I caught the flu

I suppose it really started last week when my son was still staying with us. By the time he went back he wasn’t coughing so much, just a bit of a cold. He is younger than me, of course, and his immune system is probably stronger.

It started on Monday, I had a strange feeling in my throat as if I had swallowed feathers. Then the cough started. During the day it stayed under control but through the night it didn’t. What fun waking up in the morning with the feeling that you hadn’t actually slept. I dragged myself off to work and managed to serenade everyone with my constant coughing and sneezing. Eventually a colleague said she didn’t feel very well either and stayed at home on Wednesday for the day. I decided that I was most probably, at least I thought most probably, on the way to recovery. During the night of Wednesday I felt very uncomfortable and didn’t really sleep. Being inquisitive I decided to hunt through the home for a thermometer. Now where do we keep it?. Havn’t got a clue. I sort of stumbled out of the bedroom, passing 3 cats on the way in the corridor and opened a drawer where it is usually kept. After searching in the dark, I found the thermometer. There was one small problem, I had forgotton my glasses, which meant that even if I managed to find my temperature I would not be able to read it. I made a second journey to the bedroom and got my glasses and went into the living room to see how much time remained. The Nos. on the thermometer sprang up to 38°C which is known as fever in Switzerland. Anything from 37°C up to 38° is temperature. In my English days it used to be 98.4 F and you had a small thermometer which fitted nicely under the tongue. In European countries the thermometer is about 4 times the size and you put it under your arm. The disadvantage is it takes 10 minutes until you know if you have to call for the doctor or not.

I climbed back into bed with one thought in my head, tomorrow you will not go to work, and if the company collapses when you are not there. At 6 in the morning my other half told me the alarm had gone off, so I told him I am staying home today and tomorrow as well, as I don’t think this will pass off so quickly. Yesterday, Thursday, was a strange day. I just stayed in bed all day, something I don’t often do, and I have very little memory of what went on. Mr. Swiss did mention that I slept through the day. I didn’t even eat anything, which is perhaps an advantage of being ill, as I had put too much weight on over the Christmas/New Year. I think I would have stayed in bed until this morning, but Mr. Swiss said that the East Enders were on the tv yesterday evening, so I thought I would drag myself into the living room to watch. It’s funny how a tv programme can take things off your mind, like you are spending your last day on earth, or on the gravestone will stand “she was a victim of the 2008 flu epidemic”. Needless to say after The Eastenders I went back to bed and remained there until this morning.

Did I feel better today? Well not really, but after cleaning my teeth again (I didn’t even do that yesterday) and having a shower (which I also didn’t do yesterday) I decided that my permanent visit to the cemetery could be postponed for a few decades. Today I even ate food again and climbed onto the computer. My fever has now gone down to light temperature and all being well I will be back at work on Monday. Thank you son for the goodbye present.

Of course I know that what I had is not as bad as a “man cold”

Reservoir Cats 31

Long Tail Al: Oh yea, Tabby, you are descended from the best.
Tabby: But what about Big Tom, I though he was your half brother.
Long Tail Al: So ‘e is son, but you know ‘ow the lady cats are, they can never say no, can they.
Tabby: Dad, do you think I can go back to the country again. I mean it was nice staying here in the town, but I am missing the wide open spaces a bit.
Slimy: and wot about me?
Long Tail Al: And wot about you Slimy, ‘ave I missed somefing.
Slimy: Well Tabby said ‘e would take me wiv ‘im for a while.
Long Tail Al: Wot you cats are up to. Well I suppose I don’t mind. I ‘ave the Black Paw gang to take care of fings and it might do you a bit of good Slimy, get some fresh air into your fur.
Tabby: Slimy has been a good guide around the town for me, especially the sewers, so I thought I would show him around the country.
Long Tail Al: No problem, but I ‘ope ‘e comes back again. Slimy is like a son to me – even if ‘e does smell a bit now and again.
Slimy: I don’t smell, I just ‘ave a different scent to the rest. So Tabby, shall we go.
Tabby: Yes, we make ourselves on the way.
Charlie: ‘allo you two where you off to, back to the country?
Tabby: Well I think it’s time.
Charlie: Do you mind if I come wiv you, just for a few days.
Slimy: You just want to meet Nera again.
Charlie: Well, I suppose so, if she’s willing. Can’t you put a few good words in for me Tabby.
Tabby: Nera makes up her own mind, but if it’s just for a couple of days, then come along as well.
Charlie: Great
Long Tail Al: But be’ave Charlie. I don’t want to ‘ere any bad stories about ya afterwards.

