Having the flu is not fun

It all started on Friday morning, pretty much from the time I woke up. 

I felt like an abhorrently large amount of crap. At first, I thought it was just allergies. (Later research on the allergy scene further enhanced that belief when it was revealed there were "Very High" amounts of elm and juniper in the air. Obviously not what the real case was now, but I'm sure it still didn't help. Curse you, elm and juniper.)

I tried to fight through it by surviving off the generic, weirdly titled medicines they keep in the emergency cabinets at my work place. These pills have odd titles like "Certisinus", or "Absofreakinglutelycoughmedicine"and junk. 

None of that helped. 

Right about noon Saturday was when things really begun to take a turn for the worse. I could tell I was running a slight fever, but as the day progressed it really begun to turn on the afterburners. By 5:00 PM, I was done. Tank emptied. Nothing left. 

Got home and decided to take my temperature. 

102.4

Uh, problem. 

After alerting Mel of the situation, I made an appointment at the local CareNow and got myself looked at. My temperature had actually gone UP since I had first taken it when I got home - 102.6. The doctor informed me that adult human beings should be "severely concerned about their health" when their temperature gets that high. 

Big problem. 

The first red flag came when my ear was examined. Right ear checked out fine, no problem. Left ear, different story. Ear infection. DING! 

Then came the flu test. After a quick ramming of a giant cotton swab up my nasal cavatiy, the verdict was in: The dreaded and feared influenza. 

(Quick sidenote: If CareNow's mission statement is to make you feel as worse as you possibly can BEFORE they begin treatment to make you feel better, they succeeded. Not only was I there around two hours, at one point I began to wonder if I was being detained for questioning in a room where the air temperature was 60, and I was already freezing my hindquarters off since I had a ridiculously high fever. On top of all that, on the television in my examination room: The Hannah Montana Movie. Why?)

CareNow is also apparently very selective in giving their patients the option of feeling better sooner rather than later. I was posed this exact question and immediately took the "sooner" option, which consisted of two shots, one in each hip. Then after a approximately 10 minute waiting period in which my nurse waited to see if I would have any kind of reaction to the drugs (which may or may not have included turning into an ice cube, which didn't happen thank you very much) I was off to the nearest 24 hour pharmacy to load up on an arsenal of flu medicine. 

Flash forward to today and the road to recovery. I feel much better than I did yesterday, and hopefully tomorrow will be another big improvement. I have given Mel permission to evacuate the premises for the time being. I miss when she's not here, but would honestly feel a whole heck of a lot worse if she caught this as a result of staying here. 

I've already devoured one bowl of chicken noodle soup and I'm on my third bottle of Gatorade, who incidentally is the global partner of the National Basketball Association. So be sure to watch all the action of NBA All-Star Saturday Night, live from Los Angeles tonight on TNT. 

(See that little bit of cross promotion that I did there??)

Thanks for the concern and well-wishes from everybody. 

Suck it, flu. 

The Thing About Michael Bryan Young.....

there is no organization whatsoever to the next few paragraphs--Just a few jumbled ramblings of a zealous Ranger fan trying to fake sense of the last couple of days....


It's been a sucky couple of days for the fans of #2/#10. Only a few will remember the days he wore #2 back in 2001 and then unselfishly gave the number to Carl Everett before the start of the 2002 season. The first in a long line of unselfish things this guy has done for the franchise. (Sidenote: in 2002 Carl Everett was paid $8,666,666 - if we want to talk about being overpaid.....but that's another blog)


Do I think Michael B is unhappy? Yes.
Do I think Michael B deserves to be pissed off? Yes.
Do I think this team is better without him? @#*!!*@$**@## NO



While I don't deny that #10 is probably overpaid, how much would you be willing to pay for team chemistry? How much would you pay for leadership in the clubhouse? How much would you pay for humility and character? In baseball terms, is $10 million a year worth that? Because even if he does get traded, rumblings are that we would have to eat at least a good $5-$6 million yearly chunk of his remaining $48 mil.

And yes, I said we. It's no secret that I get emotionally attached to this team. I admit it, but I don't apologize for it. It's the type of attachment and fandom that front offices crave. Granted, the $700 they get from John and I each year doesn't cover the cost of the toilet paper in the clubhouse - but it's an intangible quality of being able to relate to the team as "your own."



Less than 4 weeks from now John and I will be on our way to Surprise, AZ. I do not want to have to leave my #10 tshirts at home.

LIVE BLOG: Super Bowl XLV from our living room

When Arlington was announced as the host for Super Bowl XLV, we knew we wouldn't be going anywhere that day. All it takes is one left turn at a stop light from our house and we would likely be engulfed in a sea of football traffic and crazy Steeler and Packer fans. So, we've barricaded ourselves in the house, and since we're not going anywhere today, I've decided to live blog the events of today's big game from the living room couch.

