You ask yourself, "what is this strange, unsettling feeling?" You look over shoulder, feeling you surely must be followed. You start to wonder, "why I am so angry, so tired, so irritable, when the weather is so ideal?" I will let you in on a local secret. The source of your watering eyes, your inflamed skin, why you can't breathe as well. You might think, "is it gluten, grain, my beloved pets? should I give up sugar?". Hold on there, friend. You can keep your vegan doughnuts. You aren't suddenly becoming celiac. The hidden monster destroying your life? GRASS POLLEN. The most in the country. "Why, grass, you say, that grows everywhere!" No. Not like this. Oregon is the grass seed capital of the nation. Not the fun *grass*, but soddy lawny stuff. And each June, the entire coast lights up with autoimmunity in the best season. "Surely for only a few days?" WRONG. ALL OF JUNE. MAYBE INTO JULY. IT IS THE LITERAL AIR. No more endless searching and self blame. You were sabotaged before you took your first breath. Go forth and filter.