Articles and Features
The Flu Bug
Week of December 7, 1997
It is winter here in the Northern Hemisphere and with the colder temperatures, we
humans tend to pass around germs. I, too, have succumbed to the virus. Suddenly,
I am obsessed with my mucous levels and the decibels of my coughing. The house has
given way to clutter and neglect and I have scavenged our bare cupboards for Ramen
noodles and soup because we are too weak to shop for anything more than the immediate
meal and more decongestant. Additionally, I have lost my voice, which is a curse to
my ego. It has become obvious that I'm not getting noticed anymore. Little did I
know that the measure of my power was based on the loudness of my voice.
Below are the few quotes I was willing to dig up about sickness in my weakened state.
May you survive this winter without dealing with these woes.
Introduction and quote compilation by Laura S. Moncur, Staff Writer.
- "There's a flu bug getting passed around, and it's spreading like fire
through the town. There's a virus holding up inside us. Everyone that I know
is coming down."
- Squirrel Nut Zippers, 'La Grippe', The Inevitable, 1995
- "It is only when the rich are sick that they fully feel the impotence of wealth."
- Caleb C. Colton
- "Refuse to be ill. Never tell people you are ill; never own it to yourself.
Illness is one of those things which a man should resist on principle."
- Edward George Bulwer-Lytton
- "I reckon being ill as one of the great pleasures of life, provided one is
not too ill and is not obliged to work till one is better."
- Samuel Butler, The Way of the Flesh, 1903
- "Sickness comes on horseback and departs on foot."
- Dutch Proverb
- "We forget ourselves and our destinies in health, and the chief use of
temporary sickness is to remind us of these concerns."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Journals, 1821
- "Show him death, and he'll be content with fever."
- Persian Proverb
- "A cough is something that you yourself can't help, but everybody else
does on purpose just to torment you."
- Ogden Nash, You Can't Get There From Here, 1957
For more information about Wintertime Illnesses, try these links:
- Flu Season Advice
from the IE Health Home Page - From Vitamin C to Chicken Soup, they give you advice
on how to feel better.
- The following book is available through Amazon.com:
- Patient Information Sheet: Influenza (Flu)
Clinical advice for the flu from Parker A. Small, Jr., M.D. and Bradley S. Bender, M.D., University of Florida.
Sound advice from real doctors; listen up!
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