It's interesting that I feel worse today, but today is the day I feel better. Um.... that sounded more real and less pseudo-profound in my head.
Backing up a little, I've caught a cold or flu. There is so much talk about H1N1 flu and how dangerous it is, especially to pregnant women, that I've been taking extra precautions to protect Tami from my germs. Actually, I've been a lot more careful not to get sick at work and bring it home for several months. Now that I am sick, I'm doing all I can under the circumstances to protect Tami and The Kid. From what I hear, pregnant women are very susceptible to colds and flus, regardless of weather it is H1N1 or not. So, I have to do all I can. I live on the couch now. That's the first big action. I've been living on the couch since I came home Wednesday feeling less than good. I haven't gone to work or ridden a motorcycle. What I have done is watch a lot of video over the internet. You see, in my effort to isolate my germs until they die, I live on the couch, avoid contact and close proximity with my wife (it is very difficult to go so long without a touch, kiss, or hug), avoid touching everything not on the couch, going into any other rooms, or sitting where Tami would sit. There is no TV in this room and the discomfort makes it difficult to read much, so I have discovered the wonders of internet video. Fascinating.
First, I found BBC America's Top Gear web site devoted to the popular show Top Gear that so many of my friends comment on. It's not part of my cable package so I had not seen it before Wednesday, but I found it on the internet. Awesome. It's a show where three guys in England are, for example, given 1,500 pounds to buy a Porsche and then they compete against each other on various tasks as their beat up old examples of cool cars fall apart. Quality entertainment. Who would have known one man on a couch could get through so many episodes so fast. Then, Don told me how I could mix it up a little with videos from Jay Leno's Garage. That's where Jay Leno shows off and talks about various vehicles that he has or gets his hands on. Some very cool stuff like a turbine powered car that he has had custom made and various exotic cars and motorcycles. Excellent. Still, a man's time on a couch stretches on so I remembered all this hubub about a website called Hulu.com. I didn't know what it was about exactly but I knew it was an online free video source. Fantastic. I may be locking myself out of the TV room, but I've got plenty of video to help me pass the time. A box of kleenex and one and a half rolls of TP to substitute as kleenex later, I've watched two documentaries and several episodes of current comedy sitcom. My favorite discovery is a line or two from a show called Community.
I should say that I avoid watching new shows on television. I don't like to get hooked on shows because I don't like to spend too much time thinking about watching or actually watching them when I'm feeling good. I went through a faze of watching Scrubs, South Park, Simpsons, and Family Guy. I've gotten over all of them except Family Guy which I will still watch when I'm in front of the TV. But there is only one show left that I actively look forward to and will be sure to see each week, The Office. I love it. And, I would like to keep it at just one show. But life on the couch makes one venture out a bit, and I tried the show Community. It has been pretty darn entertaining. The gem of the day? This great line when one friend is trying to cheer up and talk down another friend who basically feels old and like he may be wasting his life away.. and he is on some unknown drug at the community college dia de los muertos party:
"And more importantly, you're dressed like a gladiator in a desk fort that you built during a bad trip. If life is just a series of ridiculous attempts to be alive, you're a hero to everything that's ever lived."
I love it! What a novel idea to define life, against all good logic, as an attempt to be alive through a series of rediculous attempts at living. Cheesy, funny, and as horribly extra cheesy as it may seem, motivational. And that got me to another horrible cheesy line from the movie Shawshank Redemption (I love that movie), I think it went something like "Get busy living, or get busy dieing." And that's it.
I feel worse today. My headache is worse. My sore throat is worse. My cough is worse. But I have turned that point psycholigically where I don't feel like wasting away on the couch anymore. I may feel like crap and I may be forced to once again tell my wife that I love her from five feet away when she gets home from work. But I feel like moving. And that feels good.
My plan? Start with a shower, try for a walk outside. If this doesn't clear up by tomorrow, I'm shoving TP in each nostril and going for a ride.