Forwards and occasionally sidewards – everyday musings of life

Both of us found ourselves wide awake at 3 AM this morning. I was in my usual state of coughing and sneezing, while Karen simply couldn’t sleep. It crossed my mind that perhaps she isn’t Patient Zero after all, and I have successfully managed to pass this foul bug on.

However, while I had my head firmly buried in a steaming mug of Lemsip and was actively working my way through yet another box of tissues, Karen was casually browsing for a new dining room table online. On second thoughts, there is absolutely no way she has caught this cold; this particular beast doesn’t allow you to think straight during the day, let alone execute furniture procurement at three o’clock in the morning.

We finally crawled back to bed at 5 AM—there will be no “5 AM Club” memberships for me today—and slept soundly until the alarm went off for Karen to head to work. When I woke up properly, my head actually felt a bit lighter, clearer, and far less blocked up. I optimistically suggested that the cold might have finally run its course, but Karen reckons I am just having Lemsip-induced hallucinations and need to start weaning myself off the stuff.

With the prospect of another scorching day as ‘Heatwave 3.0’ glides into its second week, I was keen to start deep-cleaning the outside of the house. I had recently ordered a new secret weapon specifically to tackle the relentless brick dust left by the builders: a high-powered leaf blower. Armed with this new toy and the pressure washer, I set out to finally transform the exterior of the house from a dusty building site into a proper dwelling.

By 3 PM, however, my battery light was flashing red. The cold is definitely still lurking in the system, forcing me to retreat back to bed for an hour to recharge.

In the evening, our friend Shaz came over to visit and share a takeaway with us. I decided that I was finished with pharmaceutical intervention; instead of fighting the bug with chemical remedies, I would hit it hard with a Lamb Rajasthani and a mountain of poppadoms. If anything is going to finally finish off this fever and guarantee a proper night’s sleep, it’s a proper curry.