It seemed like a good idea at the time, getting off the main road and taking the path along the creek for a bit on my morning walk.
The problem is that path is little more than a deer trail in many places, making it necessary to duck and zigzag around mountain cedar branches.
Well, normally that by itself isn't a problem, but at this time of year, and right now in epic proportions, the branches of the male ashe juniper (aka cedar tree) is bursting with these little cones full of cedar pollen. It's not unusual to see a huge puff of smoke billow from a tree at the slightest touch of a breeze… not actually fire smoke, but a cloud of pollen.
It didn't even occur to me that when you walk through them and knock them out of your way, the pollen clings to you as if you were an oversized bumble bee.
Consequently, a few hours later when my allergy meds had worn off, the pollen hitching a ride on me went into full attack mode on my nose, throat and eyes.
But in the height of my sneezing and clawing of itchy eyes, I was grateful for one thing. Well, one thing besides my stockpile of antihistamines and nose sprays and eye drops…
…that during my walk, when the thought occurred to me that if knocked one of the branches hard with a stick, I might finally be able to capture one of those billowing pollen clouds in my camera, right up close, I immediately tossed that thought away, realizing the suicidal potential of such a stunt.
I'm relieved to know that, even for me, a photograph isn't worth "Death by Stupidity and Pollen".
Long Hollow 
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