Not good at being ill

The last time I was ill it was September 2006. I remember it well: the apartment next door chose that particular day to invite trucks to dump rocks on its roof for some aesthetic or insulation purpose, which was certainly not conducive to peaceful sleep.

So the 19th was my last day at work. I slept in on Saturday, as I'd been shortchanging myself all week with piddly 6-hour nights, met up with a friend in the afternoon and went to Manly, then decided to go to dinner with her and some of her friends.

On Sunday I could barely lift my head. I woke up around 11am, ate an apple and a mango, felt a bit queasy so made myself some peppermint tea and spent the best part of the afternoon in my pyjamas napping, curled up in the recliner listening to the radio.

At 7pm I went back to bed and had a horrible night's sleep. It was too hot, too cold, too uncomfortable. I was drinking too much water, not enough water, my head was too horizontal. When I propped myself up I pulled my right shoulder, but eventually I ached all over so it didn't matter anyway.

This morning I managed to force down a little oat porridge before making a doctor's appointment. They couldn't fit me in any time before 4pm so I crashed again for a few hours. Then I got this nagging thing at the back of my brain, which was that I really, really needed to clean the bathroom (it was due for a scrub on Saturday). So at 3pm I cleaned the bathroom, then I went to the doctor.

Had a nap in the waiting room before seeing him. After hearing me relay a weak round of symptoms - loss of appetite, dizziness, mild stomach upset - and taking my temperature and poking around with a stethescope he concluded I had a viral infection, probably in the upper respiratory tract and told me rest, water and Panadol would probably do it.

I got home and took two paracetemol AND FELT SO MUCH BETTER.

I then watched the entire first season of Flight of the Conchords on DVD while picking at a pullapart from Baker's Delight and munching on some apple pieces.

Which is just as well because I'm not good at being ill, plus I have a dentist appointment tomorrow before I go to my parents place for the Christmas trip down to Canberra.

The moral of the story is: Take the drugs.