biggest obstacle is always consuming enough calories. I tend to forget to eat and then my body goes into starvation mode, which slows my metabolism down almost to a dead stop.

Anyway, I lost over 40 pounds in the first phase of this diet. I’d like to lose at least 30 more but hopefully another 40. We’ll see how that goes.

Have you ever heard someone say that doctors and nurses make the worst patients? Well, as the daughter of a nurse, I can tell you it’s true.

My mom has been complaining about her knees needing replaced for over two decades. She has more excuses to not have it done than anyone can imagine. My guess is that she’ll wait another two decades, which will put her in her 90s, and then figure she’s too old.

The other thing that drives me crazy about my mom is that she doesn’t wear her medical alert bracelets to let emergency personnel know that she’s allergic to penicillin. You’d think a retired nurse would know how important that is, right?

This is the woman who encouraged me to quit smoking - for decades. This is the woman who every single person in the family calls for medical information or to translate doctorspeak. You know she’d read any of us the riot act if we were avoiding needed surgery or refused to wear a bracelet that could save our lives.

The woman thinks she’s invincible, though. I love her, but she makes me crazy!

I’m disappointed that I’ve still not found a GNC store that is a privately owned franchise instead of a corporate store. I loved the one where I always shopped before. The lady who owned it was so helpful and always found exactly what I needed.

When she sold, no one wanted to take over so the company runs it now. It’s no different than the store at the malls around here. There’s no personal touch at all. No one remembers your name or the stuff you like. When I used to go in, when it was privately owned, the owner or one of the sales people would always have something new to show me because they knew what I liked. I miss that kind of personal service.

I’ve been walking. I love to walk and was looking forward to walking on the bike and foot trail down by the river. Kendyll doesn’t do well on the trail, though, so I’ve been walking with her around the neighborhood. That’s a big deal for me because I don’t usually walk around here.

I’ve enjoyed our neighborhood walks, though. I’ve chit chatted with people I don’t see often these days and even ran into a neighbor I hadn’t seen since his extended stay in an alcohol rehab facility last year.

Most important, though, is that Kendyll is really enjoying our walks. We talk and sometimes we stop to look more closely at a flower or a dog. Once, we even saw a rabbit hop across the road toward the woods.

I can’t think of a better way to get my exercise than walking with Kendyll. I need exercise and I love my grandbaby. That’s what I call a perfect combination.

I’m trying to cut back on my Excedrin usage but so far I’m not having much luck. I get the worst headaches!

Right now I think I’m dealing with a sinus headache because the pain is mostly on my face and over my eyes. I’ve gotten tension headaches in the past, too. My sister and nephew get migraine headaches and have even looked into the use of Botox for migraines. From what I understand, those headaches are much worse than my little sinus or tension ones.

I know that meditation can help for my tension headaches but it doesn’t do a thing for the pressure of a sinus headache. I’ve heard that acupressure helps, though. If only I could convince one of my kids to learn how to do acupressure, I’d be good to go!

Did you see Marie Osmond on those TV ads, looking all slim and fit? WOW! She looks great. I need something like that. I need to find a way to get rid of the rest of this extra weight.

I’m doing okay on my current eating plan but I want to speed things up. I need a quick weight loss plan for this last 20 pounds, so I can be ready for my trip to Hawaii this summer. I thought about the meals that get delivered but I’m not sure how long that will take.

Maybe I should just get off this chair and go walking. That would probably be my best bet.