Ker-choo! Don't worry, I covered my mouth when I sneezed so you were not exposed to my germs — that is if I am actually a germ-carrier right now. You see, I do not know whether I have caught a cold or my allergies are acting up.

Whichever it is, I crawled out of bed to gargle long before dawn to alleviate a sore throat, and have been sneezing and blowing my nose since then. Now at 5.a.m. I am asking myself: Should I go back to bed? If I sleep now, will the arms of Morpheus embrace me tonight? I know rest is important in fighting a cold, if I do have a cold.

Turning to my computer for help in determining whether my symptoms are attributable to an allergy or a virus, I accessed a number of Web sites, including Mayoclinic.com

The results of a test I responded to on one of those sites, as well as other information I gleaned online, were appended with the disclaimer: Consult your doctor ... So, I am still in a muddle.

I would not be concerned about what is causing my nose to run, my eyes to itch, my throat to hurt — I have survived much worse — but I have a date with a friend to attend a play tomorrow night.

I like to be accompanied by friends when I venture out at night, but when circumstances prevent me from following through on plans we made, I feel guilty for I am not the only one who is disappointed.

When I was a child, I heard my mother's friend Helen say, "Life always threw a monkey wrench into my plans, so I don't make plans anymore."

Helen came to our home on the Tuesdays it was my mother's turn to host the card club to which they belonged. My sisters and I looked forward to those Tuesdays, as after the group took a "tea break," Mother would call us into the kitchen and give us a slice of what was leftover from the cake she had served to the card players.

The women, who ranged in age from 25 to 60, were always in good spirits when they were together. "They leave their troubles at home," Mother once said.

As my sisters and I sat in the living room, we could hear them laughing and teasing each other, "Rita, I saw that," the widow in the group would say in jest, "don't be peeking at the cards before you deal them out."

To which Rita would retort, "If you weren't watching me, you would be able to concentrate on the game. I could knit a sock while waiting for you to discard."

Parting on Tuesdays, the women would say, "See you next week," save for Helen who only said, "Goodbye." It seemed she would not allow herself to even look forward to again meeting with her friends.

When I grew older, I learned that Helen had a difficult life. Her husband worked sporadically, and was more likely to be found in a bar, drinking liquor with his slacker buddies, than at work or at home. He was of little, if any, help to Helen in raising their five children. What a sad situation, but even sadder was that Helen had given up hope that anything would ever turn out the way she would like.

I can only imagine how dull life would be without planning to meet with friends, host a party, take a trip, redecorate the living room or plant a garden.

Also, if fear of disappointment ruled our lives, we would never accept a challenge. But I believe it is better to chance disappointment than to live in what William Bennett, author of "The Book of Virtues," describes as the "gray twilight that knows neither victory of defeat."

For every time I have been disappointed, there have been dozens of times I have known the joy of seeing my plans or dreams come to fruition.

Because hope flourishes in my heart, I will choose an outfit to wear tomorrow WHEN we go to the theater. Yes, "Tomorrow is another day," as Scarlett O'Hara says in "Gone With the Wind." Another day to hope for the best.