Suck the bear!

My boss was sick today. A sore throat. That wouldn't have been such a bummer to me except that I had a sore throat, too, so I was not really feeling up to doing a lot of extra work today. I didn't tell anyone I felt yucky. A couple of months ago, she and I got sick at the same time, and it's just too damn coincidental. I figured nobody would believe it a second time around, so I just let it slide.

I know it's just allergies, which is kind of a funny thing to say in August. My allergies usually kick in around March or April and are pretty well under control by late May or early June. But for the past week or so, I've had the itchy red eyes, the runny nose/drainage thing, the sore throat and the general achiness.

Now, most people would pull out the Halls cough drops and suck 'em down like there's no tomorrow. Not me. Five minutes of menthol lovin' makes my bronchi swell up like post-Playboy Anna Nicole Smith.

I learned early on that my asthma precludes most smelly stuff — eucalyptus, menthol, a lot of air fresheners, even Christmas trees (both pine and fir).

Anyway, when you start looking for cough drops with low or no menthol, your selection kind of dwindles. I can mostly handle Celestial Seasonings Soothers and a couple of formulas of Sucrets. But I really dig the Get Better Bears (formerly Dimetapp Get Better Bears). They're not mentholated, but they are medicated, so it helps out much more than sucking on candy all day.

With the boss out, I got behind on my own work today, and now I'm trying to catch up (it's 6:30 p.m.). Paul's run to the store to look for my bear pops. When I get home, it's citrus tea with honey ... and an early bedtime.

Last night, I spent a few hours (three) working on a CoH graphic. If it weren't copyrighted, I'd stick it on a shirt. The little guy to the right of the picture is one of my pets — Phantasm — and he's always getting me into trouble.

All my pets (Phantom Army, Phantasm and Spectral Terror) have a mind of their own, but Phantasm is the worst. He indiscriminately shoots at enemies, even if I have low health or power. Sometimes it seems like it does it especially when I have low health or power. ::grins::

The picture actually took a lot of work -- I had to cut around all the glowy stuff, which took a couple of hours. Then I had to blow up the blue power bar, clone the red damage icon, and change his name from Phantasm to the more appropriate "Aggro Magnet." The actual piece is about 3000x1500 px and I've still got some touching up to do.

My bro-in-law suggested I put Phantom Army on there, and that'll happen next time I feel like throwing three or four hours into photochopping something.

Now it's time to finish up a couple of things, go home, convalesce, and watch the remainder of Hurricane Katrina roll over the bluffs.