Sunshine

I closed my eyes and turned my face toward the rising winter sun and allowed it to fill my head with gold. I felt the gold change slowly to a brighter, whiter light and knew I had been oh-so-very-lucky to have done it at that moment before the deep gold changed to it’s brighter, daylight hue.

Cold, Hair Dryers and MacGuyver

It is cold. Like in bone-chillingly cold. I have a vest, a polo-neck and a fleece on and it is still cold. The heater/airconditioner thingy that's supposed to make the room "ambient" is also on, dehydrating us slowly from the outside, like those dried apricots, and I'm perfectly happy with that. It's just that it's still bloody cold.

If I could, I would have my hair dryer at work. I'd make an elaborate stand out of bits and bobs in the office (like MacGyver. Come on, who wasn't in love with him in 1986?) onto which the hair dryer would be placed in the perfect position to blow hot air over me, warming me gently, but not too much to lull me to sleep (it is, after all, work and it's apparently not acceptable to drool on one's keyboard - I'm not sure why but my best friend at work told me that, the last time I did it... I was full for heaven's sake - I'd had a big lunch and we all know that results in overwhelming tiredness and a need for an afternoon nap.)

Anyway, yes, so I had spent most of the afternoon drawing the plans for my elaborate bits-and-bobs-devised hair dryer stand when another work mate came in and looked over my shoulder and asked what I was doing.

I immediately got very excited and started detailing my MacGyveresque plots when he rudely interrupted me and asked loudly: "Why don't you just buy a fan heater?" Hmph, I hate it when Mr Logic comes and foils great plans. Still though, wouldn't it be cooler to have a Uniquely Designed Bits-and-Bobs-Devised-Hair-Dryer-Heating-Apparatus stand in the office?

Snotless

Well, I'm pleased to say that, either the chemical warfare on the bug worked, or I still have a piece of toilet paper lodged up my nose which is keeping it from running. I'm not concerned as to which it is, I'm just glad it's stopped. I'm wondering though, if day-old toilet paper stuffed up one's nostril eventually biodegrades?

Nostrils and toilet paper

So it started yesterday afternoon with a leak out of my right nostril. Just enough to be irritating, but not enough to give a good blow. Then the sneezing. Lots of it. I dripped echinacea into my water and blocked my left nostril (the right already being sort-of-blocked by the incessant dripping) to mask the taste as I glugged it down. I dosed myself with Wondercold or some such thing before laying myself in my bed. I have been known to use this wonder drug purely for its sleep induction properties but not this time. No siree, this was for real. While sleeping, I got that feeling of gloop at the back of my throat, a little sore but, mainly just gloopy. This morning it was still there. It's very much an in-between, fighting-off, I-will-beat-this-bug, with chemicals if necessary, kind of feeling. The whole point, however, of this post (other than to whinge) is to put this question out into the ether... Is it socially acceptable to stuff toilet paper up one nostril while in the office?

Sore wings and vodka

I have always had a problem with vodka. When I drink it, I get sore wings - they kind of ache and make me feel uncomfortable. My housemate, The Pond, disputes this. I fear she might be right, which I find hard to admit. I have always liked blue cocktails, especially when they have little umbrellas. Generally, blue cocktails contain vodka. I have, mostly always, got sore wings after drinking blue cocktails. Other cocktails have left my wings feeling light and free and, well, non-achey. Other cocktails often contain vodka too. So, The Pond, in all her wisdom has deduced from this that it is NOT vodka, but instead the blue stuff. I think she may be right. So, I fear I may have missed out on, oh, ten years of vodka-drinking, purely due to misinformation given to me, by... me! Does anyone else suffer from sore wings when drinking blue cocktails, or am I some kind of human anomoly?