Tabby: Come on Charlie, me and Slimy are nearly there and you are dragging behind.
Charlie: Well, I ‘ad to ‘ave a good lick didn’t I before we went. After all can’t go courting such a lady like Nera wiv the smell of the rooftops in my fur.
Slimy: Listen to ‘im, you would fink Nera is waiting for ‘im wouldn’t ya.
Romeo: Che vieni, who’s coming. This is Big Tom’s territory. Why ciaou Tabby, nice to see you again.
Tabby: I though I would come back to the country, I do miss it a bit. And I brought a couple of cats with me.
Romeo: So I can see, Hisssss, hissss.
Charlie: Well that’s a welcome ain’t it.
Romeo: It’s the welcome I always give out to strange cats, especially when they don’t show their manners to the ladies.
Tabby: Oh, Romeo, give him a chance. He has been very nice to me in the town and would just like to pay his respects to Nera.
Romeo: I don’t know whether Nera wants his respects, you know she is fussy, and we have a new cat in town.
Slimy: No problem, in town we always ‘ave new cats.
Romeo: Don’t tell me you brought that smelly cat as well.
Tabby: Slimy was my best friend in town and helped me a lot to find the way. My dad said all he needs is a bit of fresh country air in his fur and he won’t smell any more.
Big Tom: What’s going on Romeo. Why Tabby is back and has brought two town cats with him.
Charlie: Hello Big Tom, nice to see you again. How’s Miss Nera.
Big Tom: Miss Nera is keeping fine, Charlie, although I don’t see her so much these days. Since Ginger arrived, she goes out a lot more.
Slimy: Oh, Charlie, looks like you ‘ave a rival.
Tabby: Who’s Ginger. I don’t remember a Ginger living around here.
Big Tom: Ginger belongs to some new humans that now live around here. He seems to be quite a little King where he lives and is all over the place.
Tabby: So I think I will go back to my cat nip patch and see how things are developing.
Slimy: Did you say cat nip patch?
Tabby: Stay cool, there is no cat nip any more, but if you dig around in the ground enough you sometimes get the scent of it wafting up in your nose.
Charlie: I will come wiv ya. Might meet Nera on the way.

Nera: Hello Ginger nice to meet you today.
Ginger: You smell nice today Nera, fresh and wonderfully fishy.
Nera: Yes, I had an extra portion of salmon yesterday.
Ginger: My humans give me salmon as well, at least four times a week.
Tabby: Hi Nera, how are things going.
Nera: Tabby, nice to see you again. I thought you were still in town.
Tabby: Well I got a little bit homesick so my dad said that was ok to go back, and I brought Slimy and Charlie with me.
Slimy: ‘Allo Miss Nera. You are looking lovely.
Nera: Hello Slimy, nice to see you again. If I may say so, it seems that you don’t have such a sewer smell about you any more.
Charlie: And wot about me Miss Nera. I did meself up super good before I come. So ‘ow about it.
Ginger: Nera you have strange colleagues. Hissssss, who is that big tom cat with the Cat Pitt fur style.
Charlie: Excuse me, but I ‘appen to be Charlie from town and who are you? A Garfield lookalike? You are fat enuf any’ow. Hisssss
Nera: So boys stop fighting and hissing. Ginger, Charlie is an acquaintance of mine from town.
Ginger: Well sorry Nera, but town cats are beneath my status. We use them as servants from where I come from.
Slimy: Hey Charlie, I wouldn’t stand for that if I was you.
Charlie: Come’ere you stuck up bowl of orange juice.
Tabby: Oh dear, I think there is going to be a fight.
Ginger: It’s not worth it, I might break off the points on my claws.
Charlie: Oh dear, listen to ‘im “I might break of the points on my claws” What part of the royal family is he from – the cat’s whiskers.
Nera: So just calm down you two. Ginger is new here and I have been showing him around.
Charlie: That is obvious to see, what have you been showing him I would like to know.
Nera: Charlie, you don’t own me, and if you want to stay with us in the country for a few days, then I must ask you to behave.
Ginger: I have to go home now, it’s tea time, but I will be back some time in the night.
Charlie: Is that a threat or a promise?
Tabby: What is that supposed to mean Charlie. I hope you are not planning on causing trouble.
Charlie: We will see, now where’s the nearest roof top, I feel like ‘aving a cat nap, looks like I might ‘ave a busy evening.

