Creeping Crud

I cough.  I cough all the time.  I've been coughing all the time since I was a kid and probably the only two people in the world who aren't worried about it are Walt and my mother (before she lost her ability to notice such things).  It's just me.  Probably something to do with allergies, which my father and sister both had but my doctor is not concerned and I'm so used to it that I don't even think about it.

Except in Creeping Crud season.  It seems that once a year, around this time, my normal cough decides to join up with the Mucinex guy...

While I do have an increase in fluids from various orifices, the main problem is that the cough goes from being a mild non-productive cough to being an annoying productive cough which keeps me from sleeping.  It leaves me with a raspy throat and I go from being an alto to being a bass.  In fact it was kind of a shock when I talked to Polly yesterday morning.  I had been awake for an hour, but hadn't uttered any words and had no idea that I had almost no voice.  I didn't know who said "Do you want breakfast?"

The Creeping Crud hangs on for a few weeks, but this is the most intense week of it.  In another week, people will be avoiding me because they think I have a communicable disease and then gradually it will revert to my usual daily cough.  As I said, this has been a pattern for pretty much all of my life.

I did go out yesterday, to get sugar for the marmalade and to pick up toiletries for my mother but I decided that I probably should not be around old people, so I just dropped everything off at Atria's front desk and came on home.  I felt guilty about not seeing my mother, but I couldn't take these germs into Memory Care and it would do no good to call her because she wouldn't remember (if she even knew who I was, since my voice was so altered by the sore throat!)

I came home and took a nap yesterday, got a fairly good night of sleep, and kind of took it easy today.  I was supposed to review a show, but I decided at the last minute to put it off until tomorrow, which means I have three shows to review in three days (in addition to the one I saw on Tuesday!)

I didn't do any Instapot experimenting today, but I did boil a couple of eggs for Walt and me for lunch, mostly so he could see how easy it is and how wonderfully the eggs peeled.

I am easily entertained.

By dinner time, I was very glad I had postponed tonight's show because Mr. Mucinex was having a party in my chest and it would have been difficult to pay attention to a show.  I just hope I can douse this thing with enough Robitussin and lozenges to keep the  coughs under control for two hours.

I also cooked a tasty Home Chef dinner of steak and "smothered potatoes" (smothered with cheese and mushrooms), but my throat was too rough from coughing to be able to swallow comfortably, so I just had my nightly ice cream and called that "dinner."

Tomorrow I think I may make another pot of that oatmeal for breakfast.  It was so warm, so soft, so soothing to my throat.....