Chris started it. When he went to Montreal last week on a sleuthing trip, coasting on very little sleep and a ton of stress, he succumbed to it. A nasty flu-like cold that has now been coursing through his system for more than a week. The entire time we were at the beach in NC, he was sick. He's not a man who slows down for much and when he was taking three-hour naps in the middle of the day and was still unable to keep his eyes open, I knew he was pretty ill. Then he gave it to me. Just the night before, I was loud-mouthin' to his sisters about how I usually pick up his illnesses within a couple of days, but this time I was in the clear.
Don't I know anything?
So on our day of departure, I woke up feeling hit by a truck, with a headache that was indescribable and a near-inability to swallow without tears coming to my eyes. There's nothing better than a long day of travel when you're feeling crappy. The human capacity for self-pity comes into full swing. Everyone who's not moving fast enough or slow enough or who doesn't know how to check their baggage, their ignorance is a personal insult, aimed directly at you because they know you're sick and feel like you're walking through jello and they just want to make your life that much harder.
And so I endured -- with much complaining -- the ferry ride from Bald Head Island to Southport, the drive from Southport to Myrtle Beach, the flight from Myrtle Beach to Detroit and the seemingly endless drive from the Detroit airport home to Ann Arbor. (In reality, the whole thing took about seven hours, with the drive home accounting for a total of about 20 minutes. I was just kind of done at that point...)
What could make the day better? Arriving home in the middle of a heat wave to a house with no A/C. Trying to collapse and nap sweaty on a bed with two fans aimed at you pushing hot air across your angry body.
Oh, my life is so hard!
Today promises to be just a few degrees cooler, but I still can't swallow without wincing. Enough whining. Maybe I'll do something useful today like upload some photos from our trip. Just don't hold your breath.