Rats

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I have the air cleaner running at full power as I sit here in the bedroom typing this. The machine has a HEPA filter designed to eliminate all but the smallest micro-particles from the air. There is another one in the hallway also running at full power. The reason for this is the re-emergence of my 'rat allergy' about two weeks ago. This is the third straight year.

This particular allergy manifests as itching on the lower legs (lots of loud thuds and booms as I type this but they are barely detectable through the huge earphones I am wearing as I listen to Mozart's piano concerto number 21) and sometimes on the upper legs and lower abdomen. I take Loratadine and Benadryl as countermeasures and also rub Triamcinolone on the affected areas. I have no doubt (stomp) that this is yet another attempt by Walter Gerash and his 'employees' to degrade my life experience.

I acquired the allergy to rats back in the late '90s when I was keeping rats as pets. Rats make great pets if you are living in an apartment with limited space. They are fun to watch. They are also very intelligent and can be surprisingly affectionate. One example of this affection was Yum-yum, a brown female. Every time I would lift her (with both hands) up to my face she would give the tip of my nose two quick licks. Hence the name Yum-yum. Another example was one of the males (whose name escapes me at the moment). I would sometimes sit on the couch drinking beer while this guy and his daddy, Fred, played on my chest/abdomen. Once in a while I would dribble some beer from the corners of my mouth and they would lick it up and we would all get a bit drunk together.