Oink Oink

This past week I have had the great privilege of suffering through the swine flu. There have been a lot of questions and concerns about this so I thought I’d address some of those for my blog readers today. I hope this puts everyone’s minds at ease about the truths of this almost “pandemic” illness.

Question Number 1: Do you really have the swine flu?
Answer: Yes.

Number 2: How do you know it’s not the regular flu?
Answer: Because my doctor said “You have the H1N1 flu, otherwise known as swine flu.” He’s a doctor so I took that as a pretty solid diagnosis.

Number 3: Have you started oinking/grown a tail/is your nose looking smooshed? (All these questions were mainly presented by my boss)
Answer: My cough sounds a little bit like an oink sometimes/not that I can see/yes, it’s a little smooshed but that could come from laying face down in my pillow for 7 days.

Number 4: What’s the difference in the swine flu and regular flu?
Answer: Well I think it’s a little more contagious and harder to get rid of…but really I think people are just more afraid of you so you get more time off and less interaction with people.

But, in all honesty, it’s been a pretty nasty week and I hope none of you contract this illness. (If you do, you cannot blame me because I was under complete quarantine the whole time I was contagious. William would be the only possible person who might get it from me.) The symptoms started last Tuesday and today is the first day I’ve really been up and moving around the house. My boss had been really supportive and insisted that I work from home this week and not come back until next Monday. That has really helped as the strength comes back slowly after being sick.

MVP in my life this past week was definitely William. Even though he banished me to the downstairs guest room and forced me to carry a can of Clorox wipes with me at all times (“please wipe off everything you touch”), he was an amazing caretaker and nurse. He made me food every night and came home from work for lunch most days to make sure I was drinking fluids and eating when I could. He also made sure I was entertained and had our friend Russell drop off a sack full of movies and TV on DVD to keep me occupied during the down time. (Because of his kindness, I’d like to insert a free plug for Russell’s store, EntertainMart. This kind of advertising usually costs big time. For all your entertainment needs at lower prices, check out one of their 6 locations across the country. http://www.entertainmart.com/).

I would also like to put in a plug here for hand washing, disinfecting, and keeping yourself away from the general population when you’re sick. I have friends with confirmed cases of strep, mono, and flu. Please do your community a favor and stay home when you’re sick. Oh, and get a flu shot. Believe me, it’s worth it.