I'm back. In town. Among the living. Take your pick.

I could not have possibly self-designed a worse week. Nor such a happy ending to it.

On Tuesday I spent the evening with my sisters. As most of my writing buddies know, I have two younger sisters, and the middle one of us got married on Saturday. (So now you know the happy ending. )

My dear sister's new hubby (to-be then, but not anymore!) took everything out of his house--all his belongings, the old carpet, every appliance, light fixture and doorknob and together, with the help of family, re-did cabinets, paint, tile, carpet, got new appliances, light fixtures, ceiling fans, and yes--even door knobs.

The remodeling phase however will extend well past the wedding, and Tuesday night I went up to help prepare for the carpet and the plantation shutters to be installed the following day. It was just the three of us girls and I can't remember the last time we've done anything together like that, just the three of us sisters. And even though it was cleaning we had a riot. It was such a blessing to be there with them and to share that time. (I just can't help thinking how much easier my housecleaning would go if they were here to entertain me while I did it!)

Anyone who has done any remodeling work will be familiar with the fine white chalky powder that comes from just about every job it seems. By the time we left the air was full of it, and I was coughing--all of us were. I had had problems with allergies all week long--the tree pollen was outrageous (love those buds though!!). I coughed my way home, got in about 11:45 and tried to go to sleep. However, I could not get warm. No matter how many blankets, sweaters, slippers I tried, I kept shivering.

Finally in my dazed and tired state, I realized this was a bad sign. About that time I began to hurt. I didn't know there were so many places in a body that person could hurt. Eventually my head decided to outdo them all. The cough/cold medicine did pretty good on the cough, but nothing--and I do mean absolutely nothing because I tried them ALL over the next 24 hours--would touch the aches. I have to take that back. Hot showers did wonders for the muscles. Not so much good for the head. I also recalled somewhere in there that on Saturday night into Sunday my oldest son had complained of shivers and a headache, and that my dh had come home from working on Monday complaining about working through a day-long bout of nausea and a headache. Okay--a virus. I probably had their virus. But not to worry. This was Tuesday. Well, Wednesday now. And I had till Saturday. That gave me Thursday to be over it and Friday to be at rehearsal and do nothing else but rest and Saturday I'd feel absolutely wonderful.

Ha.

Hubby was kind enough to take our oldest son to work in the morning. My youngest son stayed home and worried about me because we couldn't get a single thermometer in the house to work (our last old-fashioned, always worked, never needed a battery thermometer fell out of the cabinet and into the sink, and well, I miss it!). At 1:45 I managed to get myself together to let the writing group off the hook--I wasn't company worth keeping, even cybercompany--and settle back in to try to........

Pick my son up from work. Dad was on a job site not planning on being back. (Everyone thought I'd be well by now. Most of all me.)

His job is not far from here. But he was supposed to go out to the job site with dad. (Forgot that too) And he was--you guessed it--hungry. My little 10 minute jaunt across town turned into a half-hour ordeal. During which my youngest called me because he was sure I was in a ditch somewhere it was taking so long. I finally got myself home, and I have to tell you, that walk from the car to the door of my house has never, ever been so endless.

Guess what--within another 15 minutes or so--maybe a half hour at the most--father and son stroll through the door wondering where dinner is. They almost got shot, the turkeys! (Turned out they ran out of material at the job site and there wouldn't be more delivered for the next two hours.)

About this time I began being very sick to my stomach and the fever took over. I can tell when I have a fever because my mind starts going off in all kinds of directions. I could write good thrillers and science fiction under the influence of a fever, let me tell you. I wanted very badly to tape everyone's mouth closed, smash every TV and radio in the house, and declare a mandatory black out for the entire community. In the end all I could actually do was shiver and try to focus if someone was talking to me. And take cold medicine. And pray. Incessantly. It would be one thing if I was just a spectator in this wedding business, but no....

Thursday I woke up feeling pretty darn good. Over it. Yay. Got some laundry done. Picked my son up from work in the afternoon and he had some shopping to do--I wasn't quite up to wandering WalMart so I let him go in and get his stuff and a thermometer.

I know it's because I bought that thermometer that when I got home, I started getting the shivers again. Mind you all this time I still have a cough that when it hits just doubles me over. It's the kind of hacking jag that makes you wonder if you'll ever start breathing naturally again or if you'll just die coughing. So I'm taking daytime cough/cold gel caps for this because you know--this is the last day of laundry, etc. that I do before the rehearsal tomorrow and the wedding the day after that. Well, I wasn't able to cook dinner that night either. I checked my temp with my new thermometer--after already taking the cold medicine--and it sat at 102.8. I nearly broke the new thermometer. I was so mad. I could not believe this was happening. I don't get sick that often and I generally do shake it fast. But of course not when I really need to.

