This is my first week back to work after being hammered by pneumonia, and I may have actually started back a little too early.  I still tire very easily, am constantly dehydrated no matter how much I drink and I have random sweats, but no fever.  However, I was suffering pretty badly from cabin fever, so at least I feel a bit like a normally functional human being by returning to the ‘real world’.

Awaiting me in that real world are two lawns badly in need of cutting and and a short list of household chores that slowly grew in my convalescence.   Being sick is the worst.

Still, there are things to look forward to in my near future.  For example, our tickets to this weekend’s TFC match also admit us to the CNE for no extra charge, so assuming we can find a babysitter, it’s a relatively cheap afternoon/evening out for us.  I assume I’ll feel well enough to brave the Zipper with a bellyful of deep-fried delights.  Of particular interest is the Krispy Kreme Cheeseburger, which is exactly what it sounds like; a cheeseburger served between two donuts.

Rumour has it that The Arkells will be playing a free show later on in the CNE’s run, so if anyone is interested in heading down there to check them out, let me know.  Since the CNE marks the unofficial end of summer here in Toronto, why not celebrate it with a great outdoor rock concert and some food that will help fatten you up for the long winter to come.

So after having had a bad headache for over a week, I came down with flu-like symptoms a week ago today.  After work last Thursday, the body ache and fever showed up and I ended up having to take Friday off, but I figured it was just a matter of time until I felt better.  Since we had plans for the weekend up in Ottawa that couldn’t be rescheduled, figured I would feel better shortly and had built-in babysitters in the form of my parents for Sebby, we headed up on Saturday morning.

By Saturday afternoon, my symptoms had taken a turn for the worse.  With Danielle in Ottawa helping her sister pick out a wedding dress, I left Sebby with my parents and headed off to the hospital with trouble breathing and an astronomic fever.

Those of you familiar with our cottage and Shawville, Quebec might be surprised to hear that it even has an emergency ward, let alone a good one.  My expectations weren’t very high going in, but from now on, I’m tempted to drive the 5 hours for every medical emergency. In the three hours I was there, I was quickly seen, given x-rays and blood tests and diagnosed before being drugged up and sent packing back home.

I was kind of concerned when I first spoke with my doctor as my symptoms seemed indicative of a particularly bad seasonal flu, but it wasn’t flu season.  She couldn’t rule out West Nile, which was my greatest fear.

I was shocked by the diagnosis; pneumonia!  Apparently it stood out like a sore thumb on my chest x-rays and fully explained everything.

Since the diagnosis, I’ve been on antibiotics and just suffering through the end-phase symptoms of fever, fatigue, body ache and more fever.  I swear I’ve never sweat so much at night in my entire life, and I feel like I’m constantly drinking to keep my fluids up.  I’ll probably be off work all week, but I’m finally able to start helping out at home after WAY too long without being able to hold my baby boy.

The only big plus of this whole mess is that my plan to start eating and living better got a bit of a boost with some high-fever weight loss.  In a little less than a week, I’ve managed to drop nearly half of my extra body weight, but someone will probably tell me that’s not the best weight to lose.

So, sorry for the rambly post… I’m still a little woozy in the ol’ noggin, but I hope to be right as rain in a few more days.

Those who know me (and not even just those who know me well) are very familiar with my less-than-healthy eating habits.  My love of microwaved hot dogs (4 at a time, no less) served on slices of white bread is legendary, as are my tastes in the decadence of fast food.  Let’s not even talk about my love of potato chips.

Now that I’m in my mid-30s and a dad, all of that is catching up with me.  With my activity levels dropping over the last year, I’ve noticed two things growing at an alarming rate; my general sense of lethargy and my waistline.

This week I began the small steps on a new path to feeling and looking better by cutting WAY back on the garbage I eat.  I’ve committed to bringing homemade lunches to work, cutting back on my evening snacks and drinking more and more water and milk and less pop and sugary drinks.

Since I only started on Saturday, early indications of better health are probably more psychosomatic than anything, but I do think that my digestion is improving and I feel more rational levels of hunger at more appropriate times.

The next step will be to slowly reintroduce regular physical activity into my daily routine in the hopes of being able to play some soccer this winter without dying.  My daily routine already includes quite a bit of walking, which is great and something I enjoy, but I need to step it up a bit with some running and general fitness training.

Hopefully I’ll start to see some tangible results over the coming weeks that will fuel my desire to keep going and even step things up a notch.

So, if you see me out and about cheating on myself, feel free to slap that greasy burger out of my mouth and demand I drop and give you 20.  Just make sure it’s actually me, cause I won’t bail you out of jail.