Open Mike: Winter from Heck

["Open Mike" is the often off-topic Editorial page of TOP. It appears on Wednesdays.]

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This has kind of been the Winter from heck. Not hell; that would be grandiose. Just heck.

I had my car taken away for a month and a half. I got socked by some nasty persecution from an acquaintance (and it wasn't even my fight). I've been sick multiple times, rotating in and out of various doctors' offices (thank God for the ACA). And that terrifying April word, taxes. Swooped right in and half-drained my accounts. And yet, with Spring veritably springing and Winter in retreat, what do you know, I woke up in the middle of the night last night with an uncomfortable case of—what? flu? Food poisoning? With five-alarm alacrity my body ejected all the substances lingering in the gut, and so far, nausea has prevented me from taking anything more than sips of water all day.

I don't mean to gripe. I just thought it might be an appropriate time to offer solace, sympathy, and solidarity to all those who are dealing with real medical problems. Sincere good wishes, friends.

My doctor-brother says it's flu when you crave to get horizontal and are averse to verticality. Otherwise it's just a cold. Might be flu then—I can hardly haul my arse off the couch. I just hope it's the one-day variety, rather than some lingering kind. "Lingering" has been the watchword all Winter.

But there are good things afoot. We're moving ahead with Chester Williams' print sale. Acura Finance just mailed me the title to my little car after five years—hallelujah! No more car payments*. The forsythia hedges are in full glory—even when I correct the pictures to hype up that yellow, it doesn't match reality. The taxes were done and dispatched in good time. And I got to talk to my son today. That's always good.

And it was a gorgeous day, sunny, vivid, and clear. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Well, I would have liked to have been healthy today, but it's a good thing anyway. The house is full of light, the breeze is like a benediction, the birds are busy, Summer Is Icumin In, and life is sweet. I just want to go lie down is all.

Back to work on the Baker's Dozen "At the Museum" post! It's more than half done, which means I have only two-thirds to go.  :-)

Mike

*And my little Civic-in-go-to-meeting-clothes has logged only 63k miles so far—one of the advantages of working at home. (I plan to drive it to 200k.)

It's a very exclusive car. I hardly ever see another one. To add insult to being ignored, Consumer Reports named the Acura ILX as one of the three most unpopular cars among males last year. It wasn't popular with females, either. It's not popular period. This kinda makes sense when you consider that they started with an economy car (the Civic) in a declining segment (sedans), then cobbled up a sporty version of that (the Civic Si), then based a "luxury" car on that (the ILX 2.4 has the same engine and transmission as the '14 Civic Si). That's pretty far from the clean sheet. No wonder the result ends up not quite knowing what it wants to be, and not quite doing anything well.

Oh well. I still like mine. Do you have a headache? I have a headache.

Original contents copyright 2019 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

(Not) everything must fade away

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Gordon Brown: "Don't feel bad about your unpopular Acura. My 2003 Buick Rendezvous ranked fourth on a list of cars least likely to be stolen. I'm fine with that. I'm still driving it."

Mike replies: A further advantage in my case is the manual transmission AKA anti-theft device. Even if the thief knows how to drive it, they, just like the dealers, can't move 'em.

Lenya: "It's amazing, Mike, how well you can still write, even in the horizontal state, with a headache. Wishing you a speedy return to verticality!"

Jordi P. (partial comment): "A friend of mine told me that this kind of transient sickness is a reality check that makes you appreciate life."

Mike replies: I love that....

Comments

[Inkphot]

I wish you a quick recovery. For your sake,not for us your readers so much. We can wait. Quality over quantity any time. And your writing is definitely the former.

[Mike Plews]

You will have no problem at all putting 200k on your Acura. We are on our second Honda CRV which is built on a civic platform. Our 97 CRV had 240,000 miles on it when we traded it and it was going fine. I now commute in a 2007 CRV that has 270,000 miles on it and while the interior looks like a crime scene the car just rolls on.
My plan is to try for 400,000 miles on this car. It ain't pretty but it just soldiers on.

[Scott]

I see that model car all the time in and around DC. Perhaps that's because I live so close to Chevy Chase Acura. I like them.

Hoping you have a speedy recovery and a lovely summer.

[Mark Sirota]

Feel better soon, Mike! I'm very much looking forward to seeing the Baker's Dozen. I view TOP as a well-curated look at what's interesting in photography (and a few other topics, some of which I enjoy), and a Baker's Dozen post as a curated look at the work of some of the most interesting photographers working today, because that's who reads TOP. Can't wait!

