The January Cold

I am currently breathing through my mouth, but every now and then one of my stuffy nostrils would take pity on me and clear up a little, enough for me to take a sniff of my Vicks VapoRub, or the Spa in a Bottle I bought some weeks ago from Echostore, a shop in Centris that sells organic stuff. The little bottle of oil works wonders: it has VCO, peppermint, musk, lavender, and orange. You spray a bit of oil into your palm, rub it with the other, then cap your hands to your nose. Take a deep breath and voilà, congestion, gone!

Funny, after buying the stuff my friends and I talked about headache and cold remedies. We were really getting old. Or perhaps, when we were young kids, any form of physical pain becomes a quick excuse not to do anything, but now we all had to make sure we get work done even when it feels like there's a jackhammer in our heads.

The polar vortex in the US may be affecting the climate in the rest of the world, I don't know, but January has always been a cold month here. Perhaps I got my cold from when I went out for that forensic photography lecture, perhaps I got it from my mom, who says she got the virus from one of our clingy cats, who always manages to sneeze on her at every opportunity. My mom very rarely gets sick (I'm thinking she has built up her resistance during all her years as a nurse), so when she does gets sick, it means the virus is a bit extraordinary.

Tito Marit, who's currently in Edmonton, Canada, says the temperature there is minus forty degrees. I like cold weather (I like jackets and having the opportunity to wear them), but I have yet to experience what "freezing" feels like. I always say that I have plenty of added insulation to keep me warm, anyway.

I don't like being sick (who does?), and I'm not one to wallow. This morning I watered my plants (my variegated oregano babies are getting more robust every day) and spent a few minutes in the sun while watching my cats frolic in the garden. Later I'll be going to a nephew's birthday party; after that I'm seeing friends for a jogging session in UP. Well I might not jog (that's pushing things too far), but I walk pretty fast anyway, so.

Okay, time for tea now.