10:35 AM - Already at my post for the day, complete with sweatpants and sweatshirt. Fire is already fully operational with plenty of logs to go. Fridge is loaded up with Diet Coke. All that we're missing now is an ice storm.

10:40 AM - My plan for the day has already failed me when I realized the login and password combination my friend Robert gave me to listen to Liverpool matches online is no longer working. Not sure if it's expired or what. I'm going to have to catch the replay tomorrow Fox Soccer Channel is not a high priority at the Vittas house. Struggling.

10:51 AM - The official FOX Super Bowl pregame show starts at 1:00 PM. The Super Bowl starts at 5:25. Never ceases to amaze me.

11:03 AM - I just looked at the clock and realized what a daunting task this is I have started.

11:32 AM - Trying to follow a sporting event along via Twitter is not the easiest of things a person can do. LFC is up 1-0 though over hated Chelsea, and Torres failed miserably in his debut. So that's a plus.

12:01 PM - I'm about one and one half hours into this Super Bowl coverage basically being used as background noise while I blog/read the W book. Pretty tell-tale sign to see how far we've fallen as a nation in a whole when an interview between Obama and Bill O'Reilly is promoted to take place during FOX's big four hour long Super Bowl pregame show extravaganza along with a couple of performances by Keith Urban and Maroon 5. Really? What about a sit-down conversation between Joe Biden and the FOX robot while we're at it?

12:02 PM - It's all over at Stamford Bridge: LFC 1 - Chelsea 0. I should just end things here.

1:00 PM - Well, we've cleared at least one hurdle - the actual pregame show has begun. FOX has a pretty spiffy looking set up outside of the stadium (no doubt the most sun-filled side).

This red carpet crap is going to get real annoying real quick however, I can already tell.

1:40 PM - So, I'm not what you would call "savvy" on the entertainment scene, but I have a couple of questions.

1. Who the heck is Olivia Munn?

2. Why do we even care what she thinks about Dallas? (Language warning)

1:44 PM - Olivia Munn is apparently a correspondent on The Daily Show. Good for her.

She's also been in a few movies according to Wikipedia, beginning with the 2004 film "Scarecrow Gone Wild" where she played the illustrious role of "Girl #1. One year later, she starred as "Asian Mob Girl" in the memorable film "The Road To Canyon Lake".

She's also made the late night talk show rounds a bunch of times.

I'm looking to land the role of "Greek Mob Boy" in any upcoming films to validate my Twitter account, so if you know of any let me know.

2:00 - You know what would be awesome? If the Red Carpet was covered in an avalanche of snow falling off the roof of the DeathStar. That would be awesome.

2:06 PM - The Puppy Bowl has commenced on Animal Planet. Now we're talking.

2:53 PM - Is it me, or did Harrison Ford seem like he had been enjoying a few adult beverages before getting to the stadium? Boy, these Red Carpet interviews are so struggling.

3:03 PM - So Mel just suggested that I look to see if there are any Plaza tickets left for the game. A quick check on StubHub reveals there are none available.

There are however 40 actual game tickets left. You can own one of 3 available tickets in the Premium Club level if you act right now. It will only run you approximately $12,779.00. That is per seat.

I don't think I am worth that much money.

3:16 PM - The Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston throwing a pass to Micheal Strahan bit was the high point of the Red Carpet stuff so far today.

3:40 PM - They just did a segment with the E*Trade baby. FOX sports is now dead to me. And to think there's still an hour and a half to go of this crap.

4:02 PM - Obama has spoken. Double Dave's has been ordered. I'm more excited about the latter.

4:14 PM - Hey, these guys are actually talking sports again!!

4:23 PM - I just took the dogs out for the first time since this morning, and while there is a little heavier traffic flow than you would see on a typical Sunday, surprisingly enough there were no hoards of football fans marching up and down the street and the air is not filled with zeppelins and planes trailing banners behind them.

OH GOD, WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING FOR THE LAST SIX HOURS??????

4:46 PM - In my opinion, about the only funny halfway tolerable thing that Frank Caliendo does is his Charles Barkley impression.

4:54 PM - Terry Bradshaw just said that he thought Ben would pull this one out.

I really should stop now.

5:24 PM - Christina Aguilera messed up the words to the National Anthem, and we're off to a rip-roaring start.

5:29 PM - Good job, Michael Douglas. That was pretty sportsy.

5:36 PM - Steelers win the opening toss and immediately go three and out. Green Bay punt returner did about as good a job receiving the punt as Christina Aguilera did singing.

5:43 PM - First round of Super Bowl commercials. The Audi one was definitely the most inventive. And was that Captain Harris from the Police Academy movies I saw?

