Had a good day at work, particularly the 7:00 AM freezer part where I coughed my way through getting the morning delivery put up and labeled. (In addition to various other duties, I'm also the receiver, stock guy on staff.) It' not just the 10-degrees air; its the physical labor, which also requires I wear my back brace which fits like a corset. But apparently my lungs appreciate this torture because my coughs are "productive." Yes, that's a new concept I've learned since beginning to trudge the road to a happy, smokeless life. One's persistent coughs should be "productive, " with slimy rewards. That's assuming he's staying hydrated and drinking his water, which I am. I'm learnin' me some new ideas.
Did you know, for example, there are different types of "wheezes," which can be medically diagnosed based on, yes, their musical qualities? Who knew? But I digress.
Later, when I was in the cooler, putting up produce, I started my glorious "productive" coughing some more and one of my kind co-workers, hearing me, threw open the cooler door and asked, alarmed, "Mr. Alex...you need water??!" "No," said I, between productive coughs," I'm fine." and shooed her away.
Several times during the day, this same concerned employee asked if I needed water. For obvious reasons.
I got through the day, and got home. Mostly it was a quiet afternoon. Then I made the mistake of doing some manual labor, and damn near killed myself. I was so winded from it (which involved about 10 lousy minutes of using a wire brush on concrete,) that I coughed to the point of hurling mucus. This, I'm guessing, was my lungs' thank you gift for doing an after-work chore. Have a hunk of gunk, pal. On the house. You deserve it.
I've been reading that my "productive" cough could last for weeks or months.
Oh, joy.
Peace and gratitude,
AC
9 short days to 10 years!
9 days since I quit
Day 9
