Jane’s reacted yesterday: aches, sleepiness for a few hours. Mine got me today: aches, really horrid aches, and drowsiness. Lasted about 4 hours. It’s really, as Jane pointed out, amusing: it’s the Fast H1N1 Flu. It comes on a few days after the flu shot, and runs you through the entire course of the flu in 4 hours.
Which sure beats the 2-week version. The achy bit is killer. I’d hate to feel like that for 2 weeks.
We scoped out the damage to Fergusons and The Milk Bottle today—The Milk Bottle looks hardly touched, but Fergusons is a mess, with a boarded front window and lots of blackened superstructure. We had lunch in the Garland Sandwich Shop about 2 blocks away, and that was a do-again…they do good food. And the misfortune to the other two restaurants has them extending their hours.
I heard it’s the same three strains as last year; a “booster shot” I guess. I’ve had no abreactions, and no flu. I’ll go again.
I’m here to tell you, 4 hours of discomfort a few days on (plan it to happen 3-4 days later on your weekend—or NOT on your weekend 😉 your choice…) —is way ahead of having that for 2 weeks.
If you can take a flu shot, it’s a great trade-off. Jane and I get the shot every year, starting back in Oklahoma, and have not had the flu since we have started doing that. Caught a secondary strain once, some gotcha bug that wasn’t included in the shot, but never got what we were being vaccinated for. The side effects, yes: one year we both lost our voices for a day or so: that was funny, except I caught my filmy sleeve on fire in a candle at Jane’s brother’s house while all attention was diverted to the door and arriving niece and family—and I couldn’t tell anyone I was alight. It was funny as hell, and I had the smarts to get it out myself, but it was pretty bad burns!
Anyway, if you can, get the thing.
Too funny! I’ve never heard THAT story!
Oh, it was a moment. I had had a couple of martinis. I saw some salted nuts. I reached for them, with a gauzy long sleeve, and a lot of it…right across a decorative squat candle. The sleeve caught. I knew throwing vodka on it wasn’t going to help. I could drop and roll, except it was a white carpet. I was saying, “I’m afire!” but no one could hear me, not even those standing fairly near…
So since fire rises, I put out my hand and wiped hard from top of arm to wrist, scattering ash from my sleeve all over that nice carpet—but extinguishing the fire. Everyone came back from the door, and there I stood with one sleeve. I picked up my drink, figuring, well, that was going to hurt, and suggested no one walk in the area until we could run a vacuum to suck up the ash, and there was a considerable commotion.
The next day it really hurt, just air blowing on it, so it was a pretty bad burn. But I didn’t miss the scenic drive to Monterray Bay. I do remember accidentally scraping that arm on the car upholstery, and the air lighting up—but I had a great visit.
I’ve been exposed to flu several times and never came down with it. All I ever had to put up with was doing all the housework for a week while everyone else in the family suffered in bed. Oh and the time I was working away from home sharing a B&B with work colleagues. They all got it and I was stuck in the back end of beyond (Sellafield Nuclear processing plant) because I couldn’t drive. A whole week wandering aimlessly in the countryside – better than what they were going through.
I’ve no idea if I’m immune or just lucky. It’ll be a couple of decades yet before my Dr starts inviting me in for shots. Perhaps there’s a test they can for natural immunity, lol. I don’t see any point in getting a shot if there’s no need.