5:59 PM - Dinner has arrived.

6:02 PM - Speaking of food, I hope A-Rod chokes on that popcorn Cameron Diaz was feeding him a little bit ago.

6:04 PM - Jordy "La Forge" Nelson gets Green Bay on the board.

6:18 PM - Ben R. is favoring his leg. Things are not looking good for the Steelers. It's still holding up better than Evgeni Malkin's leg is right now though.

6:36 PM - A fun Super Bowl fact currently being tweeted around: The largest Super Bowl deficit ever to be overcome is 10 (Super Bowls 22 and 44). Steelers were down by 14.

6:42 PM - Super 8: If it's J.J. Abrams, I'm interested.

6:50 PM - Really, Chevy Cruze? Facebook in your car? Safe much?

6:58 PM - At the rate that we're at, the Packers will have no players left on defense by the end of the 3rd quarter.

7:13 PM - It's time for the halftime show, and hey look, there's Slash. Also I wonder how many AA batteries it took to light up all of the Black Eyed Peas's costumes?

7:22 PM - Well, that was crazy-ass.

7:32 PM - In other news, it is currently raining and 43 degrees outside. Those $300 tickets to sit outside and watch the game on a giant television seem like a bargain right now.

7:42 PM - Touchdown, Steelers. 21-17. We've got a ballgame here, folks.

7:51 PM - They're short, and there's not really much to them, but I think I've liked these Groupon.com commercials most of all.

8:00 PM - Shaun Suisham may have just tied a record for the worst field goal atempt ever.

8:14 PM - I can't believe I've really been doing this since 10:30 this morning. What's the matter with me?

8:23 PM - Brilliant decision by Mike Tomlin to have the Packers re-kick on that last penalty. First kick = 70 yards. Re-kick = a much more human 45 yards. Good job, sports man.

8:33 PM - Packers TD puts them up by 11. Also, I think I'm interested in seeing Rango.

8:44 PM - Touchdown Steelers. What a throw, what a catch. This is a pretty exciting game we've got going on.

8:53 PM - Under 4:00 left in this one. Nothing less than a touchdown will do for the Packers.

8:59 PM - Ben Roethlisberger may very well lock up a trip to the Hall Of Fame with this next possession by the Steelers. It depends on what they do.

9:04 PM - 4th down - and here's your ballgame.

9:05 PM - Ballgame.

9:10 PM - Congratulations, Packers fans. They'll be partying out on Collins Street tonight.

Pitchers and catchers report in 10 days.

Winter, Texas style

So unless you've been..

A. In a cave

B. Underwater

or

C. In a cave somewhere underwater ...you've noticed the entire country has had some pretty crazy winter weather this week.

Texas, as you may know, has been no different. It's basically been transformed into the Yukon Territory for the past week. All that's been missing are lumberjacks, a dog sled team, and a little wooden hut with a hole cut into the ground to go ice fishing through.

While the latest round of snowfall was busy covering the landscape on Friday morning, I venture out for a little exploratory amateur video-making fun.

The link below is the result.

Hope you'll enjoy.

My New Year's Resolution - One Month In

My number one resolution of the year was to cook more.  The husband has relegated to ranking my cooking by assigning a pitcher to it--not necessarily Ranger exclusive, but on this list they all are.  Some of my trysts and their corresponding recipe and baseball player:

4. WW Chicken Pot Pie Darren O'Day

3.  Pioneer Woman's Enchiladas Neftali Feliz

  

2.  WW Crock Pot Lasagna  Christopher John Wilson

    

1.  Reata's The Best Damn Mac and Cheese Ever (and yes, it is) Clifton Phifer Lee



Snow day

I awoke this morning to the sound of a howling wind and sleet/snow/rain/freezing rain/crap pounding against the window pane. Not good.

Did I go back to sleep? No. I got dressed and went to work.

The drive in wasn't all that bad. Slow goings for sure with some definite patches of ice here and there, but nobody else was on the road at that hour and it wasn't a big deal.

Then we decided to call it a quick day and headed home through the frozen, barren wasteland that somewhat resembled the D/FW metroplex at around 10 o'clock this morning.

It was treacherous to say the least. Sometimes, the local media unnecessarily plays up winter weather events such as today's because weather = ratings. Today was not one of those cases. It was really pretty icy out there.

Thankfully I managed to tailgate behind a couple sand trucks in the process of doing their business and made it home unscathed. I do not like driving on ice.

Not really because I don't trust myself driving on the ice but I think other people are complete morons on the frozen stuff. On the way home I saw more than a few large trucks blow by me coming down I-30.

People, SLOW DOWN.

The other bad part of this weather is going to be the cold. It already feels like the Yukon Territory out there and is easily the coldest weather I have ever been in.

On a side note, I love flannel.