I came back from our last vacation somewhat miserable. The mosquitos and black flies had made a meal of us, despite wearing bug nets, long sleeves, and pants. While mosquito bites typically disappear for me after a day, it seems black fly bites are a lot worse. My husband had about 28 black fly bites […]
I’ve been noticing a lot of Christmas tree allergy questions coming up on social media in the last few weeks. For people with chemical allergies, the winter holidays aren’t just a time of celebration – they’re also a time of avoiding cinnamon-scented products, scented candles, holiday shopping crowds, and even Christmas trees. I found myself […]
Once upon a time, before I knew I had chemical allergies, I had a strict packing plan when I went on trips. Clothes, shoes, hair stuff, face stuff, body stuff, medications, tooth stuff…all into the bag. I’ve been through a few different variations since then, but nowadays my travel bag is barely recognizable, and it’s […]
When we travelled out West in April, we went for a serious reason, but we knew we had to make it a family vacation, too, because we didn’t know if we would have any more travel time this year. Most of our time was spent in British Columbia, with a little bit in Alberta, due […]
Many of you read about two months ago when I was frantically searching for a trailer or motorhome in which to head out west to visit my grandfather before he died. Today’s post is an update to that one. Not a lot of allergy info here, just a crazy story. In the week I had […]
In part one, I reviewed health food stores from Ontario to Alberta, based mainly on my recent cross-country trip. I visited over 25 different shops, and it is my hope that my own experiences about what you might find in each will help others. Today I discuss some of the gems and not-so-wonderful natural food […]
In April, I took a trip halfway across Canada and back – from Ontario to BC’s west coast. Not only did I need to find snacks and other foods along the way, but I also wanted to explore the diversity of products offered in different places. I decided to review the places I stopped so […]
I’ve written previously about staying in hotels with chemical allergies, but there are times when staying in a hotel just doesn’t work. One time my husband forgot to leave the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door and housekeeping cleaned the room unsafely after the first day, right before I came to join him. Sometimes hotels […]
My husband and I both grew up celebrating Christmas. Over the course of our life together we’ve had big, fully-decorated Christmases, smaller, effortless Christmases, and everything in between. About 8 years ago, we bought a fake Christmas tree with natural-looking, moulded tips, and that has been a staple of our Christmas decorating most years since. […]
My daughter and I travelled with my husband for his work this week. I wasn’t sure it would be possible after the house contamination last week, but it worked out. We spent three days in a hotel that is willing to cater to my chemical contact allergy needs. It turned out we were in a […]
This week I finally had a breakthrough in a personal project on which I’ve been working. I am trying to complete a medieval alchemical separation process. The process historically required colophony in most instances, a substance to which I’m allergic. After months of trying to find a way, I have done it without using colophony. […]
For the past two weeks, I’ve been camping medieval-style. That’s 14 days of sleeping in a ger (a close relative of a yurt), trying to ignore bugs (all except the really big ones), no air conditioning when sometimes the humidex beat 106 degrees Fahrenheit (when even sweat had nowhere to go), walking everywhere, port-a-potties, and […]
I went camping again this past weekend. That seems to be a very common theme lately, but this time it was with a group. This means that chores (including dish washing, cooking, and meals) are shared. In situations like this, it’s really important to communicate needs with a large group of people, which seems almost […]
This weekend I went to a wedding, about four hours from home. It was a beautiful wedding incorporating all sorts of rituals and touches special to the bride and groom. There were family of the bride and groom, friends galore, and lots of hugging and dancing. Food was typical buffet style. That’s what you typically […]
A little while ago, I was scanning Facebook and came across an article claiming that coffee grounds make a good bug repellent. That is, spreading them around outside or lighting them on fire would effectively remove mosquitoes from your vicinity. Not that you should rub them on yourself. Though that wouldn’t smell half bad… Not […]
I went camping again this past weekend. Preferring not to set up a tent or to stay in someone’s house, I took a mattress and slept in the back of my van. I took all the stuff I needed to stay well, spent the majority of my time outside, tried to stay away from scented […]
Since finding out about my allergies, there are a lot of things I’ve avoided doing because I know it would cause a flare-up. For people around me, they would never consider these things a problem, but I’m always thinking about how to avoid rashes. Go figure. My husband and I recently celebrated an anniversary. When […]
← Having House Guests Who Don’t Have Allergies, Part 1 My husband’s parents have now arrived and we’re about halfway through their visit. Although things were a bit uncertain at first, they seem now to understand the adjustments that need to be made to their regular routine. I’m sure it hasn’t been easy for them, […]
Large masses of people. *shiver* They used to not bother me at all. Now I fear being a part of a crowd, especially indoors. The combination of cleaning chemicals used in commercial establishments, fragranced body care products, and laundry detergents and shampoos wafting through the air makes me fear for the next several days. Itchy, […]
My in-laws arrive this week from halfway across the country. They know about my allergies, but I don’t think they realize yet how much little things affect me. Nonetheless, they really are trying to make as little impact on my health as possible, a fact I wholeheartedly appreciate. Having guests in our house has been […]
I have had he occasion to stay at friends’ homes a few times since finding out about my allergies. It always makes me at least a little bit nervous, but I’ve come to develop a bit of a routine and packing list, which helps a lot. Plus choosing to stay with friends who are aware […]