Medium Delirium

Me: This cold seems to be giving me an unusually large appetite.

J, suggestively: Is it only an increased appetite … for food?

It takes a special sort of person to try a line like that while looking straight at my rheumy, reddened eyes, flu-induced pallor, and nose like a faucet.

The cold I’ve been fighting since Saturday decided that moderate displays of its ferocity were insufficient, and well and truly reared its ugly head today. Dragged myself to work armed with tissue and shot up with antihistamines, but by 1:30pm the discomfort was unbearable and I left for the doctor’s.

After the doctor’s visit – which was shockingly expensive thanks to a whopping $30 consultation fee – I had a bowl of sour and spicy chicken la mian at my favourite chinese noodle parlour. The moment the bowl of noodles arrived, I was overcome with a sense of wellbeing, not to mention deep and utter joy. Copious amounts of salt married with the sourness of preserved vegetables seems to be a faultless combination that, while powerless to cure physical ailments, seems to be a potent remedy for the soul.

Spent the rest of the afternoon lounging on the sofa, trying to read a book (Diary of a Bookseller, my fourth re-read – a radiant and recurring pleasure) but mostly just watching TV. Took a nap but it was forced and consequently fitful, not helped by the stiff heat in the room.

J and I have taken turns being ill with one ailment or the other since the year began – hopefully this is the last of it.