No Crisis--Just Sick

14 March 2001

It's finally got me.

I've been fighting off Mark's and Timprov's colds for at least a week now. Maybe more like two. And today I am losing. So far the cold has settled in my head, neck, and back, which is better (I suppose) than in my sinuses or lungs. Just makes me feel like I was beaten with a stick, then dragged behind a truck. I feel like my body is in slow motion.

Tim wrote awhile back about how he gets sick and his brain shuts down. I should be so lucky. Instead, the lousier I feel, the more my brain seems to want to try to be entertaining. I am at my wittiest when I am unable to do more than croak pitiably. I have been known to be too dizzy and weak to prop myself up on an elbow to write -- and at that point, to scribble on notecards sitting by my shoulder, then to push each one off onto the floor for later retrieval: Stuff To Write About Later. Is that sad? Why yes, I think it is. The worst part is that said Stuff is not worthless. If it was, I could just say "feverish delusions" and relax the next time. But no. I get really good ideas when I'm sick.

Unfortunately, I'm not that sick. (Unfortunately?!?) Just sick enough to have my brain moving a bit faster than my body can keep up with it. I went to the doctor today, to meet my new doctor in our new area. It was...efficient. Definitely efficient. Dr. Yonabayashi is nice enough, and I'd rather not spend hours in the office waiting around on a routine check-up. But wow. My appointment was officially for 2:45. I showed up a little early and was out of there by 2:50. Is that any worse than if I'd had to wait in the waiting room? Of course not, but...it is frustrating to be required to pay for a visit that I didn't schedule and have it last less than ten minutes.

One of my least favorite things about being a grown-up is that any medical examination that doesn't feature cold metal objects being put in my body makes me want to sing a little happy-song.

Another least favorite thing about being a grown-up: I got the PG&E bill today in the mail. (That's Pacific Gas & Electric.) It covered the whole time since we moved in here. Yuck. I keep hearing that everyone who doesn't live in California is hearing about our power issues as though we're about to have to start cooking on open flames and going to bed by candlelight. It's not like that. We've had one one-hour blackout, and that was in the middle of the afternoon about six weeks ago. The biggest effects THE POWER CRISIS has been having on us are twofold: 1) The PG&E bill is a wee bit disconcerting. And 2) We cannot look at the newspaper or flip on TV news without hearing about THE POWER CRISIS. They have dredged the very depths to try to bring us New Stories! Every Day! related to THE POWER CRISIS. We've heard of all the poor migrant workers whose families will be cold and hungry. (Oh yeah. Their standard of living was stellar before. It's THE POWER CRISIS that should make us feel sorry for them.) We've heard of grannies and supermarkets and everything else they can dredge up, to the effect that nobody is happy paying more for their power and some people can't do it. Show of hands: who's surprised? And, of course, we have to get the obligatory worship at the altar of Doing Something. The latest proposed "solution" was to ban night baseball games. (I can hear my mom making a little "miff" noise from here.) Never mind the fact that that would be illegal. Or even the fact that it wouldn't solve the problem. It would be Doing Something, or even better, Making A Gesture.

This is a family site, so I have no suggestions whatsoever as to what gestures would be appropriate.

We're going to have to leave soon to get Mark from the airport, so I'm going to cut this off. I feel like his homecoming should be greeted with fresh cookies and a lovely house. Instead, he'll be lucky if Timprov and I have not fallen asleep in the terminal when his plane gets in. Sorry, babe....

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