We hadn't seen Teeny Bear in a while, so I took advantage of the holiday to invite her over on a Monday.  I offered to meet E for lunch since he would be at work and she had to be back home before quitting time.  We hit a local Chinese buffet.
*As a side note, this is the first buffet that I have ever been to that had a long, detailed sign (otherwise known as a Word Document in all caps and 36 point font printed from their computer) explaining in both English and Spanish that wasting food made their food cost very high and they would be charging people for excessively wasting food.  Maybe is was so they could afford to replace the stall doors in the ladies' room, because two of the three stalls had curtains hanging in their place.
As one usually finds at a place like this, they manage to stay in business because they have tasty food.  We really like spicy food in our house, so we were really enjoying the jalapeno chicken.  At one point, Teeny Bear inhaled at the wrong time and began to have one of those cough/choke-type spasms that happens when a jalapeno seed goes down the wrong pipe.  Of course we laughed at her.  Then I went up and got another plate... including more of that delicious jalapeno chicken.
Then I also had a seed go down the wrong way.  Unfortunately, my body had the wrong auto response.  I did not cough.  I did not choke.  I sneezed.  Oh, the pain.  Now the seed was somewhere in my sinus cavity.  I sneezed violently at least a dozen times.  I have never felt a fire inside my head of this magnitude.  Next thing I know, my nose is bleeding!  I never, ever get nosebleeds... and it's bleeding pretty profusely.  And I am still sneezing.
So I excuse myself to the restroom (where I witness a woman exit the only stall with a door and bypass the sinks completely as she leaves) to get myself together and clean myself up.  Finally the sneezing stops.  I look in the mirror and see on my neck the biggest jalapeno seed to ever grow.  Yup.  I finally got it out! 
So I wash up and head back to the table (thankfully taking note of the fact that the unsanitary lady from the bathroom is putting on her coat and leaving instead of touching the buffet utensils any more).  Hmmm.... do I dare?  Oh, yes I do.  One more tiny spoonful of that jalapeno chicken.
But after one bite, I have to stop.  I feel a sneeze coming on...

CL