Status Quo - Respiratio

There is no change to my breathing, so I guess tomorrow's long run is off. I'll probably try to do a nice long walk, though. If it's too cold in the morning, I'll go to the gym and walk on the treadmill or do some slow elliptical. If it bothers my lungs, I'll stop.

I stayed home from work today, but didn't go to the doctor. There didn't seem to be much point since I had no other symptoms and I haven't gotten any worse. I've been hitting this thing with various meds and herbs and I've had a few episodes where my lungs have tried to clear themselves by bringing up some fluid. Sounds nasty, I know. But it's a good sign, I think. Last year when bronchitis kept me out of the marathon, I didn't have periods where my lungs would clear. Not significantly, at any rate. They would clear only enough to mock me. But this is better. Sometimes I feel almost normal.

A repeat of last year is precisely what I'm trying to avoid, even if it means I might be overreacting a bit by staying home. I certainly was capable of working today. But I was capable of working throughout my bronchitis last year too, and look what it got me. Nope, I'm taking things easy as much as I can this time. There's a lot of really nasty bugs going around, including one that's leading to pneumonia. My boss's doctor said there are people being hospitalized and even dying from it. Healthy people, not folks who were old and sick to begin with. It's odd, but for as many people who I've run into at work or out shopping who've mentioned this, there's nothing in the papers. If I were to judge by the anecdotal evidence alone, I'd think there was an epidemic.

Or maybe it's just my bad luck-- maybe I just keep meeting the sick and friends of the sick.

One good thing happened today. I went out for a little bit this morning and got new batteries put in my sport watches. I don't know how it happened, but somehow they all died at about the same time. So I got that little errand taken care of. Once I'm well and can run again, I'll be able to see how fast and how far I'm going, too!

I did my usual Friday night grocery run tonight, since I didn't feel really bad, just a little short of breath. Feeling like this makes me not want to talk, so as luck would have it I got the chatty cashiers tonight. Whole Foods was the worst. All Whole Foods cashiers seem to think you've come to pay them a personal visit when all you really want is to buy your organic whatchadoodles and be on your way. Tonight, I thought I'd picked out a sensible-looking girl, only to have her and the sacker gang up on me and try to talk me to death. First the cashier started reading the labels on my Amy's Organics and asking me questions about them. I do not want to talk about my groceries. Will you just scan them, please? Then the sacker pounced on my Breathe Easy tea (good stuff, btw) and asked more questions. I thought if I explained I was sick with what seemed to be bronchitis, they'd ease up on me a bit, but no, they then started asking questions about bronchitis, spinning off into a bizarre riff on lung diseases in general. Come on, kids-- I'm sick. I don't want to hear about pneumonia and tuberculosis. I've got enough problems, okay?

The cashier at Central Market was not only chatty, but stupid. And she looked so smart, too! But at least they had chicken tortilla soup tonight. Yum! Who can't get well after that? And I also found that Enzymatic Therapy makes a product called Air-Power, which is 200 mg of guaifenesin in tablet form. That's the same thing you get in OTC cough syrups, only this is double the good stuff and none of the sugar. So all you peeps with chest colds and worse this season, keep an eye out for it!

Off to go dose up. Stay healthy out there!