Annual Misery

I am sitting here at 4:43am with the lights on, possibly disturbing the sleep of my housemate (there is a transparent patch on the upperwall that allows light to filter through. weird, i know). The sleeping cough has gotten me yet again. I don't know what to blame anymore.

I lie down to relax, and my throat starts tingling. My nostrils quiver, and my lips twitch. Before i know it the first one comes, and with it explodes a series of spluttering breaths, waking up the dead and disrupting the sleep of many. It doesn't hurt, it doesn't do anything. It isn't even ejecting anything out, aside from noise. It just is, and what it is, is damnably annoying. Its totally wrecked my voice for the next few days, and i have an interview on Monday! Oh the humanity!

There is an ironic twist to this. So far, there has been one predominant thought roaming through my head throughout the ordeal; that which is our Microbiology lecturer (Jannsen, with his zeal burning in his owl-like eyes) saying to us: "you have to remember, microbes do not WANT to invade you. They have no INTENTION to make you sick!" Well, no shit, Sherlock. Me agreeing with it doesn't make my predicament any easier, just a hell lot funnier.

Did i mention i have a test on Tuesday? I have a test on tuesday. My nights are spent trying to study, which gets me tired, and i would try to sleep. The moment i relax, BOOM. Lather, rinse, repeat. For 3 freaking nights.

Somehow i can't help but be reminded of last year, when i had my worst case of sorethroat of my life. It is aroudn May as well, and i caught it like i did this year, right in the peak season for diseases. It wouldn't have been so bad, but my parents insisted on me going to the doctor. And Aussie, being such a great country that protects its toiling workers, made sure that the only clinic close enough is not open. How i miss those 24/7 polikliniks back in Ipoh. So the only choice: hospital. Which charged me an extra 100+ or so because i had to use their emergency facilities (there are no walk-in patient counters there). I still had quite a mild case, but it was cold, and it is a freaking hospital (germs floating about). Bureaucracy and other patients combined made the wait about 3 hours long. By the time it was my turn, i was already shivering, and the manageable sorethroat has became a full-fledged stabbing pain. I could barely swallow.

I think it extremely justified for me to say May is one of the worst months of my life here in Aus.

11 more months to go.