I’m still not feeling 100%, but today I felt like I might be able to concentrate on something, so I came to work. (Plus, timesheets were due and if you’re out more than three days in a row, they want a doctor’s note — I don’t need to shell out a $15 copay to be told that I caught a bug and will be better in a few more days.)

Illness did not stop me from seeing Butterstick, as I’m sure some of you feared it might. It just kept me from being able to concentrate long enough to post photos. Maybe tonight after work. More likely tomorrow.

It also did not stop me from going to a chili cook-off (which the host’s mother won) Rudi was participating in. People seemed surprised that a bean-free, meat-free chili was a) good and b) spicy. Clearly a carnivorous crowd…

Pretty much the illness just made me feel tired and grumpy and congested. There was nothing especially wrong with me (except the need to trail tissues behind me wherever I went), but as I wasn’t sleeping well I wasn’t terribly useful and hung around in a malaise for four days.

It also slowed my knitting progress. Knitting four rows at a time seemed like a huge accomplishment, but two Christmas projects are within sight of being finished (especially now that I have the rest of the yarn necessary to finishing Christmas project #1).

Christmas cards also suffered. Luckily, most people I know have last names congregated at the beginning of the alphabet. Unfortunately, that means if your name starts with a letter after “D,” your card will probably be a few more days.

What has suffered most, of course, is Christmas shopping. When you don’t have any interest in even your most favorite activities (I didn’t pick up the novel I’m reading the whole four days I was home) and your head is filled with goo, it’s hard to convince yourself that it really is necessary to go out to the stores or sit in front of the computer and get some presents purchased. I did manage to get some done last night, so I’m hoping I’ll ramp back up to speed on that front shortly.

In the meantime, I’ll be the one hopped up on store-brand Sudafed severe cold formula (apparently people only buy name-brand drugs to turn into crystal meth…), which allows me to function in a somewhat normal (for me) fashion.