Wednesday, November 30, 2011

'Tis the Season...to Catch a Cold.

Add 1,357,286 used Kleenex and this is pretty much what things look like lately at Casa de Snarky.

I don't get sick often, but when summer fades into winter (which is how it usually goes in these parts, with some leaf-falling in the interim), I generally get my annual cold or flu. Something about the temperature going from 70 one day to 30 and snowing the next is too much for my system to handle. I've spent many a birthday - in late October - in a fetal ball on my bathroom floor. Thankfully, this year I made it through my birthday with a clean bill of health, and only gave in to the nagging "I think something's coming on..." feeling AFTER I saw Breaking Dawn. But since then, things have been a little sucky [note: these things definitely impact brain function and vocabulary].

I am tired of being sick. I have had a cold for almost two weeks, and honestly, if I had the energy to be annoyed, I'd be really pissed off about the way it's lingering. If it wasn't for Aquaphor, I would probably have a gaping hole where my nose goes at this point, since I have ejected my body weight in snot into tissues over the last two weeks and there is no tissue on earth soft enough once you reach a certain point of chaffed. I would consider a return to handkerchiefs - whisper-soft handkerchiefs! - until I remember that you have to wash them. {{{shudder}}}

Also, I miss the taste of food. Oh, don't get me wrong - other than a couple of days last week when things were looking particularly dire and I barely moved other than to work, I have been eating like a champ. I've got that "I'm sick and should indulge myself" thing going. "Feed a cold", right??? Um yeah... But here is a list of all the things that I actually enjoy when I have a cold:
  1. Homemade chicken broth/soup (tastes like hot!)
  2. Diet ginger ale (tastes like cold!)
  3. Pepperidge Farm Cheddar Cheese Goldfish (tastes like salty!)
    That's pretty much it.

    Half-way into cooking my first batch of chicken soup about ten days ago,  I realized that I would have no real way of telling if it was good or bad. Or REALLY bad (I make my chicken soup with leftover chicken carcasses that I keep in the freezer, sooo...). The cat didn't turn her nose up at it when I offered (thanks for taking that bullet for me, Quato), but I was relieved when Mr. Snarky came home and declared the soup definitely not putrid. There was an initial scare when he walked in the door and said something had a little whang to it, but we determined that it was emanating from outside and not my stock pot. Yay!


    Today I started making a pot of turkey soup from the leftover Thanksgiving bird, only to have the top of the pot get a little...frothy. Despite the fact that I thing it was probably soap, I tasted nothing. I scooped out the offending bubbles and turned up the heat. A little detergent is NOT going to ruin this for me! I would have cried if I hadn't been able to make this soup. I'm not above Campbell's Chicken & Stars in a pinch, but nothing beats homemade for it's "goes straight to your marrow" goodness.

    Oh...and why, you might ask, did I have leftover turkey/cook a big dinner on Thanksgiving? While I was sick??? Because this is what Mr. Snarky looked like at the grocery store last Thursday morning when I suggested maybe we should take it easy and just cook a chicken:


    And this is what he looked like when I said FINE let's cook a huge-ass *#%$!!! turkey even though we're both sick:



    In hindsight, it was a nice to eat solid food, and we've been eating leftovers all week. Plus I didn't have to go anywhere or cook anything extra for all those additional meals to happen. But I am OVER this cold! Or want to be...

    So what are your secrets for getting over a cold? There's got to be something that doesn't require you start taking it when you get your first symptoms (yup, I should have been paying more attention several weeks ago...) - it's probably too late to break out the zinc lozenges and Oscillococcinum (I can't pronounce this but I have it on good authority it works IF you start taking at first sniffle). Hot toddies? Medically-induced coma? Twilight marathons??? Oh please let it be hot toddies and Twilight marathons...or something to do with RPatts...

    19 comments:

    1. I admire your homemade goodness, even when you're ill, but I prefer Chicken Ramen w/ hot sauce. 2 minutes and no stirring required! Emergen-C, Ginger ale, and Stash Licorice Tea to top it off. Lay on the couch and doze or watch tv into oblivion. Feel better you!

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    2. nasal spray. I use it every day and have not been sick in 3 years. I am convinced it is the cure to colds.

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    3. Hot Toddies and Twilight Marathon. STAT. Dr. Cullen would approve.

      I usually get the flu during the summer, but the last few years I have been getting strep. Once a year.

      I hope you feel better soon.

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    4. I'm sorry you're a sicko, Snarky! Sick sucks, especially when it won't go away...

      My remedy? Bitching and complaining, and lots and lots of wine. Red. I just get shitty, and with all of those sugars, it makes me hack up a combination of that sticky cough you get from eating too many sour patch kids, plus the phlegm taking up residence in your breathing bags.

      60% of the time it works every time.

      Oh, and stay away from anyone under the age of 12.

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    5. Hot and Sour soup...the spicier the better. Feels great going down and clears the sinuses. Also, put Vicks Vaporub all over your chest and neck just before bed. It will help break up the phlegm and help you to expectorate the googies.

      Feel better soon!

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    6. Wow so freaked weird. I was just about to look up cold cures but I ended up here.
      I'm in Australia so it's summer here and stinking hot. I didn't get sick at all in winter so now I feel like a douche sniffling in summer.
      It's way too hot for soup. A twilight marathon sounds like the perfect cure.

