Not At My Best

I've managed about an hour of sleep and I'm feeling rather rough this morning. I now have a streaming cold and my first port of call this morning, before I even go to the bus stop, is to call into Tesco Express to buy a box of tissues.

My nose is bunged up and constantly streaming at one and the same time and it really couldn't have happened at a worse time. It is probable that I have been feeling so down over the last few days because this cold was developing. Knowing my luck it will be in full flow tomorrow morning when I have my interview.

I shall have to get myself out of bed soon and the thought of getting out of a nice warm place so that I can get myself dressed and go out into the cold morning is not one that is particularly appealing but it needs to be done. My trip to the CMHT to see the HTT will be about all that I can manage today. Fortunately I only have to get the paperwork that I need to take with me to the interview together when I get back home and then I shall probably just wrap myself up in the duvet and climb into bed for the rest of the day.

I shall dose myself with paracetamol, find a book to read (something that is not too taxing) and hopefully drop off to sleep for a few hours. My clothes are ready for tomorrow, and all I will have to do is make sure that I set the alarm so that I am up in plenty of time and then get myself ready to leave the house by shortly after 7.30am to walk to the bus stop to get the bus to the GP's surgery where the interviews are to take place.

Having a streaming cold is not what I would have wanted when I am about to undergo this ordeal, but it will hopefully elicit a little sympathy from the interview panel. The rest is up to me.

Presentation Prepared

I had another one of those nights where I didn't need medication to help me sleep; what I needed was something to wake me up this morning. It took me until nearly midday to get to a state where I knew what I was doing. I popped round to the local Tesco Express to get a few essentials and then came home and heated up my lunch in the microwave.

This afternoon I have spent my time moving from one computer to another to get the screen shots that I needed for my presentation. It's a real pain when you don't have the same applications on each computer and this is something that I must remedy in the near future.

I have now managed to get everything together on one computer (thank goodness for USB memory sticks), completed the PowerPoint presentation, including adding a couple more slides to round up the presentation and I have emailed it to the person indicated on the letter inviting me to interview. I have also loaded it on to one of my USB memory sticks and put it in my handbag so if there are any problems with the emailed version I still have a copy of it that can be loaded on to a computer.

Tomorrow I just have to finish getting all the paperwork together and then I will be ready. Well, as ready as I can be.

I am now thinking about getting myself something to eat again. I have decided that soup fits the bill with a bread roll to dip in it. I've decided on soup because I have got a cold starting and a nice big bowl of mulligatawny soup, which is both filling and spicy will hopefully help to drive the cold away. I just don't need a runny nose at the moment.

Tomorrow I have to go to see the HTT first thing in the morning, well 10am actually, so I should be home by midday and I aim to have a relaxing afternoon before having an early night in preparation for the dreaded interview.

Following The Doctor's Orders

I've been very good and followed my doctor's instructions.  I spent much of Friday and most of Saturday in bed, I've taken the medication as prescribed, I've spent a lot of the time asleep, and today I am feeling a lot better.

It no longer feels as though I have golf balls in my throat and the cotton wool seems to have been taken out of my ears although there is some slight fuzziness in my hearing.  The worst aspects of the cold seem to have disappeared for I no longer need to blow my nose every few minutes, but I have a cough which seems to explode from me every now and again and which has the ability to cause me to see stars and to become giddy and at risk of falling over if I am standing up.

This morning I have been out for a short walk to the local newsagent.  Fortunately the wind has died down a little from that of last night and early this morning, and while it is not overly cold I did make sure that I was well wrapped up.  I wasn't out for long, but this little bit of exercise has tired me out indicating how weak I have become over the last few days.  I am sure that I will soon start to feel more normal again and that there will be no lasting ill-effects from these infections, but they have made me realise just how difficult it is being ill when you live on your own and have no family near by.

So the rest of today is going to be spent taking care of myself and trying to ensure that I am as fit as possible for tomorrow because I have an appointment with a video camera tomorrow afternoon and it won't look too good on the video if I am coughing and spluttering my way through my presentation.

Bed Rest And Penicillin

I really appreciate the kindness and thoughts of Alison, The Dotteral, and cb who have all commented on my post of yesterday about how I hate having a cold. I can usually cope reasonably well with such things but I seem to have been knocked for six this time, so much so that I just had to go to see my GP this morning. And it seems that it was just as well that I did, for what I thought was just a simple cold is not so simple after all.

I knew by yesterday evening that I was getting worse, so I went to my surgery's website and booked an appointment with my GP. When I went in to see him, I think he thought it was because I was still feeling very low with depression as he had told me on Monday that if I was still feeling bad on Friday I was to come back to see him. But when I told him about the golf balls in my throat and the cotton wool in my ears he realised that I was there about quite a different matter.

