Sick Days - Life as Litigation Attorney

Friends, I'm sick.  Flu and fever sick. I thought I just had a cold on Tuesday but by Wednesday morning I was throwing up before my alarm clock even went off. I have no doubt I got this from my sweet niece, yet I will not deny I have cursed the projectile vomit she gave me to while I babysat her on Monday night.

My sick day arsenal - hot tea, water, Tums and Pepto bismal.

Like my CD player alarm clock? I'm in the market for a new one.

And FYI: I took a couple of pictures of myself, but oh Lord, I looked (still look) horrible. Not for public. At all.

Yesterday I could barely stand myself. Do you know that feeling when you have a 100+ fever and you want to crawl out of your skin? I was cold, so I turned the heater on. Then I was hot, so I opened windows. I crawled down our steep staircase for more water.  No TV was on. No music. No sleep. And yes... I was dramatic. Thank God Sean takes such good care of me. Reason number 548,392 that I love him so much.

Obviously I couldn't go to work yesterday. And I'm still sick today so I am home yet again.

If I was still a college student, I would take a week (maybe two) off without even thinking twice about it.

If I was a mom with little children, I don't know what the heck I would have done yesterday. Call a babysitter, maybe? Put the babies in a playpen for 10 hours? (This is what my mom suggested when I talked to her about it. See.. I stress about scenarios that aren't even applicable to me at this present time.)

As a litigation attorney, I just stress and die a little bit the whole time I am home.  My work load does not just go on pause when I'm dying in my bed.  And, for the most part, no one else can do the work for me. "Hi co-worker, do you mind jumping in to finish off this MSJ opposition while I die of the flu in my bed at home?" Yea... that would never work. And yes, I still have more MSJs to deal with. Three to be exact. All due either next week or the week thereafter.  Plus a mediation brief.  Plus all the other day-to-day general stuff that doesn't even rise to the level worthy of being mentioned but still needing to be filed with the court today, tomorrow, yesterday, nonetheless.  So I've had no choice but work from home today to the best of my flu-ridden abilities. (Taking breaks to lay my head down about every other minute.) And I will be working over the weekend to make up for these lost days of productivity. Not because my firm has some crazy billable hour requirement (thank God), but only because I generally need to work these days to get my stuff timely finished. I may even miss church. Or the church's Thanksgiving dinner Sunday night. That will be the most devastating event to come of this flu.

And with that description of my sick days, who wants to trade lives with me this week? Any takers?

*My pity party ends now. Thanks for reading, if you did.