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    7. Eucalyptus oil in the oil burner and a few steam inhalations, disgusting but effective hot lemon paracetamol drinks, Twilight (or possibly Star Wars) marathon, sleep, sleep and more sleep. That's what I've been doing for the last week and it FINALLY seems to be working. I hate colds that won't go away. I feel your stuffy, snotty, headachy pain. I'm on the mend, so hopefully soon you will be too. Till then, plenty of rest and frequent RPattz infusions. Feel better!

      Vw: sorkno. I think I just made that noise when I sneezed...

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    8. Neilmed sinus rinse or the Netty pot - I prefer the sinus rinse (squeeze bottle) to the Netty Pot. They are sold in the allergy aisle at the pharmacy. You will also need to get a gallon of distilled water to use with the kit - don't use tap water - it will feel like burning. I may feel a little raw with your sensitive Kleenex torn nose, but it will help clear things out. My instances of colds etc..have gone way down since using the sinus rinse. The first time you use it you will feel like you a drowning, but it will get easier after a few times. I follow it up with the Neilmed sinus gel which is like Aquafor for way up inside your nose.

      Hope you and the hubs feel better soon! Hugs!

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    9. Neti Pot is AWESOME once you reach that chafed-nose stage (or before, to prevent it). Love mine. Love, love, love. It is SO not as bad as it looks, and frankly it's light years better than blowing your nose a gazillion times.

      Also, Zicam is. a. miracle. You could take it at the start of a cold, which helps, but I've also taken it starting in the middle of a cold and it knocks that sucker out in two days flat. You do have to take it every four hours (not waking up at night or anything, just from getting up to going to bed) and it works like a charm.

      And if all of that doesn't work, just say 'screw it' and go watch BD with a flask. You already feel like crap, what's a hangover going to do?

      Feel better! xoxo

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    10. Sorry you're still sick, STY. I usually get some annual raging sinus infection the 2nd weekend in December. I've already made soup & stashed it in the freezer. I'm trying to avoid people more than usual because EVERYONE is sick right now.

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    11. @SpunkyBookworm - Emergen-C = check! Better stock up though - they are "improving" the flavors/changing the ingredients and I think they suck. I'll have to try the soup - if it's spicy I might be able to taste it - yay!

      @anon - I need to know more! Nasal spray??? What kind???

      @TigerKitten36 - I swear if I am not feeling 100% better this weekend, I am watching all my movies back-to-back. Or maybe I'll just watch Twilight three times in a row instead...

      @Lindsay Ray - I avoid children like the plague - or like they have the plague - as a general rule. And it will take more than a two-week-long cold to get me off my red wine. : )

      @Edward is a VILF - I LOVE hot & sour soup but eggs make me rashy so I have to avoid them. Boo. I love egg drop soup when I feel crappy too, but again...damn allergies!

      @Pecker head - hope you find some good suggestions here! And I think a Twi marathon may possibly have medicinal properties... (Fell better - summer colds are the WORST!.)

      @Banshee713 - Eucalyptus oil sounds good! bu I don't know what paracetamol drinks are... They have vodka in them...? Maybe? No??? : )

      @mel in the atl - I <3 my neti pot and just started using distilled water (after the whole "brain-eating bacteria" thing this summer - yikes!). It feels much better than tap! I have also tried nursery water, but i think the minerals actually made it feel more harsh than even tap. I have one of those squirt bottle things but never learned to use it - maybe it's time to dust it off and give it another go!

      @My After Car - I find that slathering the area between my upper lip and my nostrils with Aquaphor does wonders to heal the chafing... Will add Zicam to my shopping list! It has to be cheaper than some of the other things out there - lol... And if I end up doing a Twi marathon this weekend (or back at BD in the theater) there will definitely be a flask involved. : )

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    12. @Texas Katherine - I hoard soup like it's gold! And here's to hoping that this doesn't turn into a sinus infection - ugh! I'd really like to not go to the DR for this... too many sick people there!

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    13. Crushed raw garlic straight up. I usually chop it up, put it in a spoon and swallow with water. Followed by some yogurt. Works very often. Gross though. And since you're swallowing the garlic without chewing it doesn't smell

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    14. OK WAIT! It was actually distilled water that hurt a little in the neti pot and the nursery water was better - distilled water is more acidic, I think (lower pH level). I don't know why I felt it was important to clarify that at this point, but there you go.

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    15. Nasal Spray: I use any knock off of Afrin. Make sure it says it last for 12hrs. IT is the cure to the cold. I use to get bad bronchitis twice a year b/c it would start with a cold. Haven't had one in long time.

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    16. Since I used to get sick literally every 1-3 months (then found out it was due to gluten allergy) here are some helpful hints:

      1. complain a LOT.
      2. baby yourself
      3. Halls natural cough drops are the best. In a green bag, they taste like candy with honey in the middle. Not like normal gross ass cough drops. The berry or peach ones are really good.
      4. Tylenol severe night time liquid medicine works miracles for me. Its in a clear bottle and it's blue.
      3. Hot toddies are awesome
      4. For a cough, Dangrdafne taught me this and it was AMAZING:
      1 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, and 2 tbsp water. Mix together and drink.. way better than any cough syrup I've ever used. Very effective before bed.
      5. Lots of Twilight
      6. cheesy movies and a comfy pillow.

      If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. Feel better love!!! Stay away from the neti-pot. Those things HUUURT (Yeah I only tried it the one time haha)

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    17. I second the cough info from Jaymes805 ;) It really does work.

      I am sorry you are still ill Snarky and I hope you will be better soon.

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    18. Home remedy for a couch, jameson, honey and lemon. Heated. I love it!!

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    19. And by couch I mean cough.....

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