[Nature Lover]

As a retired physician, I collected and made up a number of rules. Here is the definition of the real flu:
On the first day you are afraid you are not going to die. On the second day you are afraid you will die and on the third day you wonder why you did not die. It's all better then, but not good for days.

[Chip McDaniel]

Don't apologize for your Honda. There is something to be said for average cars that work. I had a spiffed up VW diesel "Sportwagen" that I liked, but that was spewing undetected NOX because of the company's "defeat device." When VW offered an attractive buyout I replaced it with a white Chevy Impala, in part because it is an utterly boring, nondescript car. It has no pretense whatever. "I dunno officer. It was white, maybe a Chevy or an Acura or a Toyota. They all look alike." Not that I'll ever need a getaway car. I'm too boring myself for anything like that.

Feel better, Mike, so you can enjoy the burgeoning Spring.

[Steve Rosenblum]

It's kind of important to try to find out if it is really influenza versus a bad cold. There is treatment available for real influenza (Tamiflu) that significantly decreases the severity of symptoms and duration of the illness if taken within the first few days. Influenza can be easily diagnosed by a throat swab test that gives a rapid result. Worth a trip to the doctor.

[DaveM]

I've decided that "breeze" is the ultimate cure for any of my physical and emotional maladies. Doesn't even matter if you're horizontal or vertical! Hope you feel better soon.

[Chuck Holst]

No headache, just a bellyache, the aftermath of a hernia repair operation last Wednesday. I'm restricted to lifting no more than 10 pounds till June and no power walks till then, either, so no heavy photography for me till then. Fortunately, I have a lightweight camera in my smartphone.

Oh, and I have a '96 Accord with 130,000 miles on it still going strong, though my wife mistrusts it because of its age. Because I can walk to the bank, P.O., hardware store, dentist, doctor, and several local restaurants, I gassed it up only 4 times last year.

[Nicholas Hartmann]

Hope you feel better soon! Forsythia will help...

[Jim Arthur]

Feel better and congratulations on paying off the ILX. Not having a car payment is a glorious thing. I’ve not made a payment in 15 years on my Tacoma. There’s something to be said for driving a bulletproof vehicle that’s made to last. Honda also has a reputation for being bulletproof so you should easily reach 200K…if you keep it that long. After 18 years I’m “only” at 190K miles and am jonesing for something new.

[Ernie Van Veen]

Last week I had some small lumps cut out and tomorrow is the day I get the pathology results back.

"Negative! Oh, no!

What? Negative is GOOD?! Then, yay! Yay for negative."

That's how I see things going tomorrow.

[Man about Tyne]

Arse - good old Anglo-Saxon terminology. Your writing just gets better and better!

[Rob Campbell]

Hope you recover soon - it's a miserable experience feeling unwell.

Never owned a Japanese car, but would certainly love a Mazda MX5 hardtop. I always stuck wth Fords after moving out to Spain, and it's paid off in the good, friendly service that I get from the local Ford guy.

The Escort below ran with me for thirteen years and I only got rid of it because of repeated rust problems at the A-pillar/roof intersection on the port side. That said, I live on an island and that inevitably means lots of salt in the air every time the winds blow, which they often do.

I now spend more time on foot than in the car; the replacment for the Escort is a smaller Fiesta, and it's my first diesel, which means I get fuel maybe once every six weeks at the most... from being sold the belief that diesel had become the most green of fuels, turned out to be yet another lie thrust out upon the populace...

The US vanity plate was on all my previous cars for thirty-six years with a series of different words on it, most connected to my late wife. I was followed by local and national police, the Guardia Civil and even the military during those years; drove through France and the length of the UK, and nobody said boo to me. One day, a local cop on a scooter pulled me up and made me remove it from the newer Fiesta. Had he been on a Harley I'm sure he wouldn't have cared less about that plate, but anyway, he claimed that it was illegal and could mislead the authorities as being a false number! Obviously it had fooled him at a distance, and once he'd stopped me and noticed his error, he couldn't retreat. Ruined much of my motoring pleasure, did that.

http://www.roma57.com/uploads/4/2/8/7/4287956/7269978_orig.jpg

[Jordi P.]

Feeling thankful. I got a mild cold with very annoying cough, so not up there, but at east not very sick. Still, not appreciated by someone in his mid 20s that is having quite a busy agenda next week, of things that only happen once a year.

Feels like I am missing the great spring weather outside, 68F at 59 degrees north!

A friend of mine told me that this kind of transient sickness is a reality check that makes you appreciate life.

Hoping for a speedy recovery.

