Sick
July 30, 2015 § Leave a comment
I don’t remember the last time I was sick sick. (My minor freak out that led to me going to the hospital in the early hours on Cinco de Mayo doesn’t count.) My stomach gives me issues every now and then, but 99% of the time that’s due to stress.
But a few weeks ago, I flew to Ohio for my cousin’s wedding, and it was a whirlwind few days. I flew out on Friday the 17th, attended the wedding and bombass reception on Saturday, partied with the family on Sunday, then flew back to Arizona on Monday on three hours of sleep. As crazy as it was, this trip was pretty freaking awesome and totally worth what I’ve endured for the past week and a half as a result. We stayed at my Mamaw’s house and I got to see my family I haven’t seen in five years.
Selfie-ception with my mom and brother
My mom, little bro, little sis, and I at my cousin’s wedding
Trying so hard to be Daenerys Targaryen
My mamaw’s house
The swing that has sat in this yard for years… my aunt and uncle and cousins live up the hill in that white house
Backyard
I climbed this tree all the time as a kid!
Front yard… gotta love rural Ohio!
That all said…. did I mention my sister was battling a cold the whole time I was there?
Add the cold germs to my stress of planning a benefit dinner and silent auction for work (that’s another post for another day) and a lack of sleep, and it’s no wonder my body just broke down.
By that Monday afternoon after my flight, my throat had started to hurt. By nighttime I was sweaty and coughing. And Tuesday, when I got up at 5:30 to go to work, I was a hacking, sniffling, wheezing, miserable mess.
It’s funny, because horses smell weakness a mile away. They were extra ornery that Tuesday. My own horse was wild enough in the arena to almost seriously injure me as I was trying to take her home (I’ve still got rope burn on my hands from when she dragged me). All the others? “SHE’S DOWN AND OUT, GUYS. PARTAY TIME.”
Gosh, those horses are too smart for their own good.
Anyway, after I suffered through Tuesday, my coworkers were kind enough to switch their days around so I could take my weekend early and rest. (My weekends are usually Thursdays and Fridays but they came in Wednesday so I could stay home.) And boy, did I need it.
I had no appetite for most of last week and even had a fever for a day or so. I stayed in bed on my weekend days and either slept or watched movies on my iPad. All the while, I went through enough Kleenex to line the walls of my apartment and about two billion gallons of Vicks VapoRub. Going to work (in 100+ degree weather, naturally) was awful, although it was made better by my amazing volunteers who took up more than their share of the work to let me rest a bit.
On Sunday my chest really started to hurt. And what does everyone do when they’re sick and need someone to swoop in and fix everything? Call Mommy.
My mom told me to go get Mucinex DM, so I miserably started to get my shoes on to go to CVS. Enter my amazing boyfriend, who paused his game (!), told me to sit down and rest, and went out to get it for me.
So now we’re at Thursday of this week, and I’m only going through a few Kleenex an hour and coughing only slightly. I think the worst of it is over.
This might sound weird, but I’m almost glad I got sick.
Life is about to get absolutely insane for a while if it isn’t there already. As I mentioned briefly earlier, I’m planning a HUGE event for work that’s a week from Saturday, and there is still so. much. to. be. done. My boyfriend and I have to move soon. In fact, after about three weeks of debate we finally extended our lease to mid-September so we would know his job status before making a decision on where we’re living (he’s on a two-month trial for his current job and he’ll get a verdict at the end of August). But we have to pack (yuck) and look at apartments. And I’m applying for a graduate program and might potentially be starting school again here soon.
But last week and even now, a little bit, I was and am able to simply take a deep breath and push it all out of my head.
If I’m sick, I’m utterly useless. Everyone is useless when they’re sick. I can’t be of service to anyone else, nor can I do my job well or run my tiny household effectively, if I’m not feeling 100%. Getting better was my number one priority, and it still is. And I’m incredibly grateful to my ranch family, my boyfriend, and my mommy for helping me get there.
Lavendar from Trader Joe’s – I couldn’t smell it, but it sure was beautiful on our kitchen table!
Shorts and Snippets 
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