Something Strange in Sterling

Ever since I can remember, ever since I was a tiny child, I've had a problem with mosquitos. Now, I do in fact realize that almost no one likes mosquitos, but I had an especially bad time of them.

For one thing, mosquitos seem to prefer me to other folks. We have joked for decades that, should a lone mosquito be in a room with me and 1,000 other people, it would seem me out and bite me repeatedly. This made me very popular with respect to camping trips. If you took me along, you were virtually assured that YOU would not get even a single bite!

To make matters worse, I have always had a really bad reaction to mosquito bites. While most people will get a small, raised, itchy bump, I would get a giant red INSANELY itchy welt larger around than a quarter. And generally, they would then get infected and take weeks to heal. From April to August, I was a lumpy, bumpy, red and itchy mess.

For some odd reason, this year seems to be different. When I went to Savannah (a.k.a. Mosquito Central) last month with my husband, he was bitten repeatedly, and I received only one bite. And it barely itched at all. In fact, after just two days, I couldn't even tell exactly where I had been bitten. No huge welt, no infection, no weeks of healing.

SCORE!

Then last night, a mosquito bit the back of my arm. I noticed when it happened, and swatted it away. But I do not remember scratching at it. And today, I can't find that mosquito bite I know I received less than 24 hours ago!

This might sound like terrific news, but the allergic reaction I used to have to those pesky blood suckers, has given way to a rather severe case of hay fever, that I am now on three medications to combat. Well, at least no one can SEE my post-nasal drip. And I'm pretty sure the $50 monthly we pay AFTER insurance, is not too much more than what I used to spend on insect repellents.

So it's a bit of good news/bad news I'm playing here. It's certainly quite a strange situation for me. I might unabashedly wear shorts this summer, a bit of a foreign concept!

I hear tell that every cell in one's body regenerates over a seven year period, and that because of this, allergies can change -- not that they always do, but they CAN -- every seven years. And I was in fact allergic to shellfish, for what seems to be just about seven years, back in my 20's.

But I turned 44 this year, and that is not an integer multiple of seven. So what gives? Yes, it's a mystery wrapped in an enigma, and I can say with all certainty that something strange is going on here in Sterling, By God, Virginia.