Things You Can Learn from the Flu

In no particular order... these are things I learned in the past 24 hrs.

10. Germs are no respecter of persons.
9. Tossing up one's cookies is less fun than baking cookies.
8. You can't do crossword puzzles or grade papers with a flu-induced headache.
7. Daytime television is a vast wasteland.
6. Dogs can't catch the flu; so they make good company while you have it.
5. Yogurt for 3 meals a day is boring.
4. Flat Vernors is a flu victim's best friend.
3. My husband is the best sympathy giver there ever was!
2. After 8 hours of nausea, eating a slice of bread is like having steak.
1. Thinking you dodged the flu a week after your spouse had it is a piece of fanciful but false logic!

Aaaahhhh Chooo... and Silence is Golden

Well... I hab a code!
Fortunately, I came down with it well after I left my grandchildren last Friday.
Unfortunately (or depending on who you are) it has given me laryngitis, partially plugged ears, a nasty cough, and a stuffy head. YUCK! So today...I missed work, which I was not planning to do since I "burned" all my personal days last week. So my cold is costing me about $60 (unless I can convince my boss to feel sorry for me). The worst part is.. I HATE BEING SICK!!!! (but I guess I can't name anyone who likes to be sick... never personally met a hypochondriac!) Sigh, sniffle... so my husband and students are enjoying a day without the lilting sounds of my voice.

Brrrr..... it's a cold snap!

Winter has officially arrived temperature-wise in the past few days. Below normal daytime temps and single digit overnight temps have been the pattern. All of this makes the idea of getting out of bed in the a.m. difficult. Especially when it would be so much nicer to snuggle in under the cozy quilt and wait for spring.
Late Jan. and early Feb. are always tough times for me. I maintain it's because I have to teach "Julius Caesar" every year at about this time... and all that murder and mayhem gets me down. But I am also teaching Wm.Wordsworth in my AP classes... ya know, "the world is too much with us..." and Tintern Abbey and all that jazz (I really love Wordsworth!). So, what is it about this time of year that is such a bummer. Doctors talk about Seasonal affective disorder, brought on by short days and lack of sunshine overall... but I don't buy it. I think it's got more to do with "post-December" stress disorder. Whatever it is, I hope it lifts soon.... if I have to grade one more essay about 'noble Brutus" - I might hop a plane to Bermuda!