As The Saying Goes

There are two common expressions I'd like to discuss today: first, "Misery loves company." I suppose this is based in truth. I suppose, just theoretically, that if I were sick with a head cold, I'd much prefer to have various sizes of kids with varying kinds of disgusting coughs and colds climbing all over me/nursing from me at all hours of the night than to be, say, left alone to sleep in peace. And I'd much rather have Kleenex strewn all over the mother loving house, and snot and germs on just every surface imaginable, than to handle my own cold by myself complete with frequent hand washing and proper tissue disposal. I'd much rather have to fetch people juice and snacks and take temperatures and dole out chewable Tylenol than to lie on the couch motionless. Who would want to be ALONE when one is physically miserable? Goodness no. Bring on the COMPANY.*

Next expression: "Familiarity breeds contempt." Oh, certainly not! Certainly being shut inside a relatively small house with one's sick, cranky family for days and days on end only endears them to us further! One's family never does away with all niceties or compassion and just stalks around the house growling at each other in mutual discomfort! One certainly never texts their neighbor in desperation, threatening to send their kids to school even though they DO still seem sick! What are they going to do, sue us? Except that last night it rained and stormed and thundered for hours- lightning and thunder over SNOW COVERED ground!- and this morning all the roads to GET to the school were flooded.

I may have cried just a little.

*I do think being sick with ONLY another sick adult might be kinda-sorta fun, if we could lay on the couch and watch TV and moan together and have someone fetch us food and drink. However, throw three sick kids into the equation and it quickly goes from fun to some kind of anthropological experiment to see how long it will take us to EAT each other.