You Have the Flu? Stay Home!

Fair warning....this post is a rant.

I have to admit this rant, I'm about to embark upon, is probably more upsetting to me right now for one particular reason.

Three weeks ago my son came in contact with the dreaded flu virus. This is the flu virus that causes high fever, chills, cough, stuffy head, achy all over, exhaustion and a few other unsavory symptoms.

Three weeks after getting the flu, he still has a cough that won't quit, on and off fever, achy all over feeling and stuffed head. This virus is horrible.

We just brought him home for his spring break and I'm sure he's going to spend much of it getting well. He's sleeping round the clock, drinking a river of fluids and just starting to feel a bit better. He has a doctor appointment tomorrow, which he suggested, which if you've read prior posts, is saying something. The boy doesn't like visiting the doctor and he avoids it at all costs.

Now here's the rant piece of my post:

I went to the dollar store to pick up a few things. A lady standing next to me in the aisle was holding a bottle of cold/flu over-the-counter medicine and said to her son, "Relieves fever, achy all over feeling, cough, runny nose, stuffy nose, runny eyes, and flu-like symptoms."

The boy with her nods his head in agreement. She says, "That's what you're feeling like, right?" He rolls his head to the side in exhaustion, his face is pale as a white sheet and he says, "Yes."

I try to be generous at this point and I think that maybe this mama had to bring this extremely ill child out with her, because he looks at the borderline age for staying home alone and definitely not well enough to be home alone in his present condition.

But, alas, around the corner comes a very distinguishable teenage boy that walks up to the lady and says, "Mom, come on, can we go home yet?"

Then, I'm really upset thinking, Why does she have this poor ailing boy out and about anyway, and pleeez, stay home with your germs already.

I wanted to say, "I think the teenage boy could be watching this sick lad while you ran to the store to get this over-the-counter medicine. Better for the sick boy, better for you, and better for everyone else in the store."

I know there may have been any number of reasons why she didn't leave this sick little guy home, but really, it upset me.

It kind of reminds me of the school that I work at. Usually somewhere during the school year, a staff member will pop into the office 5 minutes after staff arrives and says, "I'm very sick. I can't work today. I need to go home. Please call a sub for me"

Okay, thanks! You've just spread your yucky germs around, you've just drove yourself in here for 5 minutes total, and now I'm going to worry that I catch this wretched bug too.

When you work within a school district, you become a bit of a germophobic, but I haven't resorted to wearing white gloves while I eat....yet! (Ehart, I couldn't resist adding that little white glove comment.)

I understand some people work jobs that don't allow them to receive pay if they are off sick, I realize that sometimes you can't leave your sick child home, I realize all of that....

I'm just a bit sensitive right now about the flu season, and people running around infecting others and then wondering why it's suddenly an epidemic!

Rant over!

Thanks for listening! I feel much better:)