[MikeR]

"Summer Is Icumin In" ... down with the flu, but still able to summon up your erudition. I'm impressed.

Get well soon, Mike, because summer is ... you know.

[Robert Roaldi]

The Acura version of the Civic has always been terrific value.

The fact that sedans and hatchbacks are losing market share to pick-up trucks and SUVs is just another symptom of our collective societal insanity. If you need lots of cargo space, buy a minivan. SUVs are just station wagons raised up on stilts on more expensive rims and tires. Pick-up trucks are work vehicles.

Do you hang around a lot of contagious people? If not, is your diet failing you in some way?

[John Berger]

Up votes on Honda: 1994 Accord with four cylinder 240,000 miles and 2004 Accord Coupe with V6 270,000, my daily driver and still going strong. Price, performance, resale, reliability, maintenance, and all things considered, an excellent balance of all factors. Enjoy your Honda for all it does for you-you know you missed it while it was gone !

[SteveW]

Thanks for this, just the other day I saw an ILX on the road and thought, what the hell is an ILX? Now I know! I actually thought it was a nice looking vehicle, but I also think the Civic Si is a nice looking vehicle as well.

Hope you feel better soon, sometimes lying on the couch all day with the curtains drawn is the best medicine, Ann Lamott calls this "going on a cruise."

[Dave Van de Mark]

Oh Mike, you just gave me "reading ache" following along with your "real aches". Please get over them and enjoy Spring.

Regarding your Civic - I don't know cars at all and haven't a clue about what is passing me in either direction, but I do remember the original little Civic many, many, many moons ago. It was so small I swear you could have driven it through an opening the size of most double doors. Instantly one of the most practical little things ever made, even when gas was much cheaper. I have watched the practicality disappear as the price and size have risen.

[Dan Boney]

Hope you feel better asap - RE: Acrua ILX, could be much worse - You could have bought a Fiat 500 like we did in 2012 during the "reintroduction to America" which has probably redefined the entire concept of "depreciation", Fiat's U.S. sales were only 15K units last year but at least it's also paid for and only has 22K miles on it due to "work at home" as well and being a second car... As long as we don't sell it, no problem... (haven't discerned yet whether the "Gucci Special Edition" version we bought is a plus or a minus - It may be that special editions of Leica's are the only ones that hold extra value...).

[Jim Meeks]

My wife woke up all of a sudden yesterday morning to a very bad case of stomach flu/food poisoning and while it has pretty much cleared out, today she has a throbbing headache. Seems to be a pattern.

[Sounds a lot like the same thing. I'm feeling better today but a bit battered and weak, not 100%. Cheers and good wishes to your wife. --Mike]

[Michael Perini]

Hoping you feel better today, but don't stress about missing a day or three. It happens to everyone.
Take good care of that Honda, no car payments is like extra income.
Hondas can last a long time, good for you.

[Patrick Dodds]

Apparently flu is when there is £20 lying on your front lawn and you leave it there

[Roger Bradbury]

Sorry to hear about your trials and tribulations, Mike. Best wishes from the English section.

[Mikal W Grass]

Talking to your son makes everything better. Everything else is bupkis.

[Kenneth Tanaka]

Bad bananas? (Don't say you weren't warned.)

[Mike Potter]

Mike,
Wow, I hadn't realized you'd been having such a tough streak of events. Here's hoping you have a much better Spring and Summer.

[William OBrien]

Mike,

Getting old is tuff.
Something to try,

Get a 0.5 OZ bottle of Thieves.
Thieves is an essential oil mix with origins back to the plague in Europe (really good story).

Mix 40 drops with 1.5 oz of water, shake well before use since oil and water do not mix well. Use less than a teaspoon as a mouthwash every night before bed, when you are done rinsing your mouth swallow the remainder. (1.5 oz mix should last a week or so)

Thieves is just a really good natural bug killer. Best source IMHO is https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/thieves-essential-oil-blend.

Best site to get some basic knowledge is
https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/thieves-essential-oil-blend
OR
Google "essential oils david o'brien"

My experience over the last five years. No colds, No Flu (no flu shots), no cavities (this really has my dentist thinking).

Very simple, way cheaper than medicines, easy to try.

Bill OBrien

[Gary]

I'd like to contribute to this magazine, but I'm only an occasional reader and I'm not prepared to enter into the full subscription commitment. Surely I can't be alone?

If you had a big button at the top of the home page, one that facilitated an ad hoc Paypal contribution, well then I'd be happy to help with your tax woes!

[Bill Duncan]

Sounds like you need another Miata MX5.. :)
We *know* what the purpose of the Miata is, fun!