Friday 30 November 2012

Bleurgh

Warwick University S40  13-11-2012 14-37-07

I’d made a long list of plans. Things to do, friends to meet, places to see. And everything collapsed. I woke up on Friday (many, many moons ago) with a massive headache and then I began spluttering, sneezing and coughing and coughing, non-stop. Oh holy s—t. After a quick shower and early morning prayers, I started wheezing and feeling clammy. I croaked to Babe that I’m too ill to go to work. I called in sick. I’d taken the afternoon off to have my flu jab done and my eyes tested. I was gutted. I called the surgery to cancel the flu jab and made an emergency appointment to see a doctor.

After a light breakfast, I doused myself with paracetamol and cough syrup, and took a nap in Babe’s reclining chair with a hot water bottle and vapour rub for company. I was so exhausted and had a very sleepless night. Thankfully, I managed to have a very short nap but woke up still tired and stuffed. Everytime I moved, I’d coughing fits which was hard on my tummy muscles. Babe dropped me at the surgery and called him after I’d seen the doctor.

Sitting in the reception was tough. Everyone around me was coughing, spluttering sneezing and checking each other with sorrowful eyes. A healthy person will definitely fall sick sitting among this lot. I’m glad Babe wasn’t here. It would be difficult if both of us fall ill at the same time especially when Babe wasn’t in the best of health.  The lovely doctor told me that my chest was rattling hard and I’d a chest infection. I was given antibiotics and an inhaler to help ease my symptom, plus the usual plenty of rest and fluids. I called Babe and we went to Boots to collect my prescriptions and purchase more cough syrup, paracetamol and tissues. It was going to be a long week.Warwick University S40  13-11-2012 14-43-24

A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.

~Irish proverb~

I spent the week feeling very sorry for myself. I was achy and tired. The nasty cough was really difficult to shift and once I started, it was difficult to stop. I’d been deaf, no sense of smell and taste and fumbling around the casa like the walking dead. I’m tired all the time. God…I’m whinging. My brain seemed to have gone to mush. No one dared to pop over except for this cheeky fella and then he was only for the peanuts :-).Coventry D3100  19-11-2012 13-23-13I’m trying to remember what I’d been doing many, many moons ago before I succumbed to this horrible lurgy. Gosh… it felt like ages. I think I started the week very positive with the mid-term annual review. My manager and I went through the aims that I’d written down and how many boxes I’d ticked. I must  admit that I rushed through the Audit Commission Collections and managed to complete it a few days before the meeting. I was chuffed to bits :-).

CC and I also celebrated Diwali, the Festival of Lights, at the Royal Bengal in Earlsdon. I am not a big fan of Indian food, unless it offered thali. In Hindi, it meant plate and it was an Indian meal made up of a selection of various dishes, usually served in small bowls on a round tray. I’d the chicken curry, lamb curry, vegetable bhaji, tandoori chicken, sheekh kebab with pilau rice and garlic nan bread. We started the meal with huge poppadums and several chutneys and washed down with a mug of milky tea. English oldies interspersed with Bollywood songs were piped around us. Would I come again? I think not. The service was superb. It was just that I’d eaten better thali than this.

Islamic New year 1434 fell on Thursday. Muharram was the first month in the Islamic calendar. Muslims took time on the first day of the month to reflect on their lives and to think how they can improve them. Some Muslims fast during the hours of daylight on the ninth and 10th or first, 10th and 11th days to commemorate that Noah left the ark and that God saved Moses from the Egyptians. Shi'a Muslims beat or whipped themselves as part of a mourning ritual for Husayn ibn Ali (grandson of the Prophet Muhammad SAW) on the Day of Ashura. I salute the religious leaders who encouraged Muslims that felt that they should lose some blood on this day to donate blood to the blood transfusion service. That was a very modern attitude towards ancient rituals. Well-done.

I didn’t cast my vote for the election of the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). And I wasn’t alone. It was the lowest turnout. Maybe the reason people didn’t vote was they didn’t understand the purpose of the role, they didn’t want the role, they never asked for the role! Or choosing not to vote was their vote. For me the millions would be better spent on more local police station hours, more police officers on the beat, more victim support units and increased police budgets.

While I was resting, Babe took the opportunity during the lull in the atrocious weather to check out the natives at our favourite playground. How I wished I could tag along. When Babe returned from his short trip, he told me that he’d met M & K who we’d not seen for ages. I’m glad they were ok. Babe took several lovely shots of the very elusive Water-rail dashing among the reeds outside East Marsh hideBrandon Marsh D300s X2  18-11-2012 14-36-017Babe also started putting dog food out for the foxes when he spotted a vixen out and about in the garden during broad daylight. She must have been very hungry to be seen during the day time. We put the food out before we went to bed. It was a fight to prevent the cats from polishing the food first. Babe had installed the webcam again and we watched them slowly skulking in from the warm comfort of our bedroom. It was quite tough too when I’d one of my coughing fits. Foxes had very sharp hearing and a slight sound… and they were gone. But they returned again. Coventry D300s X2  21-11-2012 15-06-35

Shake paws, count your claws,
You steal mine, I'll borrow yours.
Watch my whiskers, check both ears.
Robber foxes have no fears.
~Brian Jacques~

Everything in the garden had been battered by the horrendous weather conditions. But I’d a very nice surprise when I spotted the Peacock Orchids blooming. I’d potted them about 3 years ago and this was the first time they bloomed. I’d given up on them because they were supposed to bloom between July and September. Better later than never, huh!!! The flowers had a light, clean fragrance like mild soap. Not that I can smell anything. Coventry S40  18-11-2012 10-12-44We’d been eating rubbish like cheese sandwiches, doughnuts, sausages, pasties and burgers. I blame my taste buds, dulled from taking the different medication. We supplemented our rations with grapes, oranges and one of our favourite, persimmons. Before I fell ill, I managed to bake this tomato and onion focaccia. I still need to get grips with the kneading techniques.  Coventry S40  12-11-2012 19-50-19

The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd druther not.

Mark Twain

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