Day 90: Really Sick Day

Yeah, so "Best Laid Plans" strikes again. Last night, I admitted to Chris that I was feeling really bummed out about London. Here we are, a week out of Berlin, a week in the UK and we still haven't really seen anything in London. I was part of the planning out our week with Chris working in the office, but reality is feeling very different than the planning. It feels lonely to be in a brand new place without him being a part of it. I'm so glad he listened and heard me. He decided to take the morning off today. We talked about doing a few things on our list (Tower Bridge, Tower of London, and a Harry Potter walking tour). There are a few other buildings we'd see along the way, but those would be our three main points. We figured out how we could do it all, including lunch, and then he'd be able to go into work in the afternoon and into the evening (it's the night for the team to go out together). Perfect.

But, Venice woke up very sick from her medication. At least, that's how we're self-diagnosing it. Her poor body is not happy with the antibiotics. She is not interested in water or food. And, at the moment, it probably wouldn't stay in her body anyway. Obviously our day is taking a turn from the plan. I'm worried that we'll have to get help at some point, so Chris does a little work from home, but mostly helps find other pharmacies if we need to go in, brings lunch back to the room (there is a nice café in our building so he doesn't even have to leave the building), while I research antibiotic side effects and determine when is vomiting and diarrhea severe versus normal? Just so you know, one of the "normal" signs is lasting for 2-3 days while the body gets used to the medicine. Great.

Venice is in pretty good spirits considering
how miserable and frustrated she is.

Venice also had a rash the other day. We though it was just irritation to "something". She worried it was bed bugs from our first hotel. Now, I'm looking online and it could be scarlet fever and/or a strep rash. Again, we didn't have a definitive diagnosis yesterday, so I'm doing all my own diagnosis with the help of Google. The good news is that the rash will probably be covered by the antibiotics she's taking. The bad news is reading about illnesses online, we all do it, we are all told not to do it, but we do it. Some icky crap out there! But for us, I'm convinced the antibiotics will solve all our problems if we can just get it to remain in her system.

I headed out to the closes market we know. It's not like Berlin where we had three markets super close by and more just a few blocks farther. Here, I just know the one and it's small. I find rice, and I'm pretty pleased that I found some already cooked-instant rice, so when Venice wants it, it won't take half an hour to make. We're really looking for Gatorade or some kind of electrolytes. I do find a sports drink, but when we get it home, we find it's carbonated. Crap. It'll have to do. Oh, and guess what? That microwave in the kitchen? Isn't a microwave. It's an oven disguised as a microwave (it's tiny and above the refrigerator). But, it's an oven. So that fantastic 1 minute rice I found... just turned into an "on the oven cooking ordeal". Sigh. At least it's pre-cooked. I just have to heat it up. It's just a little more effort and dishes than I had planned for.

Venice wants to take a bath. This brings out her rash a little more. This also takes Xander's "blanket" away. He's been sleeping on the small couch and there are no extra "soft" blankets. So, he used a towel as a blanket last night (and a towel to sleep on). We'll have to find another solution for tonight. As hinted, there are extra blankets, but they're made out of wool, so they're too scratchy. Time to get creative (beyond using a bathroom towel).

Xander spending time on his "bed"

When it becomes clear that Venice's body is calming down (I've downgraded my concerns about needing to head to a hospital for more help). Chris goes into work a bit after lunch. Venice spends much of the day swapping time on her iPod and napping. Xander spends much of his day creating levels in Geometry dash. I spend most of my day doing laundry. Side note: OMG, I NEVER thought I'd say this.... I miss the washer and dryer from Berlin! At least I became to understand it. It's another combo machine and the clothes... come out beyond damp after drying for 2 hours. And, it's not clear, to me, where they want the laundry liquid to go... Sigh.

One thing that is driving me completely bananas is that I cannot find the receipt/prescription that I got from the pharmacy along with the medicine. I can see it in my mind (a coloured, I think pink, slip with our receipt stapled onto it). It is no where. We went to the market and then home and haven't left since. I can find the bag of the medicines and the two medicines. I've emptied my purse twice (and Chris went through it as well). I've tried pockets. I even went through all our trash, piece by piece. It's no where. All I can imagine is that it slipped out of a pocket or wallet on our way home. It's just vanished. So, on top of all of this, I have to wonder how it will all work on Saturday when we go to get her last bit of medicine without our paperwork. Ugh.

Dinner is easy as it's just Xander and me. We eat some leftovers and some of the items we have in our refrigerator. Venice pretty much doesn't eat. Chris is out with coworkers. It's a quiet evening. A day has slipped by.

Here are few lingering images and thoughts for you:

1) There are tons and tons of red telephone booths all over town, just like in the movies and TV shows. It's real. The funny part is how some have evolved. Many have half-naked women photos all posted inside with numbers to call (a special shout out to whomever puts those up). Some have additional free Wi-Fi available (Funny? Ironic?). And some aren't really booths, just made to look like one.

Phone booth in front of the British Museum, with naughty photos inside (left).
Photo booth that also offers free Wi-Fi (middle)
Photo booth, that's not a booth, but a phone and an ATM (right)

2) There is rubbish all over the sidewalks. I don't know what the protocol is here. Can anyone put trash bags in a pile? Is this how businesses put their trash out? I have no idea where all the trash comes from, but there is a lot of it on every block, just piled high. It's a definite eyesore. I keep thinking it must be trash day so it won't be there tomorrow, but it just seems to be everywhere. For those of you who are Monty Python fans, I chant in my head, "Bring out your trash!" (Instead of "Bring out your dead!") Don't say it. I know I'm weird.

Bring out your trash!