But Thursday night I got a decent night's sleep sitting up in my recliner. This after people grinched about dinner and the state of the house. I don't know if they thought I was faking or what, but I simply didn't have the energy to even send out the troops on their duties. If they couldn't see that it needed doing and do it, well it didn't get done. Have to say that my dear son did get pizza for he and his brother to eat. Dad worked late--grueling work but they provided dinner--and upon arriving home probably didn't feel a whole lot better than I did simply due to the physical exertion he'd put into the day. So it was easy to overlook his less-than-kind comments. Actually I slept through most of them. :)

Friday morning was rehearsal. My oldest got the day off work and drove us up there--my sis is about 1 1/2 hours away from my house. Yay! Rehearsal went fine. I felt fine. Outside of the cough. Which was quelled in most circumstances by cough drops. (I have grown to hate Fruit Breezers of any flavor!) We went to a great little Mexican place for lunch where everything tasted the same to me, and I really started winding down energy-wise. My oldest stayed there with friends and I drove back home with my youngest there to cheer me on. We got home about 3:00 and I had plans. Cough, cough. Drop off library books, stop by a car wash and wash the car, replenish my cough/cold capsule supply, (cough, cough, cough, cough, cough) run a load or two of laundry, get the living room and kitchen back in order, and not have a mess (cough) to come (cough) home to after (cough) the wedding. (cough, cough, cough, cough, cough) Wanna know how much I got done? (COUGH) Ouch! Pulled a muscle. In my shoulder. Every time I try to breathe deep it feels like someone is stabbing me below the shoulder blade. Panic. I tell you nothing makes me panic like not being able to breathe.

My son--the youngest and the worrier--is ready to dial 911. I talked him into letting me take a shower and see if I could ease things up a bit first. And I did. Once I got myself relaxed the pain began to lessen and so I decided h-e-double toothpicks with everything else, I was sitting in my recliner until I had to get out of it to head up for the wedding. If I could make the wedding. I was seriously beginning to wonder how I would break the news to my sister that I didn't want to drown out the "I dos" with my "cough, coughs."

Hubby was not a happy camper when he came home that evening. He went to bed mad. I wasn't even sure he was going to the wedding if I could make it. He'd had enough of no supper and a "filthy" house.

How could things get any worse?

This way: the cough medicine quits working altogether. The only thing that stops the cough is an endless stream of cough drops (now you understand why I'm not loving Fruit Breezers at the moment) and then for only as long as the cough drops last. I keep drifting off--sitting upright--with continual repetition in my brain of my mother's dire warnings about choking on candy if you fell asleep with it. (Fever's back). I not-so-kindly explained to Fever that at the moment I didn't care if I died. It was an excuse everyone would understand for not being at the wedding less than 24 hours in the future.

But contrary to Ma's predictions every thirty minutes or so I did wake up--and woke the house up--because I'm on another coughing jag. I'd wander the house and pick up a bit, fix some tea--by this time I'm living on green or green and white tea because everything else tastes like cardboard. I'm beginning to wish that I had a good excuse other than death for tomorrow. Something along the lines of--Carolyn has double pnemonia and the doctor wouldn't hear of her going anywhere but the hospital. (Then I'd think about the hospital bill and cancel that wish and pray that I please don't have to mess up my sister's special day. Not when she's had to go through so much to get there.)

I fell asleep at 4 AM and slept till 6 AM, and then because I seemed to do better upright than sitting or reclining, I finished cleaning my house. In little five-minute increments I'd assign myself a job, set the timer and go to it. And do you know that I managed to get my kitchen and living room to a point that I would have invited anyone in the door?

About 7 my dh woke up and I told him the good news first--no fever, and then he held me while I sobbed. I bawled that the medication wasn't working anymore, that I was so tired, and I didn't dare take anything new or different that might make me the least bit drowsy with a 1 1/2 hour drive ahead. (I had to be there at 10; the wedding wasn't till 3, so hubby and youngest were coming later). My husband went to Walgreens and talked with the pharmacist there and came home with a recommended 12-hour cough medicine, guaranteed non-drowsy. He administered the dosage, sent me off for a shower, and I felt tons better when I was ready to leave, but it was taking that medicine a while to kick in and the coughing was just wearing me thin--patience-wise and about every other -wise you can imagine. But I just kept telling myself "one foot in front of the other until you can't anymore, then take another step."

My youngest sacrificed big time--he went with me to make sure I wouldn't get sleepy driving--and then kept himself occupied through an 11 - 1 PM hair-do and make-up session for the bridesmaids. At least all this was going on at the home of friends who had a little black and tan dog named Bella who loved him, and he found some pretty remarkable figure skating on TV. He did such a good job and was just so eager and happy that he could help me. I think he even got some good before and after pictures that my sister will end up cherishing. I love him so.

After many prayers and many tears, I was there--dressed, alert, not coughing--looking amazingly well for the week I'd had, if I do say so myself. The wedding was absolutely gorgeous. So perfect in so many ways. You know, I never coughed once through the entire wedding talk and ceremony! It wasn't till it was over and they began taking pictures that I started in again, and I fished out the old daytime cough/cold medicine I had in my purse. And it worked this time. I am so grateful--so very, very grateful--for answered prayers and that I didn't have to miss a minute of her special day. It did my heart good to see her so happy.

And so here I am on a Sunday evening, looking at a surf and turf dinner that I want to have with my little family here. All of them came through for me at one time or another during the weekend. Yes, we all fell short in spots as well. But you know, if faults were all He looked for, who could stand? I live with three amazing people and I am very blessed, and I hope 20 years down the road, my dear sister finds herself saying the very same thing.