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A shaky and fun weekend
Oct. 3rd, 2005 11:14 amThe weekend is over and all that's left to do is to unpack the truck. That will be a tad bit more difficult than normal... I caught (timing is everything) a flu that manifested itself on Friday. Friday would be the first day of the demo. Of course. So I stayed home and Arn went out to spend the night. He had so much fun that he asked me to bring his two dumbeks with me on Saturday morning. (After "closing" hours, all the reenactors are camping alone and interacting - it's very nice.) The sneezing, coughing, sinus headache thing was worse on Saturday - bad enough that I really thought hard about bailing. But I'd pressed the Manx Camp a lot in the planning of our presence there and felt I needed to be there. Besides, Aldis was coming and I couldn't miss *her*! So I morosely drank some Thera Flu and in a few minutes, felt better than I had since I caught the thing. I don't know what it is about that product that makes it so much more effective than the same ingredients in pill form, but boy, did it help. I conjecture that it's the fumes and liquid coating the throat as you "take" it. So feeling almost human, I left. The first few hours were grand - talking to friends, showing off everyone's craft work, hanging out (this demo really is very laid back) and eating the food that Neily cooks every year (another story). All grand. Then the Thera Flu ran out and .... urg. I took some other pill thing that had the same ingredients in it - no go. By the end of the demo I was miserable again. Well, physically. Talking with my Sees-ter made it easy to ignore the physical aspects, except in odd moments. So Aldis was treated to the occasional "Hey, wow, my head is so stuffy on the left side that I can't hear myself talk - even from the inside. Weird..." It felt like a dentist had novocained my whole head. It really was weird. But I knew by then it had to be the flu since cold symptoms didn't get that bad that freaking fast. So I was comforted. "This too, shall pass. And fast enough that Crusades won't be threatened."
A whole lotta cool folks came out for Saturday - Aradd, Kevin, Colin, Gorm - others I didn't know as well. I couldn't attack them for hug-greetings (thanks, flubug! rrrrr) but I could watch them have fun fighting. And watch their antics with the visiting children and all of Mungoe's cool boffer weapons/helms/shields. I did, however, miss their women-folk.
Sunday was busier at the demo and very hard - the flu had moved into my chest and I couldn't breathe. But I could hear again! yeah! And I wasn't going through kleenex like they were Diet Pepsi. (Which, btw, I cut back on in favor of water and fruit juice. Ah, sick and low on caffeine. Torture.) Around 12:30, which still feeling a bit defensive about deciding to come back for that day, I saw Arni approach. "Terri, I need you". He had a white and red cloth wrapped around his hand but I didn't need to see that to know it was serious - he never uses that tone of voice except in emergencies. He'd been cutting wood and the axe had rebounded onto his hand. He'd just sharpened the blade. So, thanking the Gods that I'd decided to be there, off we went to the Hospital. The emergency room was practically empty and the few folks there were there for colds and sprained ankles. Arn was whisked in. Eight stitches later, he was coming out. He'd missed bone, knuckle, tendons, everything important. "One more cm, and you'd have been in here for a week after a long surgery," is what the Doc said. We stopped off at the drug store for prescription filling and were back in less than two hours, quick enough to reassure our friends. After public hours, the folks there pitched in and tore down everything that Arn and I had brought, telling both of us to take it easy. Which we acceded to. I was so grateful. By 7:30, we were home. By 8:30, I was in bed.
One of the highlights of the weekend, odd as it seems, came during my stay in the waiting room. I'd brought a packet of Thera Flu with me (along with a thermos of hot water - I wasn't gonna get caught twice!) but the thermos was back at the site and it was time for more meds. I was staring at the coffee dispenser machine and trying to determine which beverage would taste the least disgusting with the medicine when one of the nurses noticed me. I don't know what it was about my stance or look that caused her to ask, but she wanted to know what I was doing. I told her I was trying to decide between 'Vanilla Mocha Cappucino' and 'Coffee, White, with Sugar' as the carrier for my (sob!) apple-cinnamon Thera Flu, there being no "tea" or "water". She took pity on me and brought me a cup of water from the Doctor's lounge. So I don't have a terrifying taste report to give. For which I give thanks!
A whole lotta cool folks came out for Saturday - Aradd, Kevin, Colin, Gorm - others I didn't know as well. I couldn't attack them for hug-greetings (thanks, flubug! rrrrr) but I could watch them have fun fighting. And watch their antics with the visiting children and all of Mungoe's cool boffer weapons/helms/shields. I did, however, miss their women-folk.
Sunday was busier at the demo and very hard - the flu had moved into my chest and I couldn't breathe. But I could hear again! yeah! And I wasn't going through kleenex like they were Diet Pepsi. (Which, btw, I cut back on in favor of water and fruit juice. Ah, sick and low on caffeine. Torture.) Around 12:30, which still feeling a bit defensive about deciding to come back for that day, I saw Arni approach. "Terri, I need you". He had a white and red cloth wrapped around his hand but I didn't need to see that to know it was serious - he never uses that tone of voice except in emergencies. He'd been cutting wood and the axe had rebounded onto his hand. He'd just sharpened the blade. So, thanking the Gods that I'd decided to be there, off we went to the Hospital. The emergency room was practically empty and the few folks there were there for colds and sprained ankles. Arn was whisked in. Eight stitches later, he was coming out. He'd missed bone, knuckle, tendons, everything important. "One more cm, and you'd have been in here for a week after a long surgery," is what the Doc said. We stopped off at the drug store for prescription filling and were back in less than two hours, quick enough to reassure our friends. After public hours, the folks there pitched in and tore down everything that Arn and I had brought, telling both of us to take it easy. Which we acceded to. I was so grateful. By 7:30, we were home. By 8:30, I was in bed.
One of the highlights of the weekend, odd as it seems, came during my stay in the waiting room. I'd brought a packet of Thera Flu with me (along with a thermos of hot water - I wasn't gonna get caught twice!) but the thermos was back at the site and it was time for more meds. I was staring at the coffee dispenser machine and trying to determine which beverage would taste the least disgusting with the medicine when one of the nurses noticed me. I don't know what it was about my stance or look that caused her to ask, but she wanted to know what I was doing. I told her I was trying to decide between 'Vanilla Mocha Cappucino' and 'Coffee, White, with Sugar' as the carrier for my (sob!) apple-cinnamon Thera Flu, there being no "tea" or "water". She took pity on me and brought me a cup of water from the Doctor's lounge. So I don't have a terrifying taste report to give. For which I give thanks!