He looked at my throat, peered into my ears, then listened to my chest, and the diagnosis is a host of infections. The throat and ear infections are almost certainly linked and are viral, however, the chest infection and bronchitis seem to be something separate and almost certainly bacterial so it is a course of penicillin for that. There were also instructions to go home, not to go out for at least 48 hours, to take paracetamol every 4 hours for the fever, and that it would be better if I went to bed so that I could keep warm and sleep whenever I felt like it.

So, when I left the surgery I went to the chemist to get the prescription dealt with, to the corner shop to get some more tissues and some sweets to suck to help with the soreness in my throat (I don't think that you can beat a boiled sweet for helping in these circumstances) and then home to get back into bed. I am armed with my laptop so that I can keep in touch with the world, the box of tissues, plenty of drinks and a couple of books, and I will rest as I have been told to and only get up for calls of nature and to get myself the occasional sustenance.

That is the biggest problem with being on my own. There is no-one to look after me and to take care of my needs when I am ill. So I will just have to hope that the antibiotics take care of what will probably be the worst of the infections and that bed rest, a warm environment, and time will take care of the rest. I'm feeling so ill that I don't even have the energy to be depressed about it all.

I Hate Having A Cold

I have a real humdinger of a cold at the moment.  My throat feels as though it has two golf balls stuck down it, my nose is sore and so blocked that I am now having problems breathing, my ears feel full of cotton wool, and my sinuses are causing me so much pain that I could cry.  And on top of all that I keep going hot and cold.

I have been a bit unfortunate over the last few months and seem to have one cold after another, but without any doubt this is the worst one yet.  I seem to need to cough every few minutes, but there isn't anything to cough over.  The result is that I feel as though I am trying to squeeze my lungs up through the tiny space left between the golf balls in my throat.

Somewhat unsurprisingly I am feeling pretty low and rather sorry for myself. 

A Cold And A Presentation

I woke this morning and thought that I had escaped the worst ravages of a cold, but late this afternoon I found out that I hadn't. I now have one clear nostril and one that's blocked, so I can at least breathe, my ears feel like they are completely bunged up and I have severe pain in my sinuses.  I think that I am going to have a really good cold with lots of nasty additional features by tomorrow.

But I'm a woman, and notwithstanding how I was feeling this afternoon, I have been out and given another presentation of the computer system that allows patients to see their medical records. It was to a small audience but they were a fairly influential group of people and it is probable that we will be asked to give a presentation to an even more important group of people in the not too distant future.  I was really nervous again before the presentation, but once I got going it was easy.

I'm still feeling very low, but having the presentation to focus on has helped me get through today without too much of a problem. With the presentation out of the way, and a late dinner eaten, I am going to get myself ready for bed and watch a little television before I try to find a comfortable position that allows me to be able to breathe and to get to sleep.  I don't think that will turn out to be very easy.

A Strange Day

Today has been a strange day.  I have had some highs, but rather a lot of lows.

This morning started with me waking very early (about 3.30am) but I managed to fall back to sleep and didn't wake again until almost 8 o'clock.  I knew that I had to get up as I was expecting a parcel to arrive this morning; I had ordered some sheepskin boots from Amazon and knew that they should arrive this morning.  The door bell rang at about 10.30 and there was the postman with my parcel.  It took me less than a minute to get the parcel open, all the packaging out of the boots, and put them on my feet.  They were wonderful, and even though I wasn't going out I just had to scrunch my toes in the lovely sheepskin and enjoy the warm toasty feeling that soon embraced my feet.  I did eventually manage to take them off, but they make the prospect of going out tomorrow morning to post some Christmas cards and a parcel something to look forward to.

I made an early lunch because I hadn't had anything for breakfast. I decided to have one of my favourites; bacon rolls.  I tucked into them as though I hadn't eaten for days, and really enjoyed every last mouthful.  That in itself is a bit unusual because I haven't felt like eating much over the last week or so and I have been existing on pretty basic food.

Then the doorbell rang again; it was the postman with some Christmas cards and a couple of small packages for me.  These packages were a knitting pattern for another shawl (a really intricate one this time that will take me months to knit as it is so complex) and some wool (samples for the new shawl pattern, and wool for two different shawls).  It was a bit like having early Christmas presents, although as I won't get any presents for Christmas, perhaps I shouldn't have opened them and saved them for Christmas Day.

This afternoon has been less agreeable.  I had a phone call from Mr Smiley telling me that he wouldn't be able to make our Christmas lunch tomorrow; it's become a bit of a ritual over the last few years that we have lunch together just before Christmas and combine it with celebrating whatever the latest OU module is that I have passed.

