Ever so ill all this morning...

"While well, and happy, and properly attended to, she had great good humour and excellent spirits; but any indisposition sunk her completely.... She was now lying on the faded sofa of the pretty little drawing room, the once elegant furniture of which had been gradually been growing shabby, under the influence of [forty] summers and two children [and two pets and several grandchildren]; and on Anne's appearing, greeted her with, 'So, you are come at last!... I am so ill I can hardly speak...'
'I am sorry to find you unwell,' replied Anne. 'You sent me such a good account of yourself on Thursday!'
'Yes, I made the best of it; I always do; but I was very far from well at the time; and I do not think I ever was so ill in my life as I have been all this morning: very unfit to be left alone, I am sure. Suppose I were to be seized of a sudden in some dreadful way, and not able to ring the bell!' "

I began coming down with this dreadful cold over the weekend, and it just keeps getting worse! My nose is red and sore, and I am quite in sympathy with poor misunderstood Mary, from Persuasion, by Jane Austen.

I don't know where this dread disease came from, but my son and his family had quite a long bout of it recently. Although they live across on the complete other side of the Rocky Mountains from us, we speak often on the phone, and I am beginning to suspect those dratted cell phones of being able to send more than just sound. What do we know about cell phones? Beware!

I had begun a painting, but I can't paint while holding a tissue to my sore nose.

I have begun a tapestry, but I can't make good color choices with swollen red tired eyes... I need that slow-talking guy from the TV commercial to come and 'get the red out' for me.

I had a scheduled meeting with a potential commission client but I had to cancel it. Rule number one for professional people: Do not infect with life-threatening diseases those who may someday pay you to work for them .

I was supposed to go yesterday to observe at an Alzheimer's Art session, as I am considering taking on some volunteer time there. I had to beg off, as I also didn't want to pass this on to people who would surely suffer from it even more than I am suffering (is that possible?).

I am sipping tea with lemon and honey, hacking and coughing, using up a hoard of tissues, watching old taped Masterpiece Theater productions, and reading Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad, wishing I was just seasick with him as he traveled Europe in a ship. I'm sure I will survive this to weave and paint again. But, oh, I wish I was well enough to ring the bell, and then, that ringing the bell would produce someone to make me my tea and sympathize with me! Dumb old Mary didn't know how good she had it!