They aren't just for kids

So last Thursday I was feeling pretty crappy at work.  The husband had the week earlier had a pretty nasty cold and it looked like I finally caught it.  I actually left work early and stayed home sick Friday.  


I figured I could do my usual neti pot drowning of what ever had taken up residence in my nasal passages and sinuses and seemed to be making an inexorable move into my chest.  Friday sucked as the kids where all excited I was home and would not let me rest at all- oh and plus I was constantly hacking up what felt to be pieces of my lung(s).  I also had to pick up the boys that evening as they were with us for the weekend and we had our usual Friday night dinner plans with PJ and ST.  So there was no rest for the weary.

Dinner went well actually, our farmer friend also joined us and we got to use the grill.  The husband made an pretty sick dry rub for lamb loin chops and I grilled them over charcoal as I did not feel like getting a propane tank and still had charcoal left from last season.  The lamb was a hit and even my youngest tried it which is shocking as he is usually a chicken only and only select vegetables. 

Saturday was a bit more successful int he rest department as I got to fitfully and sort of sleep in until 11:30.  As my oldest son's birthday s coming up and he was due for a phone upgrade I took him to the VZ store and we got him his birthday gift- yeah, I caved and got him the iPhone 4s.  He wanted the 32 gig one so that is what he got.  Then it was back to the house to try and rest some more- not so lucky- and then the four of us went and grabbed dinner- Mexican- and then I gave into the mania- yeah we went and saw The Hunger Games.  It was a good movie but I have to say seriously- what is the fuss?  Haven't we seen this so many times before?  "The Most Dangerous Game"  anyone?  didn't we all have to read that short story classic in 8th or 9th grade English class?  Even more recently (and I am totally plagiarizing a tweet I saw) The Running Man based on the Steven King novel?  Anyhow, still a good flick and I did not realize how long it was and I only had one cough drop plus with all the water I was drinking I had to go to the bathroom at least three times.  I am not so sure about reading the books.

Yesterday was about the same in terms of how I felt but I needed to put the game face on.  A good friend of the husband's from Argentina was in town and we were hosting her and her friend for brunch.  I made this flat bread with potatoes, shave asparagus, goat cheese and olive oil and the husband made this pretty amazing chicken salad with sliced pan fried chicken breasts and apples over greens with a butter milk dressing.  I also made brownies for dessert.  So we were up early cleaning the entire house and making the boys help as well.  At one point my oldest asked why their room needed to be clean.  I told him because guest may want to see the entire house.  Oh, so when we visit them I can see their bedrooms.  I said of course, the next time we are in Argentina you can see their bedrooms...

Brunch was a success and we had a very good time- the husband catching up with old friends and myself and the boys making new ones.  At one point the boys were int he kitchen whispering with their step-father when the friend told me she was very impressed with my boys and I have done a good job as a father raising them.  I demurely replied I could only take half the credit as their mother plays a role in their upbringing as well.

The guest left and I tried to nap a bit more before taking the boys back to their mom's to no avail as I was still hacking and wheezing.  I dropped the boys off and when I was driving back something happened with my right ear.  You know when your ears pop and you are equalizing pressure?  Well my right ear didn't pop and felt like it was still trying to pop. It had me a bit concerned.

We of course watched the season premiere of "Game of Thrones."  Even though the NYT television critic kinda dumped on it I thought it was an excellent episode.

I decided to sleep in the boys room and let the husband at least get a good night's rest.  As I laid down with a humidifier humming my ear started to throb.  I thought that was not good but I'd see how it felt int he morning.

Well this morning it had not changed and I noticed my balance was a bit off.  At first I just chalked it up to early morning  clumsiness.  But as I was driving to the train station I knew something was wrong so I stopped at the Wawa, emailed the boss and my co-workers I was not going to make it in, was going to get professional medical help.  I went home, logged onto the company's health insurance provider website and found a walk in clinic that opened at 8:30.  It was a nurse practitioner but that was fine as they can prescribe drugs in NJ. 

It may seem shocking I don't have a primary care physician but I think I ma like a lot of guys.  I am going to guess most guys don't if they are generally in good health to begin with- which I am (although I stepped on the scale and could stand to lose 5-10 pounds)- and only seek medical help when they really need it which means an emergency room. 

I was the first one there, had my check up and found out the root cause of all my recent ills was a massive ear infection in my right ear.  I laughed as I associate those as childhood ailments. The NP kindly explained that many adults get them but don't realize it and always think it is just a cold or a sinus infection.  So within 30 minutes I have my drugs and am on my way home. 

All in all a good experience with the system and since it was all in-network all I paid was for the drugs.

I am totally psyched I did go because we are flying out Friday and if I got on the airplane with a massive ear infection I can only imagine what kind of pain I would have ended up going through.