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Yesterday, after about 5 days of beating down the jackals of the cold, my voice went.  It was odd. I didn't feel very sick, just on the tired side, but my voice was akin to a male bullfrog going through puberty. It made for some interesting sounding intercom building-wide announcements, asking students to come down to see me in Guidance. By the end of the day, I was either whispering or croaking, all the while telling my co-workers that I didn't feel very sick. I must of sounded as an alcoholic does when telling others he doesn't have a drinking problem after wracking up several DUI's. Denial. Sickness is definitely a spanker of the flesh. In my more spiritual moments, I praise God for times of illness. It weans me off of the world in a way that nothing else can. Only when I feel the pains of sickness do I see the world clearly as a wasteland too and not just a wonderworld. It is really both. Adversity and Amusement. Crying and Laughing are both necessities.     

The other night, the telltale soreness was in my sinuses. A cold virus was partying. Colds start there and multiply like some type of virus flash mob. Well, I called in the men in blue uniform and night sticks...or more contemporary, tasers. Raw garlic, eaten and driven into the nasal cavity. If the progression of the cold is not halted there, it travels down into the throat and lungs. No Occupy Eric. It is incredibly harsh. Raw garlic is not to be trifled with...it burns like napalm, scorching those cold viruses in their tracks. It hurts like hell. Yet, this treatment is far from a placebo sugar pill. I know that it is effective. Typically I will still get a lite version of a cold, but one that lets me continue to go to work, taste my food, and not want to die. I believe garlic pills are useless...the very ingredients that confront the cold are the elements that get denatured by processing. No, the garlic has to be harsh, it is what makes the crucial difference. Now, I know tha

I am pleased to report that I am now grinding my teeth at night. I noticed several weeks ago that my teeth were hurting and I thought my new espresso maker was stripping the enamel of my teeth. Maybe it is...and maybe the espresso is making me tense. I have relegated the espresso to the weekend. Half-caf, half-decaf, 12 oz of drip coffee during the week. Over Christmas vacation, though, every day espresso. Too much. In times of inordinate stress during the past, I have had a TMJ of sorts where I cannot even chew. But it has been years since I experienced this. My dentist noticed the enamel wearing away during the last check-up right before Christmas. He recommended that I buy some $ 300 mouthpiece through his office while calling products like GrindGuard above "useless." I really questioned his assessment. The principal of keeping teeth from grinding teeth (like iron sharpening iron) seems pretty elementary. I distrust doctors and dentists recommendations that are costly

Yesterday, Lina asked me to pick up a book for her at the local library because she was engaged in an almost all day affair of cleaning out her closet. She does all of her reservation of books online and then is notified when the books become available and picks them up. More typically I return books for her because she is out of town on a frequent basis. Not unusually, there is often a fine of some increment of a nickel because typically it is after the fact. I have to face the shame and the scowl of the librarian on duty because of my wife's delinquency. My wife has many exemplary qualities, returning library books on time is not necessarily one of them. I am overstating the problem for tale-spinning enhancement. Yet, it has happened more than once. But, yesterday I was picking up a book. I sensed it wouldn't be as easy as going into a Turkey Hill (convenience store) and buying a gallon of milk. So, I called ahead of time to learn of the protocol. I was correct that it w