Coughing the day away

Do you ever have those nights when you don’t sleep so well. You have a shoulder that hurts every time you move your arm, most of the night is spent coughing and sneezing and on top of all you have to crawl out of the bed in the morning at 06.00 to make sure you are at work by 07.15. I had to see the specialist at the hospital at 08.00, so I brought my son to work at 07.00, went back home for a shower and then drove off to the hospital. Luckily the roads were ok, although since early in the morning we had heard horror stories about icy roads and one accident after the other, one person being killed. Yes Switzerland might be the fairy tale country of mountains, snow and winter sports but it has the other side where the cold temperatures take over and you just don’t know what to expect when you go out in the morning.

The doc at the hospital asked how do you feel, which is a stupid question really, I mean that’s his job to find out how I feel. I did tell him that I had a cough, a cold and felt like I was on death’s door (well not the bit about death’s door, I mean I felt like it, but didn’t tell him in case he wanted to keep me in). He reassured me that everything was ok, so all I have to do now is to get the bill paid by the insurance - no problem, but the bill will probably be over one thousand francs, and I have to pay 10% myself.

Afterwards I made my way to work, as I got there a bit later my first action was to make a cup of coffee to give me a homely feeling. I then had a nice surprise which put my trust back into the human race. From a company I have to do a lot of work for somewhere in Bavaria, I got a new years present – bottle of wine and DVD with a nice colourful calendar. Well that doesn’t happen every day. Otherwise it was a busy day, but spurred on by the thought that I only have two years, eleven months and two weeks, I got through things as usual.

When I arrived home my three cats all ran to meet me purring loudly. Well not really, but it sounds good. They were all sleeping in three different places. And now for a quiet evening watching tv – a German police thriller and afterwards the daily 30 minutes on the BBC of The Eastenders which is quite full of suspense at the moment. Shirley found out that Vinnie has a daughter and that the car he had actually belonged to someone else. Since Tanya found out that Max had had an affair with his teenage daughter in law, she threw him out. Good luck to her, but a couple of weeks before Max delivered him and Tanya’s third child in the living room as the ambulance didn’t arrive on time. These things never seem to happen in real life.

So I am now off for an evenings tv and probably will cough my way through another night.

The Cat Next Door

There seemed to be a bit of trouble at home today. We have a new cat in the neighbourhood, a bit younger than ours, and has not yet realised that ours were there first. This new cat likes to walk around during the day inspecting the territories of other cats. She or he is a very friendly cat. She does not run away at all when a human is around but comes for a stroke and a pat on the head, and we humans are stupid enough to oblige.

Did I mention it, my cats and the neighbour’s cat do not like this new cat. My big black long haired furry monster Nera, who is the boss amongst my cat clan, does not attack but sits on her perch and just observes, which is not really a great help. The other two, Tabby and Fluffy have different reactions. Fluffy, who is blind, just doesn’t like this new cat and attacks, making so much noise, that the neighbour’s cat hears it and also joins in and chases the new cat away.

