Argh!

The womanchild started complaining on Wednesday that she was tired. I expect teenagers to be tired, especially when they run non-stop like she does, so I just told her to go to bed. Thursday, she woke pale and sweaty and asked to stay home from school. A little fever was the deciding factor. Since we gave up cable a couple of months ago, I took her to her grandmother's where she could nap and channel surf all day. Her muscles have been cramping, knotted and tight. The poor kid is aching from head to toe. Today the fever was higher, and I took her to the doctor. The kid knows how to do things up well. She has an ear infection in both ears, strep throat and bronchitis. I think any one of these would have sufficed.

I was supposed to get my car from the mechanic's today but got a call around 4:30. Two weeks ago, he replaced the water pump and thermostat. Today he finished the intake gasket, but the pressure was still going too high. The head gasket does have to be replaced, and there may be more work involved. I'm already down $600, but I was really hoping to get two more years from the car. The car is eight years old, and the odometer just hit 100,000. I got it used when it was four years old and only had 16,000 miles on it. It's served me well, but still. The car looks okay, and up until the last couple of weeks, it's never needed more than routine maintenance.

I think the daughter and the car may be conspiring, and my throat has started hurting. I'm going to be stuck in the house all weekend. That's not that bad, but the idea of not being able to go anywhere if I feel like it makes it feel claustrophobic and oppressive. Life in a small town means complete dependence on your car. There is no public transportation. The only taxi in town closed earlier this year when the owner retired. You may be able to drive through my town in just a few minutes, but walking to the grocery store is still a three mile trek. I know it's not much in the big perspective, but it's still more than I can handle.

This is just the latest round of fun things lately. I'm getting very tired myself, and pulling the sheet over my head is beginning to look a lot more appealing. It's not an option though, and I just have to find a way through the mess with my sense of humor intact. I'm not worried about the sanity. It's highly overvalued in the first place, and losing it may be a present in disguise.

illness, cars, sanity