All day yesterday, I felt like I had a lump of ick stuck in my throat and I kept coughing, trying to get something to come up. As the night went on, it almost felt like I was coming down with something, but it was only in my throat and upper chest. Then it dawned on me... ALLERGIES!
Oh I do hate this time of year because of allergies. I don't get the "itchy eyes, runny nose, sneezing" allergies. I get the "something is in my throat" allergies and it gets REALLY annoying really quickly. My throat feel sort of scratchy and I'm coughing a lot. This is just great because I'm a waitress and I'm handling food and drinks all day. Now, when I approach a table, I have to say, "Hi! My name is Joan! I don't have a cold, these are allergies! I swear! Our soup today is..." I'm taking Claritin every 12 hours instead of 24 to try to get the meds to do their job. In the meantime, I have a bit of medicine head which would be cool if I could just sit here and zone for the next 2 months. But that ain't happening.
Two years ago, I thought I had the flu. I had coughing, swollen glands, chills, body aches, fever, and I was miserable. I lost 3 days of work and finally broke down and went to the doctor (hey! I'm a mom! We take our kids to the doctor and self-medicate ourselves unless we're dying) The doctor says, "You know, I don't think this is the flu. I think it's allergies. Take Claritin and of this doesn't help call me back." So I do what the doctor ordered. Within 3 hours, my fever was gone, my chills were gone, my voice came back, my glands receded. I felt like a new woman! And I was pissed that I lost 3 days of wages because I thought I had the flu!
The real fun will begin when I lose my voice because I always do. It's a rule. I'll lose my voice for a week. The first time it happened, I made up an index card that read:
HI!! MY NAME IS JOAN!
I HAVE LARYNGITIS!
THE SOUP TODAY IS NEW ENGLAND CLAM CHOWDER!
WE ALSO HAVE FRIENCH ONION
AND BROCCOLI CHEDDAR.
OUR DRINK SPECIAL IS
ULTIMATE LONG ISLAND ICED TEA!
My guests got a kick out of it, and I got good sympathy tips! The hardest part was trying to get a cook's attention if no one else was in the kitchen to talk for me.
My kids think it's great when I lose my voice, especially if they piss me off and my voice gets really high-pitched and squeaky. The brats.
I guess I better get my index card ready. cough cough! cough cough!
Update: I really really feel like crap! My ribs hurt from coughing, my chest is tight. I'm getting a headache from all the coughing too. I just switched over to Advil Allergy Sinus. If I don't see or feel a change, I'm calling the doc tomorrow. God, I hate this!
9 comments:
Sympathy Tips!! You're a genius!! I think you should work that index card into your regular waitstaff repertoire.
You crack me up, sistah.
I know what you mean Joanie, it started here two weeks ago. All I have to do is step outside. My black car is now funky green.
However I am putting my flowers in the ground now. I am over watering the pots everyday. I hope we have no more freezes or I will be in trouble.
I've been suffering with those darn coughing attacks but I dont have a cold....grrrr they make me nuts!!!!
The closest I got to losing my voice was when I lost my falsetto one year in college. I thought it was the weirdest thing in that I could scream and nothing came out. I feel for you. Get well soon.
Oh! I'll take the french onion, please!
I used to do Claritin and it never did much to help... so I switched to Zyrtec as soon as it went over the counter and it helps a zillion times more.
zyrtec makes me loopier than I already am naturally!
Lemons are good for the throat ; -)
I've got something for you at my blog.
Aw, John's throat is on fire. He's constantly complaining about it to the point where I suggested maybe being quiet and not complaining about it would help him heal faster. He didn't think it was funny. Weird. I was being serious.
Awwwwwwww feel better!
...bless you in advance.....
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