Grr

I have some sort of sinus situation brewing, and I wouldn't usually be too cranky (overall--I know how the ropes for getting through it) BUT this time something has gone awry in my right ear and I am terribly aggravated with it. I am not in pain, even with my sinuses, however there is a constant pounding in my right ear, I guess from fluid build up. It is driving me NUTS and causing me to have super sonic hearing for things far away, but I can barely hear someone talking to me 4 feet away.

When I eventually fell asleep last night, it was on my left side, but the RIGHT side of my head was a disaster this morning, and still is. I doubled up on the cold medicine at the recommendation of my pharmacist boss, and it has subsided a teeny bit. I really don't want to go to the doctor because I'll most likely end up leaving there with a prescription and then a REAL illness from all the germy people. Right now I don't have a fever or anything, so I am trying to deal with it on my own. Anyone have experience with adult ear problems? I wonder the best way to clear out those tubes without prescription meds or a trip to the doctors. WebMD recommended ear drops, so I might stop at the Rite Aid and scope that out. Google health said to chew gum with Xylitol in it; luckily I had that in my purse and I am on my 3rd piece.

Even with this aggravation, I did go to the gym last night and spent 35 minutes on the bike. I felt decent while working out and right afterwards, but then as I cooled down it was like all the junk in my head re-congealed. I was so tired though, I only slept about 3 hours the night before, and those weren't consecutive. Then last night I discovered I can stream netflix movies on my ipad and it actually works. I stayed up too late, partially because of my ear and partially because of my discovery. I got most of the way through Lord of the Rings before I fell asleep.

But it is a short week here; I have the rest of today and then tomorrow before I am off until January 3. This week off is the single best part about having a job with the university system. Next week I have grand plans for cleaning, organizing the house, and going to the gym. We'll see how that pans out...

I hope you all have a great Christmas with your families and friends!