Living in the Midwest, I face it every morning -- scratchy throat, sneezing and watery eyes. Luckily, my allergies are not that bad after 10 minutes of morning madness (then, symptoms subside to nothing).

However, I don't live in Texas, where health officials have warned residents that the upcoming ragweed season could be the worst in decades. At some point, handkerchiefs will sell by the truckload in Dallas stores I'll bet.

This is understandable, as the May-June months this year were filled with almost daily rain, which means those ragweed plants are primed for increased pollination and superb growth this fall -- which will cause some massive allergy suffering most likely. Sigh.