secondhand smoke

[file cabinet]

I work in a guy's basement and I think his smoking upstairs is starting to affect me.. I am experiencing more phlegm and coughing.. what should I do? there is also the issue of the gross carpet which probably has mildew... but.. I dunno. if the carpet is taken out then it will be dusty and that will suck to.
wtf should I do ?

[HairlessBluetick]

get one of those dust masks. at the very least it will get you a reputation for eccentricity.

[file cabinet]

dust mask? would it help? where do they sell them? are they cheap?

[HairlessBluetick]

yeah, they're cheap, and they work...not sure where you'd find them though.

[file cabinet]

the grocery store is closed. maybe I should put a paper towel over my face while I wait til a retailer such as Target opens up.

[jimkopelli]

Hardware store, paint aisle. They'll have them.

[SensEye]

Those el-cheapo dust masks are not going to do any good in filtering out particles as small as smoke and mildew. They work ok for sawdust and the like but that is about it.

Never underestimate the placebo effect though.

[file cabinet]

ahh, dammit, I just paid $6 fucking dollars for a 3M shitty ass dust mask.. are you sure?? I almost bought one of those huge ones that look like a gas mask but I figured I would try one of the cheaper ones and see if it did anything.. I am still coughing but I am waiting for the placebo effect to occur. maybe I will take pictures so you can all laugh at me.

[file cabinet]

I also bought an exacto knife to cut the fucking carpet out.

[Laeskis]

You could try desensitivation therapy. Start smoking cigars.

[Sam172]

Dust masks are only good for larger particles. The cheap ones work a treat for sawdust though I must say :D. Though that's not really what you're looking for. It's been tried and tested by me....and they are also good for scaring small children when you givem the evil eye, raise up a large electric saw and start dancing around with it....

[int]

Make him buy you one of those Air Purifiers that you see on TV.

[jimkopelli]

Borrow a hazmat suit, and wear that.

[Jezebel]

Coughing is also an allergy symptom. I'm allergic to mold, mildew, dust, and also have problems around smoke (doesn't matter if it's wood being burned or cigarette smoke). I got a large air purifier, but it doesn't make it go away. If you can't get rid of the source, you could get allergy pills that treat the symptoms you're having. If you really really care, you could go to the Dr and determine what it is that is causing you to cough for sure.

[KentOhio]

Those commecials for Ionic Breeze sounded really good. You know, the ones where they take out the metal strip and it's all black from the air. But I think it costs like $600. Maybe you could learn how to build one yourself, being an INTP and all.

[file cabinet]

we tore out the carpet a couple hours... so that seems to have helped. the other guy said he was coughing a bit as well.