I saw the allergist this morning. He agrees that the idea of allergy shots is a good one, and took a comprehensive history of just what happens when I have an 'asthma attack' brought on first by allergies.
He says I need skin testing to determine more specifically what the things are that trigger the allergies and then the asthma. I set up the first available appointment for August 12. It will take about 3 hours for the tests to be done.
They do the testing on the arms. I have seen the ones on the back, but this sounds better to me. There is always a chance that someone will have a really dramatic reaction, and they can apply a tourniquet to stop the spread if they use the arm.. a bit more difficult when they use the torso.

He also explained to me that I'd be on the inhalers for the rest of the year even with the shots. It takes about 10-12 weeks for them to 'kick in', and so the need for the inhalers. I won't get much benefit from the shots this year, but next year when the pollens hit in the spring, I'll be better protected. This is not to say that I won't have some allergic reactions or that it is guaranteed to prevent the asthma attacks, but the hope is that they will be less in nature.