I have a bad feeling about this.

Of course nobody likes being sick. However, people handle sickness with varying amounts of dignity. Some suffer quietly and wait patiently for the illness to pass while others complain loudly in an effort to make those around them as miserable as they are. I fall into the latter category. According to my mother, of her three children I am the worst at handling affliction. Evidently I am a natural moaner. When something ails me I can't help but let out a low audible moan to convey my discomfort to whoever is within earshot. Not that this is exactly new information to me, I have always known that I have a low tolerance for pain/cold/itches/you-name-it.

Monday night went very similarly to most other nights. A little reading, a little lesson planning, and a mild change in routine where I ate some packaged noodles at the apartment instead of going out for dinner. No big deal right? I certainly thought so. I won't go into details here but lets just say I awoke during the night with a few violent reactions directly related with something (I swear it must've been those noodles!) I ate. It was a most unpleasant night of many short episodes of sleep so rudely interrupted and to top it off with an ill-timed power outage which only served to darken an already calamitous evening.

The past few days have been spent recovering fluids and attempting to eat foods that seemed entirely undesirable at the time. Throughout this experience my Chinese friends have been extremely helpful, maybe a little too helpful. In order to cancel a class I needed to let a fellow teacher know of my condition so she could pass it on to the students. This simple gesture had an avalanche effect as soon I was receiving numerous calls expressing serious concern over my status and offering help in any way possible. These expressions of aid were not only shown through calls but also through abundant text messages and surprise visits to my apartment. To be perfectly honest, there are many other times when I would have welcomed visits and calls far more amicably. I found myself annoyed at these intrusions but upon seeing the earnestness of their desire to help and sincere concern for my well-being, it was impossible to hold any kind of resentment towards them. Frequently during these communications, my friends would often offer me advice as to how I should be treating myself. I will reiterate these here.

Top 5 suggestions as to treat a Chinese illness:
1. Drink hot water (cold water? you westerners must be crazy)
2. Take Chinese medicine (I think the mentality is that American medicine will not have an effect on a Chinese illness)
3. Have a rest!
4. Put on extra clothes.
5. Go to the hospital.

In fact, almost every conversation I had was followed up by an offer to take me to a nearby hospital or doctor to get a full on diagnosis. Happily these extremes were not necessary as I am beginning to feel much better. My appetite has not fully returned and I am a little worried that my love for noodles might not be coming back anytime soon but only time will tell. All things considered, I think I bore this recent illness quite well, with only minor moaning and no one here to call me out on it! That being said, it is nothing like being sick at home with your mom to bring to you ginger ale and peanut butter crackers while she swaps out the cold washcloth on your forehead and puts in a Star Wars dvd...(sigh). I'll leave you with a text message I received that brightened my spirits while I was feeling down.

Text:
Hello.Tim my name is Jack. Jon told me that you were sinking. I am sorry to hear this remember to drink hot water and wear lots of closes. Remember that I am here my friend. Do you need docotor or hospital. I can find. I will call to check on you sooner after class.