Chapter II
UP DATES AND REFINEMENTS
One year later my wife who never catches a cold complained about a sinus infection. I said to her” that this is the prelude to something greater. An infection is a living thing, and with living things given time and nourishment the simple can evolve into the complex. So it did; the sinus infection developed into a postnasal drip. This occurred while I was pleading with her to take a pepper treatment. The treatment would have eliminated the sinus infection. Even with the knowledge gained from my experience she said, with conviction “I’m not doing that”. Thus in no time almost the postnasal drip infected her throat and she complained about a headache. To me this seemed to be the natural order of event to come. A pathogen in either of one’s eyes, ears nose or throat can lead to infection in all. However subtle there is a connection, the trigeminal nerve nucleus and nasolacrimal duct. Crudely speaking, if you put a q-tip far enough In into your ear you will cough to clear your throat. If you take a pair of Tweezers, pulling a single strand of hair from your nose will make your eyes tear. Technically speaking, leakage occurred from one neural germinal path way to another in the trigeminal nerves nucleus. An infected throat can infest the lungs and or stomach. This cascading effect could be avoided with a stitch in time to save nine. In most cases if you can catch the infection while it is in the nose, you can nip it in the bud quickly. My wife was not so lucky; this pathology served her the full course with all the trimmings. She became dizzy with a headache that was associated with an ear infection. Her stomach was in no better shape. It was upset and had her doing the bathroom thing. These activities where accompanied by a mild cough of the lung type indicating that the pathogen had worked its way to the lungs. She went through the routine of over the counter drugs for several days. When this failed she was ready to try any thing that would stop her headache. So, we press a q-tip in the inside of a cut off Jalapeno pepper. I pressed it hard enough that its cotton tip could absorb green juice from the pepper. Getting rid of any debris such as seeds or fragments of interior pepper skin (which wouldn’t form on the q-tip if one doesn’t press to hard and the pepper is fresh.). Giving it to her standing at the end of the bed, she placed the q-tip into one ear and than the other. With a slight shrug of the shoulders she said, “I don’t feel” before she could finish, like doctor Jekyll turning into sister Hyde, she crouched down on the balls of her feet with her knees bend and body hunched over. With hands on both ears, she screamed and ran out of the room. Myself, knowing that this was a short-term reaction realized that she never read the paper that I gave her to get feedback and proof reading. I said” oh my god she ran into the computer room”. Fortunately the light was off in the computer room. None of us like to suffer in the dark. She careened back into the room and dived onto the bed holding her ears. She uttered a few unpleasant phrases and then said, “what did you make me do”. I stood in a warrior stance prepared to prevent her form destroying the house, but to my surprise she calmed down. Them, in a few more minutes she said that her headache was gone. Then she said” I’m not going to do that again!” Fortunately one treatment solved the ear problem. She felled so confidants, that she pressed her finger into the Jalapeno pepper to moisten it with its juice. She then put her finger into one nostril and then the other. Several seconds passed then she turned into a serial sneezer. After sneezing ten or more times, she said with a surprised look “my nosed isn’t stopped up anymore”. Obviously some refinements are needed here, but the treatments are effective. After treating my self several times, I developed a tolerance for the pepper ear treatment. Working in a dust latent environment, my ears often get infected. Dust is one of the favorite vehicles of bacteria upon which virus ride piggyback. What was need was a milder solution for less severe cases of infection, as well as a shield for hazardous environments. Literally, the solution came in the form of a tea. Cutting three eighth of an inch thick cross sections of a Jalapeno pepper placing then into a third of a cup of water just below 212 Fahrenheit. The temperature requirements can be achieved by first bringing the water to a boil, by the way of a pot on the stove or a cup in the microwave. Put the peppers into the water immediately upon removing the water vessel from the heat source. Stair several times and let the solution cool to room temperature. Do not cover during this process. Evaporation will result in the loss of additional liquid. This is ok because it will improve concentration. After the solution has achieved room temperature, filter the solution through a paper towel, or a napkin or linen cloth into another vessel. This solution can be stored in the refrigerator for a week (covered), or in the freezer indefinitely (for as long as it remains hot to the taste). With respect to hot to the taste, when acquiring Jalapeno peppers they must be hot to the taste. Cutting off a small circular cross section and putting it into you mouth you should have the desire to spit it out. If it is as cool to the taste as a belt pepper, or no hotter than Texas Pete you got the wrong pepper. It should be green and crunchy to the bite like a fresh belt pepper. Given time, green will turn red. The red Jalapeno pepper is good for mild sinus infections. Its juice can be introduced to the nostrils with reduced sneezing, and in some cases no sneezing at all. Use the preparation procedures above for direct application or modified refined solution.