Colds. What’s the point in them? There is no vaccine for the common cold. Why not? Fine. I’m not expecting an answer. The best way of escaping the common cold[1] is to stay away from sick people. Trouble is, you and I will not know who the sick people are unless they make a fuss about it.
Then there’s the tendency to look upon the person suffering the cold and thinking, they are more susceptible than me, so I’ll be all right. That works until that nonsense turns out to be pure fiction. A day or two goes by. Everything seems fine. Then wham, bang, wallop. The virus gets its teeth stuck into every part of the body. Eyes and ears stream, limbs ache and drowsiness takes hold.
How can I say anything new about this common affliction? It’s a universal human experience. Well, I assume it’s universal. Could there be people who never suffer the common cold? That live such healthy lives in splendid isolation and contentment. Probably few.
The common cold is a dam nuisance. It stopped me going to the local pantomime last night. There was no way that I was going to sit in an auditorium and share my ill got gain or suffer the indignity of sniffling all the way through a performance.
Containment was the only strategy. Sleep as much as possible. Let my immune system do its best to destroy the invader. Sink into the discomfort and know that it never lasts for more than a couple of days. The pharmaceutical companies must love this time of year. Supermarket shelves stuffed with remedies. Not so much remedies as sources of momentary relief.
When will we get the cold winter weather that’s normal at this time of year? If there’s truth in the old wife’s tale that the cold kills off the bugs, I’d welcome a week below freezing. It’s a lyrical little pun but this one is difficult to get out of my head:
It’s not the cough that’ll carry you off.
It’s the coffin they’ll carry you off in.
Naturally, I hope present coughs and sneezes are a passing inconvenience. “Coughs and sneezes spread diseases” so the slogan goes. For people with a long-term illness or weakened immune system these inconveniences can be risky.
Debilitating it maybe one of the irritations of the common cold, at least for me, is the wasted time. So, many jobs to do but no way of doing them without making the situation worse. I look forward to the reward of feeling better.
Christmas festivities behind us the New Year beckons. This year to step into the first day of January may be a muted one. Certainly, I have no desire for any alcoholic beverages.
Sue said to me: you must not go to bed before midnight. I said: I which part of the world?
[1] https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/common-cold/
John Vincent 