I could feel it coming on for a couple of days. Finally it hit yesterday afternoon and there was no mistaking it. I was sick.
Last night I tossed and turned and didn’t get a restful sleep. Instead I got mini-catnaps which produced a weird blend of reality and dream world. Thanks to my Blockbuster.com membership, the last thing I watched before going to bed was season one of Castle. I remember one brief dream which involved Richard Castle. For some reason, instead of being his romantic counterpart (I could totally be a Beckett), I was his daughter. I’m only two years younger than Nathan Fillion so I’m not even going to try and delve into my subconscious and figure out the interpretation of the dream. I woke briefly and drifted into another restless sleep. This dream involved my intense, irrational fear number two. It was “Can’t get enough of Titanic” on AMC this past weekend and in my dream I found myself on the doomed ocean-liner. Again, not as the romantic lead.
Needless to say, it was a long, long night. Close to the early morning hours, I decided there was no way I was going to make it in to work. Which meant, I’d have to call in sick.
I hate calling in sick. Maybe it’s the way I was raised. If any of my siblings or I missed school by playing the sick card, we were banished to our room for the day. This was in the days before there was a tv in every bedroom. Definitely no wii or even its predecessor the Atari. No computer or anything to entertain us. A treat was when I got to sit out in the basement living room watching tv. We definitely didn’t leave the house when we were sick. People who let their children stay home from school and were spotted at the mall later that day, well, those people just didn’t understand how to raise children.
So, I do not take sick days lightly. There’s always a mental test I perform in my head before making the call. Am I really sick? Would I mind staying in bed all day? Am I just trying to get out of something at work?
If I pass the test, the next hurdle comes along. When should I make the call? Do I call early while my boss is still at home and interrupt her morning? Can I leave a message with the clerical staff in front?
Once the timing of the call is decided, the actual call itself is a problem. I try to use a “sick voice” when I call. One that is hoarse and raspy is best. I plan out exactly what I’m going to say. Too much small talk seems to indicate I’m not actually sick. One that barely makes sense is best. Then I can laugh about it with my boss the next day with a comment like, “I was so sick, I didn’t even know what I was saying.”
After the call is made, I wait for proof I did the right thing. Some kind of symptom that demonstrates I made the right choice. If that symptom never comes, it drags into a long day of second guessing myself. If that symptom does come, then I get to spend the day being sick. Bemoaning my fate and wondering if my number is up because in the history of human suffering no person has ever suffered as much as I do with the flu. Those are the days I actually wish I was at work. Now, that’s the sign of a true sick day.
Chuck (NBC, Mondays). I’m always a little disappointed that this show keeps being renewed because I feel compelled to watch it. The premise would have made an okay two hour movie. But it has now been picked up for a fifth season. The spy plot lines are fun and Zach Levi’s overacting balances Yvonne Strahovski’s underacting. But the forced random plot lines involving the Buy More and especially any storylines with creepers Lester and Jeff just make me cringe. This season’s twist at the end was just plain irritating. I don’t like the fact that Chuck is sans the Intercept and Morgan now has it. I’m not sure if I’ll stick around for another season.
Castle (ABC, Mondays). I came late to this series and I have the first season queued. For weeks I read reviews building excitement for the season finale. It was promised to be a “three-hankie” episode and someone was going to die. I guessed and gossiped about which cast member was expendable with fellow Castle watchers. The week before the final episode, a dead giveaway (sorry, couldn’t help the pun) pointed to the Captain. The night of the finale, I popped popcorn and sat in my chair ready to be entertained. The episode was okay and I didn’t need one single tissue. Castle’s admission to Beckett that he loved her wasn’t that big of a surprise. And so what if Beckett got shot? I’m betting she’s going to live otherwise the series would be ending or Stana Katic is pulling a CharlieSheen, which I really doubt. The only true cliffhanger is, will she remember he said it? My prediction: she will remember but she will lie about it. No cliffhanger to ponder over summer break.
Big Bang Theory (CBS, Thursdays). I watch this show to laugh. It helps that I relate to the social awkwardness of the characters (unfortunately, not to the genius side). It just plugs along having fun not really taking itself too seriously. I’m happy that Jim Parsons won his awards for best actor because I don’t think he’s going to be able to play anything else after this. He has sunk so deep into Sheldon he is not going to be able to get out. So, good for him for winning his awards and getting his money now. This had the biggest twist in the season finales but, like Chuck, the twist bothered me.
The Office (NBC, Thursdays). I actually don’t watch The Office on Thursdays anymore (as you can see, my plate is full this night). When I do watch it, I usually catch it on Hulu. Bravo to Steve Carell for jumping from a stale ship. The Office hasn’t delivered for quite a while and Michael Scott’s shtick was getting annoying. We have to tune in next September to see who is replacing Carell as boss. It’s the closest thing to a cliffhanger in all my shows. The trouble is, I don’t really care.
very month for the past year I’ve shown up at her cutting station with my hair parted on the left. And after every cut, I leave with it parted on the right. So, this week I started thinking maybe she knows something I don’t. After all, she is a professional. A bold move for me, I decided to try and change my rutted ways and I parted my hair on the right. Since my hair is so short I had some spikey parts that I couldn’t get to curl on top of my head. The result? My hairstyle channeled the ‘do of one Ace Ventura. Needless to say, I am parting my hair on the left again.
ipped topping on a piece of pie. And when I was a kid, I loved to eat Cool Whip right off the spoon. But that was when I was a kid weighing less than 100 pounds. Whenever I eat whipped yogurt, my mind struggles to accept the fact that I’m eating something very similar to something I decided I shouldn’t be eating. On the side of the container is a suggestion to “Try it frozen.” I figured that might help me relax and enjoy it. So I tried it frozen yesterday. Not sure how to describe the experience but my tongue did not appreciate so many aspects of it. I will not be trying it again.
ck's days 