We had a fabulous couple of days - sunny, windswept beaches, slightly-too-rough surf, late lunches, afternoon naps - which came to an abrupt end yesterday morning. First a snuffle, then a cough, then a full-on fever and raspy chest and non-stop hacking and coughing from both girls. All. Night. long. We have also acquired two (mild) tummy bugs and one broken toe. Also, it's been raining pretty much non-stop since Saturday night, at which point you realise that there really isn't much to do on a sunshine holiday when you take the sunshine out of the equation. Although caring for sick needy children isn't really weather dependent (and to be honest if i have to sit in a dark bedroom watching Frozen on repeat, I'd rather it was bucketing down outside.)
With the rain have come all manner of beasts: huge lizards, enormous toads, millions of baby frogs, scuttling crabs (somewhat unnerving having crabs in your bedroom even though you're a km from the beach), snakes (shudder). An insomniac gecko with a loudspeaker has taken up residence above my bed. A thing which looked like the result of the coupling of a small dog and a large cricket landed on the table, freaking the life out of all of us. Oh, and just as I was enjoying my first drink of the day last night a gecko SHAT ON MY FACE. (Have you ever met anyone defaced by a gecko? Me neither. If you'd asked me I would have assumed that, like nuns, they had no toilet habits at all. But let me tell you, they do. And pretty disgusting ones at that.)
On the plus side, I have managed to read two books, both -randomly - about the end of the world. The books are unconnected, but both have the apocalypse as the result of a flu virus which sweeps across the planet, felling humans like rasping, blood-spewing twigs. (I just know that if that IS what happens, my last thoughts will be some variation on Christ, just stop fucking coughing, can't you?)
Necessity has demanded a relaxation of the usual strict TV rules, to the extent that the Boy announced yesterday that I am the Best Mother Ever. Who knew it just took 12 hours of DVDs a day? Little do they know that the sun is due to come out tomorrow (why yes! We have been watching Annie. Was it always so boring?) and so hopefully we will revert to windswept beaches. And mean mummies.
Any mummy shat upon by a gecko who is not mean is not really a mummy but an artificial constructed machine. Much more so if she has 2 sick children on a rainy holiday that is supposed to be filled with sunshine and children frolicking nicely outdoors.
ReplyDeleteAs the coughing one my self I send sincere hopes and wishes that the virus sticks with only the two already impacted.
Bless you for taking time away from abusing your children and drinking lovely lovely lovely drinks to write. I am huddled up coughing and looking for internet comfort which YOU provided! THANK YOU as always for improving my world.