Sanitized for your protection

TPP hates uncontrolled experiments. As a senior citizen my physician insisted upon providing a flu shot, and now TPP has a "flu-like substance", a low-grade fever, achy discomfort, general malaise, and a bad attitude about being sick. Is it flu?  Probably, and it would have been worse if you hadn't gotten a flu shot.  Sure.  Maybe, but how would we know?  But just so you know this blog has been sanitized for your protection. You may be subjected to whatever affects this brain, but you won't catch anything worse than an idea. 
TPP also used to hate the dress warmly or you'll catch cold admonishment from his Mother. You dress warmly to stay warm when it's cold, but how does that in any way ward off virus?  It doesn't.  And you are more likely to catch something inside than outside.
Not only isn't it a controlled experiment, a biased observer is involved recording the data. Blowing off steam is just another avoidance device to delay writing a holiday greetings letter. Maybe TPP will feel better later.

Darn those germy students!

This has been happening for years.  Students go home for the winter break, wallow in the local germs at that location, and then they bring samples of all these different germs back to campus and begin swapping them around creating a new germ pool where everyone lacks immunity to one or more of these cold germs.  Thus just about two weeks after the semester begins TPP gets a cold or the flu. So right on schedule, TPP finds himself and a box of tissue sitting at his laptop in a bath robe.  Since this cold/flu involves a low grade temperature and severe congestion, it probably counts as flu, and adds to an almost perfect record of always getting the flu whenever he's gotten a flu shot.  How totally annoying.  Coincidentally, the university has cancelled classes because of the extreme cold, so no matter what there will be material that will need to be made up. Hard to argue with the closure when one student was found dead of exposure already, although the circumstances remain uncertain. The worst thing is that congested sinuses really ruins the ability to think and concentrate, so it's not like this is a nice break to get a few things done.  Drat.
While watching the TV, my attention was drawn to a commercial where a doctor looking woman was examining some kids and then turns to the camera and says something to the effect I always recommend [brand name] homeopathic cold remedies.  Now either these things are supplements and therefore unregulated or they are remedies. Of course they want it both ways because these are purely bogus remedies but it's pretty safe to recommend them for a "cold" because mostly you get better anyways, so anything at all will work as well. 

Feeling really crappy

The semester begins on Monday, but that's not the reason TPP is ill.  Friday was our last day without any classes or commitments for some time, so the afternoon was used for a field trip to find some hemiparasitic plants (green and parasitic), members of the Orobanchaceae, in this case yellow foxgloves.  The field trip was successful and two species were located and recorded for seed collection later.  But by the time TPP got home he was feeling light headed and fuzzy, unusual feelings.  Tried medicating this with coffee and then with a margarita, but the uncomfortableness just got worse.  Gradually it dawned upon me that this was an illness that probably involved a fever. Yes, TPP was shivery and sweaty, and the medical thermometer recorded a nice solid 102 F.  Yikes!  Later this came down a degree but persisted all night, a most uncomfortable night with many trips to the toilet, each time accompanied with a fluffy black cat who for some reason likes rubbing on your legs while you sit there.  You sort of have to hate purry happiness when you feel so miserable.  Today the fever seems to be dissipating, but the feeling of being tired and drained and uncomfortable persists.  Sure does seem like some sort of flu.  It's a beautiful weekend, and TPP hates to waste it as there are things to do.  Hopefully full recovery will happen before Monday.