Zee Write Stuff

1. Missing work. Now we are talking about being truly sick and not "calling in sick" for an excuse to miss work. The plus side of being sick is not feeling guilty. The downside is actually feeling horrible if you're in the middle of a project that needs your tender loving care and feeding.

2. Sleeping. Lately, I have found myself strapped to a menopausal insomnia gurney careening out-0f-control through the corridors of my previously-excellent health. That said, the use of cold meds to induce sleep comes at a price. While (a) I love the extra sleep, I have found (b) I've lost part of my day -- the best part. I work best early in the morning. I feel like I've now lost a week of good writing time. But I feel a bit more rested, despite some residual grogginess. What price to pay? We shall see.

3. Thinking. A lot like a wall has been erected between my mind and anything on the desk. This is good because I'm getting a break, and bad because all I'm doing is flopping on a couch and listening to movies with a book proped on my lap for decoration. I can't even sneak some work into the equation. I suppose it's all about rest, but I get restless.

4. Kindness. This is hard for me, but I get to accept other people's kindness and help. I suppose being sick is a good excuse to allow myself to be pampered. I don't mean get a pedicure (which I did get on my way home the day I began to come down with the malady). No, I mean I had to call a colleague (thank you Drennan) and ask for help. I rarely do this and need to find myself in this position more often because, let's face it, I'd do anything for others and rarely reciprocate by "allowing" them to help moi. So, find the plus and minus in that -- all rolled into one, I'd say.

5. Remote control. Okay, I'm in charge of the video flow. Plus = I like getting my way. Minus = mmmm.... can't really think of one. Oh, okay -- some day if Steve is sick, I'll have to watch The Shining about 12 times. Ick.

6. Food. The "up" side of being sick is that food is mostly disgusting, so perhaps I could lose weight or being quite able to stay on my WW points, right? The "down" side is that the food which does appeal seems to be the soft, mushy, comfort food we all adore and which adds delightful carb and fat points to the diet. For example, ice cream and sherbet are almost a prescription when I get a sore throat. Pride allows me to point out that I DID NOT go straight to the market and buy rainbow sherbet, even though Steve was not home. No! I made fat free, sugar free chocolate pudding and ate the whole thing by myself. That wasn't too bad. And at the end of the week, mostly inclusive of my sickout, I had lost one pound.

7. Meds. I can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em. I didn't go to the doctor for this disgusting cold/cough/sore throat. I figured nothing would come of it and didn't want to add more antibiotics to my system. I hate taking medication. On the other hand, Tylenol and I have a love/hate relationship, too. Again, I don't like to medicate. But... I do like to finally get some sleep. We have a truce. I downed all the liquid Tylenol cold medication (night time), and attempted to hack and sneeze my way through the daytime.

8. Beverages. Plus side, aren't we happy we have such a range of choices? Minus side, my daily mainstay, coffee, didn't make the cut. I fell back to the tea position. The plus side is that tea (Adagio.com) properly sealed is always available and still flavorful for the most part. The minus side is reading the labels -- green tea does have caffeine! Orange juice supposedly has the good Vitamin "C" but I couldn't ease it past my sore throat. Lately, my big love in the soda department (where I've cut back to almost nothing) is Black Cherry Citrus Fresca. Who'da thought Fresca would make a comeback? Well, this one tastes refreshing, but does nothing for the cold.... except...

9. Peeing. Could we NOT have to drink so much? Because then all we do is GET UP in the middle of the night to pee. About six times. Just getting back to comfy and then up again. I suppose that's the good news and the bad news, too.

10. Relationship. I love Steve, but when I'm sick, I'm a grump. Then I feel guilty. I get up and make the bed even though I would really like to crawl back in and cover my head. Or leave the bed unmade so I could go back if I needed. And it seems, when I do need him, he's taken a powder to give me some space so I can rest. But I can't blame him, 'cuz who wants to be around a coughing, sneezing, runny-nosed whiner? Lucky for him, he arrived at the end of the beginning of the bad stuff. I hope he doesn't catch this crap. I'm in for it if he does.

11. Spending money. Well, staying home is a two-edged sword. I didn't go out and spend any money. In fact, I didn't even drive and spend gas dollars. But... during those bursts of energy produced by the aforementioned cold meds, I wandered aimlessly (remember the block on real thinking?) through the internet and perhaps bought something (I can't remember exactly) that I will regret when it arrives. Ebay thy name is sickbay.

12. Pets. Nothing too minus on this score. My darling Casou seems to understand that I am needy and gives me more love than I can handle. Then again, just when I'm comfy and not peeing my brains out, he has to go. And I can only put that off for so long without those big beautiful eyes making me guilty for the extra little nap while he needed respite.

13. The Return. Yes, eventually I will return to what passes as "normal." The good news is that I can leave the house and celebrate my good health. The bad news is that I'll have to face all that work, food, relationship, control issues, and the rest of the list on real terms. The fuzz will depart my brain and I'll have to call my mother and reconnect . I've missed real conversations and news. I'll have to read up on the latest events. Correct and read all those freshman compositions I've stashed aside. I'll have to go down to the garden and weed. I'll have to swap the impatients for mums. I'll have to cook. I'll have to... Oh, maybe I can eek out another week of being sick?