The Last Time I Blew My Nose

So we started co-op on Monday. I am teaching a Newspaper class. (Finally, using my degree.) By the end of the day I had laryngitis. Thought it was just some allergies, post nasal drip and all that. I think I was allergic to hitting the wall in Rome, because ever since, I have been wondering if I am coming down with allergies or something. It's hard to tell, since my forehead is still numb, whether or not it is allergies or just me still being a numbskull from the Vespa incident.

Anyway, so my throat was hurting after co-op. Didn't know if I talked too much or something. Thought some Tortilla soup and a nap might be just the ticket. But I woke up from the nap and thought a mint chocolate chip shake might be a good idea. And then I took another nap.

I woke just in time to watch the finals of the U.S. Open. Feeling like I was going downhill as Del Potro was during the first set. As he picked things up at the end of the second set, I was wondering if my continued downhill trend would get to unbearable overnight as the heavy night air settled in. Dave decided it might be a good idea to go to a doc in the box and make sure I didn't need antibiotics, since my immune system is still trying to figure out what to do with itself after the chemo. It was hard to leave in the middle of such a good match. But the doc in the box closed at 7. And luckily, Mikey was kind enough to cell phone commentate for me during my medical time out.

At first the doc in the box was a bit cranky. I think we must have caught her just as she was closing up shop for the day. (Probably to go watch the U.S. Open, so I totally understood.) But then she took my blood pressure and all the sudden got nice. It was scary to tell you the truth. I think it was 160 over 88 or something like that. She took it twice. And then told me to go home and go to bed and take an Ativan and relax and take off the next day. I asked her if that meant tennis, and she just looked at Dave and asked him if he had to sit on me to keep me down. She also sent me home with some antibiotics.

So I went home and had a glass of wine and watched the rest of Del Potro winning the U.S. Open (which I have to be honest, wasn't the most relaxing thing in the world...but what a match! Yay Del Potro!) And then I took my Ativan and went to bed. After Dave took my blood pressure about 438 times to see if it would just go down. Which I have to admit, stressed me out a bit. So much pressure!

Anyway, the next day I awoke with a migraine, threw up my coffee, took some Advil, (and of course, Dave took my blood pressure; it had finally gone down a tiny bit) and went back to bed... until 2p.m.

I was hoping that was enough rest because I was a little tired of it all.

And then the congestion fell out of my forehead and into my nose...and I had to blow it, for the first time since I broke it in Rome and they told me not to blow it or my eyeball might fall out of the socket. I have to tell you, I had some real issues with blowing my nose after all that. I know it has been 4 months and everything, but it is a very difficult image to erase from one's mind.

But I am happy to report that I did get over it and have been blowing my nose like a champ. And thank God my eyeball is still intact!

On another note, I got a confusing piece of mail today. It was from the Breast Care Center where I got my mammogram last August 13, when they did the photo shoot of the damn spots. It said their records indicate that it is time to reschedule a routine screening mammogram. Is it me or their records askew? But I was thinking that was a bit pointless now. ;) I mean, I thought that was one of the "perks" to having a freaking mastectomy. Come on.