I also have a cold, which has become more aggravating as the day has gone on; it's mainly a runny nose, but it has made doing my knitting more difficult because I am constantly having to blow my nose.  And to make matters worse, the conjunctivitis that I was suffering from a few weeks ago seems to have come back and I have had to keep wiping the gunk out of them.  I suppose that because I am feeling low at the moment I am going to fall prey to any bugs that are going round, but I have to hope that I manage to avoid the vomiting and diarrhoea that is doing the rounds.  It' s bad enough having things like that when you have someone to keep an eye on you and to take care of your needs; it's terrible when you have to suffer on your own especially when you really don't feel like doing anything at all.

Still, I have had a double-dose of Doctor Who this evening (BBC 3 is showing repeats of Series 4 at the moment) and now I am watching a DVD, which will get me through until it is time for bed. I'm hoping for a reasonable night's sleep tonight and although it is likely that I will wake in the early hours of the morning, I am hoping that I manage to get back to sleep again as quickly as I did this morning.

Winter Has Arrived

I don't think that there can be any doubt that winter has arrived.  The temperature plummets at night and even though we have some sunshine during the day, there is no warmth in the sun.  Now is the time for thick winter woollies and warming soups and stews to warm you body and soul to keep out the cold.

I have sorted out my winter pyjamas and thick dressing gown, and the T-shirts and short-sleeved blouses have been put away for another year.  I'm even considering sorting out some socks to wear with shoes and trainers. This is unusual for me because I normally live in sandals; in fact, I can't remember the last time I wore a proper pair of shoes.

The last thing that we need at the moment is a really cold winter.  With the cost of fuel bills soaring, keeping your home warm is going to cost more than it ever has in the past, and the elderly are going to find it more difficult than ever. One wonders how many are going to succumb to hypothermia this winter, and whether anyone will take responsibility for those deaths.  

Not A Moment's Peace

I had my bath, boiled the kettle and made a mug of fruit tea, then boiled the kettle again and filled the hot water bottle, got myself into bed and wrapped myself up in the duvet and a shawl and I was just getting comfortable watching a DVD when the door bell rang.  It was the postman with a couple of parcels for me.

Isn't that just typical; the day that I didn't want any disturbances and I get one as soon as I get into bed.  But it was worth it because one parcel contained the next set of books for one of my OU courses, and the other contained a new camera.  When I tried to use my old camera the other day to take picture of my new jumper it wouldn't work.  I tried recharging the battery, and it was fully charged, but each time I pressed the button, nothing happened.  One of the problems with modern cameras is that they can cost more to repair than to buy a new one, so a new one it was.

One of the wonderful things about the Internet is that it is possible to order something on a Sunday, pay nothing for postage and packing and receive it on Wednesday.  So later today, I shall charge the battery for the new camera, and then take some test shots so that I get used to the feel of the camera and then I can take the promised photographs for Steph and Caroline.

I may also take a sneaky peek at my new course book to see what is coming up in the course, but the parcel that I am really waiting for is the course books for the course that I signed up for last week.  With a lot of studying to do in the days and weeks ahead, I need to get rid of this cold as quickly as possible.  So I shall snuggle in bed and try to sweat it out.

A Night Without Sleep

Yes, it was a bad night. Not a wink of sleep, and I feel like a block of ice. My nose is constantly running, and the sneezing is worse than yesterday. So I think it is fair to say that I have got a cold.

I'm going to run a hot bath, have a nice soak in it, then wrap myself up in pyjamas and an a big woolly shawl and get back into bed with a hot drink, a hot water bottle, some books, some DVDs, and a very large box of tissues.

I might do a little bit of studying, perhaps some knitting, but I particularly hope that I will be getting some sleep. It's the worst thing in the world to have a cold when you live on your own. You have no-one to get sympathy from.

A Busy Morning

It's been a busy morning; I've done some shopping so I can eat for the next few days, I have done a couple of hours studying (and I may do some more this afternoon), I've had a couple of deliveries from the postman, and I have done a row or two of my knitting.

Now it is time for me to have some lunch, and then to relax.  It will be just a sandwich for lunch as I am going to cook tonight.  I shall have a good look at my parcels; one was a couple of DVD boxed sets, and the other was some scrap books and associated papers and embellishments.  I am going to make a couple of scrap books for a friend with photographs of his two granddaughters.  I have a few photographs already, but I have been asking him for months now for some more.  If I'm really lucky he might get his finger out and give me the CD that I've asked for and I can make the scrap books as a Christmas present for him and his wife.

My knitting is growing quite well and I should be up to the shoulders on the back some time this afternoon, so there is a good chance that the back will be finished this afternoon or this evening.  I shall have to make sure that I am well wrapped up while I am sitting doing whatever I decide to do this afternoon, because I have been sneezing almost non-stop for the last hour or so, therefore it is likely that I have a cold on the way.  

If I am getting a cold I can't really complain because I haven't had one since last Christmas although that was a real stinker and laid me low for about 10 days.  Even though I spend so much time feeling really low with depression, I must be reasonably healthy because I don't catch too many bugs when they are doing the rounds. Perhaps there are some bonuses from not leaving the house for days on end.