Tabby is a problem. Since this new cat has been around she has got a bit careful, That means if the new cat is near, Tabby will just run away as fast as possible. That was today’s problem. Mr. Swiss was relaxing at home and suddenly heard such a loud noise coming from the kitchen, he thought there had been an accident involving something smashing on the floor and perhaps our cats. Well Tabby was involved, who ran passed Mr. Swiss at about two hundred kilometres per hour from the kitchen towards one of the back rooms. It seems the new cat in town got too near to Tabby, Tabby got frightened, ran away at full pelt, but the door to the cat flap just didn’t open fast enough so Tabby demolished the cat flap on her way in leaving a square hole in the window. By the time Mr. Swiss got to the kitchen everything had already happed, but the next problem was already there. Where was Fluffy our blind cat. Fluffy had naturally no problem, he just made the most of the open space in the window and went for a walk. Since he has been blind we only let him out if he is somehow secured by a dog line on a pole, but never alone. Then my husband saw him casually walking back into the garden from the side path as if to say, someone got problems somewhere.

Rules for the new cat
1. He will not be patted on the head
2. He will not be filmed
3. He will not be photographed
4. He will be pushed away
5. He will be ignored
6. If he doesn’t obey, a bowl of water will be thrown over him.

The cat flap has been repaired as it was probably made with this sort of problem in mind. It was just a matter of fitting the screws back into the window.

3 Kings Day - 6th January

So now Christmas is really behind us. 6th January is the day when the Christmas decorations are removed and put back into the cellar or wherever they remain for the next 11 months. It is also a day in some countries in Europe where the visit of the 3 Kings from the Orient is celebrated in the shape of a cake as above. It is something like a sweetish sort of bread and made in segments for a purpose. In one of the segments a plastic king is hidden (I think the original many years ago was a bean). The person who gets the part with the king can then take the crown and tell everyone what to do the rest of the day. I always buy one as it is a custom. In earlier days it kept the kids happy wondering if they could push me and Mr. Swiss around, although if they had bad luck me or Mr. Swiss would get the King. This year as the 6th was on Sunday I had to buy the cake on Saturday. There was a special offer going and as you came into the shop and it was seen that you had one in the basket, you were offered a free piece from one of the shop assistants. Now if this free piece happened to have a King in it you got another 3 Kings cake free of charge. I didn't get all this as I was actually busy trying to buy stuff to feed the family for the week-end. Mr. Swiss, however, saw all this going on and as he was pushing the trolly (I mean he has to be occupied with something) he was offered a piece of Kings cake. Now guess who had a plastic King in the piece of cake. So Mr Swiss got another 3 Kings cake free of charge. We ate one yesterday (Mr. Swiss got the plastic king again) and we had the other one today and guess who got the 3rd plastic King again. Yes well sometimes there is more luck than judgement isn't there.

A small tree, but our cats are not to be trusted with anything bigger, otherwise they would probably demolish a tall green tree within a few minutes, or it might come crashing to the ground in the middle of the night. As the family gets older, the presents get smaller, and those few envelopes that are distributed have enough room around this tree - although there were a few other parcels.

We also have something called a Christmas wreath. The four candles represent the four Sundays of Advent, and on the four Sundays before Christmas one candle more is lighted, so the Sunday before Christmas all four are burning. Actually the idea is real fir tree twigs and red candles, but I always was a bit different to the rest. We have plastic twigs and the real ones tend to catch on fire. We often hear the fire engines on their way in Winter putting out a blaze in a house caused by such a wreath. Also I found that blue is a nice colour.

My son also departed today on his way back to Belgium where he works. He was out and about while he was here, meeting his friends, practicing his pool billiard talents and going to parties, although now and again he did eat at home. At the moment when I write he is probably sitting in the plane winging his way back. Just had a telephone call, he is still sitting at the airport as the flight has been delayed.

Oh yes, and before I forget, Mr. X noticed on his way down to the garage today, that the curious sock incident was sort of solved. Some time between 10 yesterday evening and 10 this morning, someone had removed the socks, although I didn't see anyone walking around with two feet in different sizes. Mr. X also pumped up the tyre of the car that was losing air, and it seems to hold, although a visit to the tyre merchants will be made tomorrow. It doesn't seem to be too serious, probably someone drove over a nail in the road. Here is a last glance at our Christmas table.