Under the Weather

I made it through my four in a row without incident. It was a lovely four night stint. I had the same 3 or kids; I knew their routine, got along well with the families, it was satisfying to go to work. Despite the fact that all of my kids were febrile and having diarrhea and/or vomiting, I continued about my work. I took all the correct precautions: gloves, gown, & cap, plus surgical mask during burn care. Life went on.

My schedule really hasn't allowed me to see much of my friends, as I have worked every single weekend since the beginning of January, so I made plans to have the girls over for dinner on Monday night. (All those 9-5'ers had the day off!) Because I would be off for the next 3 days, I wanted to switch back to a day schedule meaning I wouldn’t sleep until Monday night (yes, after 32 hours of being awake). Not having had time to buy anything at the store, I figured that I would get it on Monday morning after I left work. And that is just what I did.

I left work, huge grin on my face, came home and changed, went to the gym, sweated out all my stress and frustration, and then went to the market to get the goods for dinner.

What was on the menu?
Pesto Goat Cheese Crustini
Honey Balsamic Pork Medallions
Caramelized Onions
Parmesan Roasted Potatoes
Spinach Salad w/ Goat cheese, Craisins and Oranges Mandarin Sesame Dressing

Anyways...after coming home from the market I showered and read for a little bit. (Check out this good read!) I decided that I really needed a manicure and pedicure, so I left to treat myself to a little fixing up. When I got there my mouth felt dry, like I had a cotton ball stuck in the back of my throat. I tried drinking water, but it only made me feel sick. Oh well. I relaxed in the massage chair and closed my eyes. next thing I know, the manicurist is shaking me to wake up. I moved over to the table and she did my finger nails.

I came home to finish dinner. I had done most of the prep work earlier but now I was just not feeling well. I was a little achy and my head was pounding. While standing at the counter, the smell of the food was making me nauseous. I threw the pork in the oven and lied down...6:50p.m.

7:10 p.m. -Uh, oh....run into bathroom and vomit, violently, everything in my empty stomach...stomach juice, yum. But boy do I feel better. *It's too late to cal the girls, plus what the heck will I do with this carnivorous delight?*
Brush my teeth, wash my face and hands, finish dinner...smells still churning my stomach.

7:40p.m.- Liz arrives. I greet her, we chat for a minute....here comes the nausea...excuse myself to the bathroom, heave, get sick, heave, get sick, heave ...funny, I didn't think there was anything left. Brush teeth, wash face.

7:47- Ellen arrives. We chat, and wait for Lilly.

7:55- Lilly arrives, the girls chow down on appetizers. I'm sitting on the couch, my vision is a little blurry, I continue to make conversation. I can't stomach any food. I sip water.

8p.m.- dinner is served. It was so good to catch up with the girls. It made me realize how much I miss seeing them. Then, like something out of a movie, we all made a pact that at age 25 (oh so far away, haha) we are taking a week long trip to Sonoma Wine country. Only detail decided upon, we will be hiring a driver...no drunk driving for us!

8:45p.m.- clearing the table, dishes in sink, girls eating dessert. I excuse myself again...sick again. This time it came out my nose. Oh God, it's burning my eye balls.

9p.m.- girls decided to call it a night. We say our goodbyes and I send them home with the leftovers. We joke, "Hey. You have my Tupperware, good excuse to meet up again soon!"

9:02p.m.- I put on sweatpants, a long sleeve shirt, a fleece, and wool socks. I take my temperature, lie on the couch....no fever, but I have the chills

9:30p.m.- my roommate comes home, fully expecting to see all my friends and looks at me...I looked like death.
I need some fresh air, plus something to drink, so I walk across the street to the pharmacy. I bought out the Propel and (brace yourself) diet giner ale. Yup, after 9 months of no soda, I had to break down...something needs to settle my stomach (or so I hoped).

I knew I was sick...I left all the dirty dishes in the sink.

I lied on the couch for three hours fighting off the nausea waves. I eventually crawled into bed, but son was stripping off all my clothes, I broke out into a sweat. (Seriously, dehydration is imminent). I drink a bottle of propel and lie back down.

1:15a.m.- Sit up, lean over trash barrel, vomit all that propel. My head is spinning, my heart is racing, ugh, I feel like death.

2a.m.- chills again

3a.m.- get sick again...at this point, I'm just throwing up water.

5a.m.- get out of bed to take some Advil, my head is pounding....let's hope it stays down.

9a.m.- wake up, drink some ginger ale, go back to bed

2p.m.- wake up, feel like shit, get out of bed, move to couch, try to eat something....no such like

And here I am now. Still sitting on the couch, unable to focus on much of anything. I know I'm sick, I’m skipping the gym today.

And as I sit here, slowly passing away the day, I ask you...Who's going to play nurse to the nurse?