FREEDOM TO CHOOSE A BLESSING OR A CURSE? BTW, I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT ABORTION. THAT TOO, IS YOUR CHOICE AND I HAVE NO SAY IN IT. PART 1

Part of being a human being means we have the ability to choose. It doesn't matter where you were born, what kind of government you have or whether you are male or female. There are still decisions we make that are strictly personal.

Of course, living in the United Stated of America, we are taught that we are free. Since the only other country I lived in briefly was Israel, I can't say what it would be like to like in a land of dictatorship, chaos or socialism.  I only know what I know. And, of course it's been slanted in the direction my country wants me to see. No matter where you live, that's the truth.

This is or at least, didn't begin as a political treatise. I can't decide on whether or not to get a dog. And, apparently the decision isn't entirely up to me, as my husband has decided that it can't happen until we take our trip to Italy and Israel sometime in 2017. We have a Bar Mitzvah to go to and hubby wants to see the land of his roots.  That's not the issue.

We are a couple, so we are supposed to make decisions together and if needs must, to compromise. Not one of my strong points.

BACKSTORY:

I am allergic to animals, flowers, trees, perfume, my own sweat and various environmental properties.  If you can breathe it, I can wheeze it. I have also developed asthma and am on an inhaler.

The allergies to pollen dates to childhood. The animals to approximately age 16. We had a cat when I was a kid and I was okay. I choose to believe that his death triggered the allergy. He had been injured by a car and made his way home. We had the vet come. Can you believe that? Anyway, he was too far-gone. I was probably 12 and don't know why we weren't able to give him to the vet, or why my parents didn't take him to be put down.  When I think of it, this was barbaric.  In any event, someone came to the house to pick him up. During the day. Both my parents were working and I just couldn't do it. And so it fell to Janis, my sister who was barely two years older. I still feel guilty at leaving her to do this by herself and I'm starting to cry.

Janis died in her sleep, at home, perhaps two or three years later. My animal allergies started when I went to visit my aunt and cousins in Connecticut over Christmas break when I was 16. My aunt had cats.

At age 19 I went for allergy shots. I was a mess. I had tissues hanging out of my face half of the year. I couldn't visit people with animals and I had to stop wearing perfume and couldn't be near anyone who was.

The allergist was the head of a very good hospital in New York. He may have been a pervert too. *another digression.

He did a full physical before doing the allergy testing. Even though his nurse was walking in and out of the office, he inspected my private places, which I thought was odd. That wasn't what was running. It was my nose dumbass.

Being 19 and naïve, I let him do his check.  Sequencings are not my strong point either. I do know that he wanted to check me again. This time I said no. He was a little affronted, but I was not forced to do it.

He gave me skin tests and shock or all shocks. I was allergic to very, very many things.  Once, after being shot with my allergens, I went home and took a nap. I was in college and had some time on my hands. I woke up itching and my hands, filled with time, would not move. They were too swollen. I looked down and saw that I was covered with hives and got a bit nervous. Read FREAKED OUT! Thank God I had Daddies car and called our GP  (for those youngins, that is the equivalent of the Family Practice Dr.) who had office hours and lived several minutes away.  I drove straight there and it took two adrenaline shots to get me to normal.