Only Three More Weeks

I hate being sick.

I'm not surprise, but I hate being sick.

I have a little cold, which grew from a little cough last week to what seems today to be a full-blown tempest in a teapot.  Coughing, stuffy nose and I'm tired.  Apparently, just in time for Monday.  At least I got all my grading done yesterday! Today I'm glad I made it through teaching my classes; now I'm sitting and drinking mint tea and grading papers.  I walk to work in the mornings and G and I walk home together at night.  This morning was fine, but tonight is going to be impossible. It's still snowing and cold, and while I like that, it's bad for my lungs.  G volunteered to walk home and come pick me up.

****Wait- before I go further, shout out to JOHN in the Academic Resource Commons for reading my blog! Good to see you in the ARC and I look forward to working with you soon.*****

It's been a neat couple of weeks.  For Valentine's day, G got me some chocolates and I got him a vinyl record that he's been wanting.  I waited until Valentine's to get it for him because it's by a group called "My Bloody Valentine".  :-D

We got out of town and headed for Walla Walla for the weekend.  We had restaurant food, went to wine tasting rooms and generally had a good time. I have an astonishingly low tolerance for alcohol these days.  One glass of wine and I can't drive. Two and I'm falling asleep.  We did tastings at 4 tasting rooms and bought a couple of bottles.  After that, I needed a nap. What happened?! I used to be so young!

Oh well, I have more wisdom now- I know not to drink a whole lot and that taxis are not very expensive in Walla Walla.

Lots of cool attractions in Walla Walla.

Anyhoo, we popped over to Dayton on Sunday morning to visit my little family church.  Grey hasn't been there and since that means I hadn't been there in two years, we decided to hop to.  The church has changed since I was last there.  For one thing, there were a ton of people there and it used to be about 1/3 full on a good day. And I was related to just about everyone.  This time, we showed up at 11. I forgot that services start at 10:45. Ah well. We had to sit in the front pew because that was the only space available. There were also more children there, which I like. Except for visitors with children, I was always the youngest one there. Some of the kids got up and sang songs. After church was a soup and salad luncheon and we were invited to go.

The pastor remembered me, and he wandered over during the collection to say hello and meet my husband.  I like him and his wife a whole lot. They've been at the United Brethren Church in Dayton since the early 1990s. That still makes him the new pastor. I remember two pastors before him.  He was very good to my grandparents and took special care with my grandma before she died.

Some things hadn't changed. For one, my Aunt Sarah was there. She'd just had some surgery on her hip and was looking mighty strong. She sort of charges ahead once again, and that's just the way I love my fire-haired aunt.  She's my grandpa's sister, and she's just as stubborn. I loved visiting with her. She and G get along too- not that he's ever not gotten along with people.  It just makes me happy. She bossed us around a bit and told us stories, and re-introduced us to the church.  As it turns out, I'm still related to just about everybody. There is something in me that just wants to help people, so after we ate, I walked around and picked up everybody's plates and refilled coffee. This is the kind of place where they serve homemade pickles and butter on a piece of bread. That's where bread and butter pickles come from, in case you wondered.  There were four homemade soups and probably 10 different types of sandwiches with jello mold desserts and pie and cookies and low sugar options.  Dayton is eventually catching up with the rest of the world.

My Uncle Vernon's chair is still there, in the United Brethren Church, Dayton, Washington

Sarah had G in thrall (she was talking his ear off) and I even had a moment to say hello to my Uncle Vernon's best friend, Morris, and his wife Carol. I like them an awful lot too.  Although, when I saw Carol, I broke out in tears.  I remember how much Grandma loved her and what good friends they were. Once when Carol was sick, Grandma was afraid she wouldn't recover and got a bit teary-eyed herself.  All of this rushed over me as I tried to say polite things.  All that came out was "It's good to see you.  Oh, you remind me of my grandma!" Then I got all sniffy.  She gave me a hug.  I don't know, I'm not much of a cryer, and I certainly don't go around crying in public.  When Pastor Greg came to say goodbye though, I teared up again.  He did too, saying how much my grandparents were loved and how much we miss them.  It was a lovely visit.

My fiery Aunt Sarah. I'm gonna look that good when I'm 90!

Anyway, last week I started feeling a cough coming on, and have had to up my asthma medicine.  This morning and afternoon, it's cough/hack/ick/cough.  I think I'm going to go home and just go to bed. Ride it out. I know what it's from- too much work. I'm overextended, teaching 4 online classes and working for the dean 30 hours a week.

I hate being sick.

Only 3 more weeks, only three more weeks...

Then more adventures!

You can almost see the snow on my hair...