Self-Portrait As Pathetic Immune System

On Monday, all of a sudden I could smell again.  "Emily!" I cried to my roommate in my deep and husky man-voice, "What's that in the toaster?"  She told me it was just her lunch.  "But I can smell it!  What is it, exactly?"  It was toast, covered in pesto.  Another VISTA had given her a great deal of basil, and we're currently drowning in pesto.  Which was when I realized that yes, I could smell, but I could only smell pesto.  I hate pesto.

Still, it was a stepping-stone, and later that night, joy upon joys, my ears unpopped for the first time in days and I could hear unmuffled again.  These things combined with the fact that my dreams were 50% less bizarre and I was able to think relatively clearly convinced me that come Tuesday morning I would wake up well and hale!

I am remarkably stupid for a college graduate.  Doggedly, I went to work anyway, pockets stuffed with tissues.  I made it until about 11:00, at which point I had gone through all of my tissues and half of a roll of paper towels, to boot.  Only Vista was feeling happy.  I stumbled home, defeated by my own shoddy immune system, and spent the rest of the day wrapped in a comforter on the couch, feeling feverish once again, as my body had apparently decided to punish my foolish tip-toe forward by shoving me two steps back.

And yet, here I am at work again.  Today I brought a whole BOX of tissues, chugged some cough syrup in addition to the usual morning Advil Cold & Sinus, and am sort of actually feeling okay.  I have no illusions about making it past lunchtime, however.

And now, because it makes me happy to make lists, here are the things that have kept me sane (sane-ish?) through this wretched whatever-it-is.

1. The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
2. Replaying Windwaker (though to be fair I started it before catching the plague)
3. Emma
4. General Winston's Daughter by Sharon Shinn
5. Avatar Book 2
6. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (this came from the library, which has been a GODSEND)
7. Gas station pizza (which, as it turns out, makes excellent balm for a sore throat)
8. Candy corn
9. Hulu
10. Frequent (and increasingly angry and pathetic) calls to my mom and Laura, gleeful Appa-filled texts to Chris.