Finally

I am finally mostly over this insane stomach virus I've had for a week. I started to lose it Saturday, crying because I was tired of feeling awful and useless, cursing a country without universal health care, angry at my mother for not believing I was actually ill until she got ill herself, the joy sucked out of almost everything, even football watching (that's more because we suck and we lost, though). I'm still not a 100%, but definitely more like 85%, which I'll take as a vast improvement. On the upside, I'm sure I did lose about 10 lbs so, ya know, that's nice.

So some things I learned while I was ill:

1. No one plays fantasy football because it's fun. It is not fun. It is the opposite of fun. It is routinely frustrating and annoying. I guess when you play in leagues for money you're at least invested more but I seriously doubt anyone is having any fun. Things I routinely do in FF: leave more points on the bench than I have earned with certain players. This week that meant benching Beanie Wells, who so far had been lackluster all season. Suddenly he has 11 point game but oh, he's on the bench, in favor of Rashard Mendenhall who had been phenomenal. But guess what? That's when Hines Ward, who had been lackluster also, decides to bust out the points. Which is great, because he's also on my team and NOT benched. But since Mendenhall and Ward play different positions on the same team it was almost like Ward STOLE my points from Mendenhall. Which is lesson a) If two players in different positions are on the same team, bench one and take the other. Lesson b) this is stupid and I don't want to play anymore. Harumph. I'm losing this week by five points (5 points that were left on the bench!). Unless Dez Bryant has a great game and Jeremy Jason Witten has a crap game, I'm going down in flames. Again.

2. Indie Romances are my absolute weakness. Seriously. Not that being sick doesn't already influence the "awww I want someone to cuddle with" genes I possess, somewhere in the not so deep recesses of my mind, but combine that with a slickly written indie story? I'm a goner. I watched a movie called Penelope, which had one of the most perfect story lines in a fairy tale EVER. And had James McAvoy, which never hurts. Later, I watched Dakota Skye. It's not perfect, the actors are young and obviously inexperienced. But almost every speech by the protagonist? I was hooked. I've watched this confessional scene at least ten times. That's not even an exaggeration. I know, it's not real life. It's movies. (Repeating over and over and over again.)

I watched a couple disappointing French films in between (Paris and Happenstance) and then watched TiMER, an interesting study of what true love is and would you want to know when it's coming? After all this, I was decidedly all squee. And still want someone to cuddle with and make me feel better. So screw you, indie romances, for showing me an idealized view, with witty dialogue, of male-female relationships. (But thanks, Netflix Instant, for keeping me entertained while sick.)

3. When you are sick, everyone and everything is supremely annoying. No, seriously, it's true. I don't know why or how this is true, but it is. So if I was bitchy in the past week...well, put on your man pants and deal with it. I don't fucking care about your problems.

4. Hey! Look! The mail came! The state bar of California FINALLY says I possess the proper moral character to practice law. How sweet of them! (For which they charged me $435 to figure out.) 2/3s of the way to being a practicing lawyer! *deep breaths, deep breaths, deep breaths*

5. Dr Pepper may have actual healing properties! I was starting to feel a skosh better when I caved and had some Dr Pepper. After all the gatorade, cranberry juice, tea, water, water, water...THIS finally got me to the 85% you see before you today. Wheeee!

And thus concludes this edition of "What I've learned". More another time...