Yesterday afternoon, Tom had to go to urgent care…

With Tom’s flight to Chicago next Wednesday at 1:00 am, the fact that he was coughing so much and tired all the time made me get pushy about him going to Urgent Care yesterday afternoon. If he became more ill and was unable to go for his long-awaited appointment with the pulmonologist appointed by the law firm, it could be months before he’d get another appointment. He agreed, and we went to the closest Urgent Care shown online and on MAPS.

As soon as we arrived at the location, we noticed a sign that stated, “Coming Soon.” We had to find another location further away. We registered at the reception desk, and within 15 minutes, he was taken back, with me in attendance, to a treatment room.

After a nurse checked his vitals and asked questions, a doctor entered and examined him. On most occasions, Tom refused to go to Urgent Care this early in his illness. He was diagnosed with bronchitis, not pneumonia, which we feared he had with all the outrageous coughing and his need to nap several times a day.

The doctor gave him a prescription for Z-pack and cough pills (not a liquid) and suggested he take over-the-counter Zyrtak for the sinus congestion. Off we went to the CVS pharmacy at the nearby Target store. Tom waited in the car while I went inside for the 25-minute wait until the prescriptions were ready.

Back at the condo, I noticed a message on my phone that Amazon couldn’t get into the building to drop off my order of Hall’s sugar-free cough drops. Whoever handles the reception desk during the day wasn’t available when the driver tried to gain access to the building. This morning at 8:00,  the package was outside the door.

Last night, I was coughing every hour or so, but I feel fine otherwise. Most likely, I’ve caught the bug that Tom started with before he got really sick. Once I got up and out of bed, my coughing stopped when using the cough drops. Hopefully, my symptoms won’t worsen over the next few days.

When we “catch” something, Tom is usually sicker than I am. I always feel compelled to keep up with household duties and cooking even when I feel unwell. I am optimistic we’ll both recover soon and continue to enjoy our time in Lake Las Vegas.

As for today, we’ll stay in and be cozy with our two blankets and stream some shows to distract us while we work on improving. All I have left to do today is finish this post, fold and put away the dried laundry on the rack, toss the salad, and cook our two pizzas. That’s an easy day, by my standards.

I paid our deposit for the Ratel house in Marloth Park this morning. It gave me a wonderful sense of peace and excitement at the same time. It’s hard to believe that in a little over five months, we’ll return to my favorite place in the world, outside the USA. Soon, we’ll get busy booking the place in Apache Junction, Arizona, where we’ll head after we leave here at the end of March.

Then, we’ll book the month we’ll spend in Minnesota to see our kids, grandkids, and friends. From there, we’ll begin the two-day journey to Marloth Park, South Africa.

Despite this recent setback, life is good, and we look forward to the future.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, January 3, 2014: