The two places that always bother us are Walmart and the nursing home. We've cut down on the duration of trips to Walmart, and we don't have to make the long walk through the nursing home any longer. So far this month, we've been out four days. On each of them, we've had to deal with perfumes, chemicals, and the seasonal wood smoke. The wood smoke is the worst, because we never know where we'll come across is or how heavy it will be.
Our friends get our huge thanks. In the homes with smokers, they will open up the house to reduce the smell when they know we're coming, and won't smoke inside while we're there. None of them use air freshener, and they cut back on fragrances when they know we're coming. Some of them have changed laundry soap for us. That makes us feel special and awed, extremely loved, and happy to know that there are homes we can enter that won't cause problems.
Last year was also a record for me: It was the first year since 2001 that I had fewer than four prednisone tapers. I'd like to think it's because I'm improving, but I'm pretty sure it's because we stayed home as much as we did.
