And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair. ~ Kahlil Gibran



Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Barefoot the Red-Nosed Gardener

Little Sprout has learned the fine art of sharing, and started practicing her new skill with the world's most miserable cold. So here I am with nose raw and red, blowing my nose until my ears pop and worrying that my left eyeball is going to just abandon ship due to the pressure in my sinuses.

I am not a happy camper.

Normally, I try to be stoic about being sick. I have kids. I work in a situation where germs are EVERYWHERE. I don't take really good care of myself, so I am vulnerable. I figure there isn't much reason to get upset about the various illnesses that come my way. This one, however, is truly awful, and none of the meds I have tried so far are doing a single thing to relieve my misery.

Which brings me to the question of the day: I wanna know what the HECK those idiots in the field of medical science have been doing for the last couple hundred years. Seriously.

We can turn men into women (and vice versa), we can take organs from one body and put them in another, we can re-start hearts that have stopped. We have lasers and robots and machines that take pictures of our insides. We can have painless childbirth. We can clone sheep. And yet THERE IS NO REMEDY FOR THE COMMON COLD!

I am tellin' ya folks, I think someone has their priorities all messed up. I mean, I understand the whole "gotta let the virus run it's course" thing. Really I do. But couldn't we have a decongestant that actually works? Or tissues that don't rub all the skin off my nose? Or at least something that stones me out enough that I don't care I am miserable? With all the medical advances we have made, there is not one single product out there that actually helps with my colds/flus/whatever. I wanna know why.

So, medical scientists....how 'bout you get on that, huh?

kthanxbye

7 comments:

Wendy said...

Try whiskey. Works great for the "stone me out enough that I don't care that I am miserable" :).

Seriously, though. I hope you feel better soon, and if you're interested in a very good herbal sleep aid, try Valerian. It'll knock you out right good and cold and allow for a very restful sleep ... but don't take it with the whiskey ;).

Molly said...

Soup, soup, soup. Tis the season and feel better!

Deb said...

You must have what I finally got over after nearly two miserable weeks. You need some good garlicky chicken soup, chased with a strong beverage of your choice. I can't guarantee the cold will go away, but it sure made things feel a lot better for me anyway! Hope you're feeling better soon!

Lisa said...

Not even cheesecake can save you girl! In fact, it will just give you more snot to work with!

So sorry you are feeling this way. The only thing that i can add to the list of remedies is some Vaseline or Bag Balm for the chapped nose, and some behind-the-counter cough syrup with Codeine. If you are lucky, some pharmacy in town (if it is allowed) will have tiny bottles that you can buy without a prescription for a couple of good nights sleep.

But don't worry... I'll take care of the extra cheesecake for you! I'm just kind that way!

e4 said...

I've been having some luck with elderberry extract (like Sambucol). I don't take it daily like the school teacher who recommended it to us, but any time I feel crappy or suspect something viral, I start taking some several times a day.

It's good for the kids too because I can give them some when they're not feeling well. No drugs in it, it tastes good, and it makes them think they're getting better.

Rev. Peter Doodes said...

I find that feeling very sorry for myself and making life miserable for all around helps a lot. Why not try it as well Barefoot?

barefoot gardener said...

Thanks for all the advice and sympathy, folks!