May 12, 2010
I Sick; I Hab a Code
Portland Firefly hasn’t written much this last week because I have been ill with a cold. Not just any cold…. the worst cold that I can remember having.
It started out with just a slight cough and slight malaise but rapidly progressed into a horrible cough. I would cough for almost an hour at a time. And you know how coughing wears one out! So now I was also very tired most of the time! Darn! And just when I thought I should be gaining some of my energy back, too!
Well, that wasn’t bad enough…. no, I also had a slight sore throat. Then I was so sick I couldn’t remember if the old adage said to ‘starve a fever, feed a cold’ or ‘feed a fever, starve a cold’. It didn’t matter… I didn’t feel like eating anyway, so I made myself a huge pot of Chicken soup.
Then the high fever started. It was really scary for me to have the thermometer in my mouth and be able to watch the indicator rapidly go up to indicate my high fever… made it all the way up to 102 degrees. I don’t ever remember having that high of a fever and I was scared. So, of course I called my doctors. I was told that I have a virus and that I just have to ‘treat the symptoms and ride it out.” I was advised to drink lots of liquids, and to watch my electrolytes. Then I remembered that I had some Pedialyte that I had not opened, so I drank some of that. It made me feel better right away. Good to know about electrolytes and Pedialyte which is better than Gatorade in my opinion.
Well I suffered with that fever for over two days, then it broke in the middle of the night with a hard sweat. I awoke soaking wet and had to change my night-clothes, but I felt much better the next day and then my ‘low-grade fever’ of 99 degrees started in for three days. A girlfriend stopped by with Cinco de Mayo supplies — but I couldn’t touch the homemade tamales for several days. Then my neighbor brough over some fresh fruit which I needed desperately because I had virtually nothing fresh in my refrigerator.
It was a terrible way to lose a few pounds and I am still coughing, but not quite as much. I also still have to take a nap every day!!! I am not getting anything done! Hopefully it will all be gone before next weekend.
And that is why Portland Firefly has not written anything of substance for a few weeks!!!
