Caught Flu, Been Sick for over a Week
Submitted by Jon on Fri, 16/01/2009 – 9:53pm
Well, my whole health and fitness lifestyle has taken a major nosedive. I let myself go over Christmas, with the idea that I would start the new year afresh and get back into my diet and exercise regime. However, last Saturday I started to feel a bit poorly, and by Sunday I was in a right state. Been off all week. Aching legs, aching back, swollen neck, sore throat, thumping headaches, extreme tiredness, coughing up lumps of bloody green phlegm, and generally feeling pretty down.
Last Sunday I slept from 9pm through to 2.30pm on Monday. I have been sleeping a lot all week, mostly have afternoon sleeps. Today I slept from about 11am through to 4.30pm, and had the worse headache when I woke up. Took 2 paracetamol and 2 ibuprofen, and still the headache did not clear. Tomorrow will be a full week.
The last time I had flu was in 1995, and I remember being off work for a few days and generally feeling run down, but now I feel like the whole world is about to end.
Anyway, some good news. I recently built a new website for my kung-fu instructor (5-elements.co.uk and in return I will be getting lessons. So the credit crunch has failed to stop me training in kung-fu!
Bad news – my company announced a few weeks ago that I will be getting made redundant this year. No idea when, could be in 3 months, or could be in 11 months. But it will happen, as my job is moving to Scotland.
Wife and son are well, so that is good. Just me that is a wreck at the moment.
Everything is snowed off, but I still have milk
Today started as a normal day would. The milkman arrived early, when it was still dark, in his electronic, low powered, small wheeled milk float. I woke up at about 6.45am, looked out the window, and saw that we had had a lot of snow, just like the weather people had predicted.
My family got ready for work and nursery, and just as we were about the leave the house, the nursery called to say that they were forced to close for the day, duet to bad weather. Not many staff had made it in. Great. So my wife and I then had a discussion about who would stay home with our son, and who would go to work. We decided that as I have further to travel, and that it is month end with my wife’s business at the moment, and my work is really slow (global economic meltdown in the City) that I would stay at home.
I called in to work, no answer. Eventually got hold of my boss on his mobile – he was still at home. Put the tele on, and half the south east of the UK had ground to a halt. The A12 was at a standstill as lorries got stuck on an icy hill. The M25 had a 32 mile tailback in the morning, which increased to 42 miles then 54 miles by lunchtime (although some reporters did appear to be making it up). What a disaster! The country is at a standstill due to unprecedented snow. More snow than in 18 years. More snow than in over two decades. Soon to be more snow than in living memory. Probably by the 10pm news it will be more snow since records began.
So, I have a question. How did my milkman manage to get to my house, via the milk shed, in his little milk float, at 6am when it was still dark? Either he is a superhuman, or everyone else are just bone idle.
Last night I packed the car with my shovel, blankets, food and gloves, and checked the water levels etc. How many of these people that have found themselves stranded on the roads today also did this? One of the problems seems to be that people just abandon their cars. They give up. One hour into their journey, and they get out their car and walk to the nearest McDonalds for a burger. Why do people leave their cars? OK, if you have been stuck all day, and it is getting dark, you may need to take drastic action. But at 8am, it is sa bit early to abandon your vehicle really.
Anyway, it is 14:24hrs and it is still snowing. I have bought Digestive Biscuits (Somefields’ own, not McVities – credit crunch) and also stocked up on soup, tea and coffee. I should be OK for a few days if it comes to that. I have a feeling that the school will be shut tomorrow too. That means losing 2 days holiday to an incompetant council / highways agency / government. Thank you Gordon, thank you Essex County Council. In the summer, when I am in the office as I have wasted my holiday, I’ll be thinking of you.