Swine Flu in the Help Desk!

I work in one corner of a big room that contains the University's ITS (Information Technology Services) Helpdesk. I and one other guy do (among other things) the staff support for the use of Blackboard (the University's Learning Management System to deliver online courses for students). We don't answer the phone like the others in the Helpdesk area, but logged incidents (see my ITIL training coming to the fore!) relating to Blackboard are passed on to us.

Don't know why I felt the need to give that great explanation!

Anyway - on Friday afternoon, one of the casuals who works on the helpdesk (answering the phone) got the results of tests that said he had Swine Flu! I guess I ought to be a bit worried by this, considering my somewhat compromised immune system - it might be thought that I was particularly at risk. But - maybe I'm being foolish, maybe it was just a big Friday afternoon-type feeling, but my main emotion was amusement! We were all jumping around, keeping him at a distance while he tried to wipe his desk and headsets with some anti-bacterial wipes, all the time proclaiming how embarrassed and sorry he was! We just kept on joking and wiping things that were anywhere near him! It just seemed a great distraction for a Friday afternoon!

But really - I do feel my immune system is coming back now. I've actually stopped counting the number of weeks since I've had to be on antibiotics! (Last count was 7 weeks - maybe last week, maybe the week before!) And also - they reckon that kids and young adults are most at risk. Neither of those descriptions really cover me〈grin〉. Also, I've read that 'older people' (!) may have come across some type of flu remotely relate to this one, which would give 'them' some immunity to it!

Whatever - I am 'over' the big fear/concern about Swine Flu that we all had a few weeks ago. Now my main feeling about it is that maybe it's good to get it this time around when it seems to be really mild, in case it does mutate (as the 1918 flu epidemic did) into something much worse. I do intend to get vaccinated against it when the vaccine comes out - if I haven't caught it in the meantime!!

And I've had a lovely weekend. I've been working on a website, and doing a few things in the garden. I've felt strong and well - it's a very nice feeling!!

Yoga Practice Musings

Ever since I got lymphoma 2 years ago, had to spend time in hospital and had to give up yoga for 6 months, I have struggled to get my practice back to anywhere near what it was before.

I guess I can point to various reasons, or excuses! Like there've been quite a few times when I've got sick and haven't been able to practice for weeks at a time. Like I seem to have put on a bit of weight which is proving very hard to move off again, sigh! Like how I moved jobs this year which also meant moving campuses. A great new job and I'm very happy in it. But, apart from the extended amount of travel it's involved, at the old campus I had a great set-up to practice (by myself or with others) at lunchtime. That has been very much harder to organise here at St Lucia.

But, whatever the reason, my practice, and I guess my body, is very different to what it was B4! One of my hips has seized up and just won't 'open'! I have no hope of doing bakasana (OK, I probably only got that once before, but still!) And I'm even finding it hard to bind in Marichyasana A and B ... (hardly/never did in the other two so I won't be mentioning them!) And just general weakness, lack of flexibility issues ...

So anyway, when I went to class last weekend I was musing on this to myself (I felt it was a particularly weak practice on my part!) And then as I was leaving, this amazing thing happened. My teacher saw me going, stopped what he was doing and came over and told me he felt my practice was really moving ahead!! My mouth dropped open in utter surprise ... he carried on in this vein for a little while and then said goodbye and went back to helping someone!

There's obviously something else going on that I have no idea about! I guess I/we focus and stress on certain things but a 3rd party can stand back and see a completely different picture. I still don't quite know what he was talking about, but I do know he has inspired my practice this week, and let me feel that it's OK to be weak in areas that I was strong(er) in before. At least for the moment!!

Great news on health front!

Had my 12-monthly CT scan today and it came back clear! More details are on my Lymphoma blog.

I am very happy this evening!!!

Holidays ...

My Colourful Washing line! I wear lots of colourful clothes - and when I hang things out on the washing line I love the way they look! I even make sure they look good on the line - try not to hang two things the same colour next to each other! All for my own benefit of course, but ... :)

That was down in Bowral actually, my Mum's house. I'm back home now after spending a few days down there. Lots of eating (as if I needed that!), good wine, family and good books (among other things)! Not a huge amount of yoga - it is very hard to get warm/flexible enough down there in winter! - but some ...

Now I'm sitting in front of the fire at home, with Jedda curled up in a ball beside me. Very cosy! Tomorrow I must get onto a website for an ex-workmate, which she's already paid me for. And then back to work on Monday ...