Well, if there's trouble to get into you can be sure that I'll find a way to get in on the action. You'd think a small city girl (just in from the country) wouldn't be so anxious to make a name in town. But alas, I now have the distinct honor of bringing the dreaded Swine Flu to our fair city (an honor equally shared with my two children and two children of a friend who traveled with us).

How Did We Get It?

We went to a church camp. I was counselor to 15 thirteen-year-old girls. In one afternoon a third of them began to complain of a fever. I started getting a little concerned at that point, but wanted to pack my bags a run for the hills by the next morning.

At lights out, one girl coughed softly in her bunk. Every time I rolled over in my cot (which by the way was 12 inches too narrow and rolling over consisted of rolling to one side, scooting to the center of the cot, then finishing the roll over process), I heard another cougher join the chorus. I literally seemed as if an unseen "thing" was walking from one bunk to the next infecting each child, and yes I wanted to pack up and run! But it was too late for me already...

What to Expect!

1. A fever: Our fevers ranged from 99 to 105 degrees. They did respond quite readily to Tylenol and Ibuprofin for the most part.

2. A cough: Absolutely the worst part of the swine flu is the cough. All of us have coughed excessively until we vomited. I swore I could've done 1000 sit-ups a day and not had sorer stomach muscles. To be honest, I had hoped for the same results! lol Unfortunately I'm not sporting a six-pack after a week of intense "work-outs."

3. Variables: Sore throats were a given for each of us. Some of us have had the "hershey quirts" or "boot scootin' boogie" (whatever pet name you prefer), other's have vomited (mostly from coughing), or had a headache. These symptoms were more minor than others.

4. The masked parade: We went to the hospital to be tested and were treated normally, UNTIL the rapid flu test results came back indicating that we were all positive for the Influenza A virus. This is the first indicator that you might be Swine Flu positive. That's when the doctor and nurses appeared clad in masks and carrying one for each of us to wear. The funniest part was when the doctor attempted to figure out a way to look at each of our throats without having us remove the masks! lol Since it's impossible, we removed the masks and he did a long distance peek routine.

5. Alien status: Armed with masks and clear instructions to stay out of the public as much as possible and prescriptions for Tamiflu, we marched from the emergency room, past an EMT who responded by fixing owl eyes on us and backing around the doctor's station as we passed.

Unfortunately Wal Mart needed an hour to fill the prescription. That meant two trips into the store (since I was too sick to sit there for an hour and suffocating in my mask). I have to say, people tend to stop in their tracks and stare when they see you walk into the store masked, and react even more violently if they ask what it's all about and you say, "Swine Flu."

6. 500 Questions: If you don't know who you've come in contact with you will have recalled every minor detail by the time you've been questioned by the nurse, the doctor, the local health department, the state health department, etc.

7. The Waiting Game: Once you've been tagged as being likely to have swine flu, it's a waiting game for the final results to come in. Ours were very prompt. We were notified by the state health department that we were indeed positively infected with Swine Flu and again instructed to stay away from the public.

8. Smart Friends: Don't worry, your friends won't drop in for a visit. But email and text messages begin to roll. The smart comments are endless. I finally hushed them by saying, "It's a good thing it's the Swine Flu and not the Donkey Flu or you'd be the one laying in bed!" lol But maybe you choose sweeter friends than I ;)

9. Support: I was blessed with some wonderful people who brought groceries to my door, checked on us regularly, and a local restaurant even sent meals to my family. There really are some wonderful people out there who stand by you when the chips are down. I thank God for each and every special action of love and care (even my smart aleck friends who were attempting to make me laugh)!

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Tomorrow this little piggy who stayed home gets to go out into the world! And joy of joys, after being inprisoned with two other little piggies for a week I managed to not not turn into the big bad wolf! lol I was tempted a few times. My bedroom became the camping grounds for the week. One sick piggy clacked away at the computer incessantly chatting with online friends, and one little piggy ransacked my room putting face prints on all my mirrors and inventing new hiding places for everything I'll need to use for the next month! Meanwhile I tried to rest, and give the appropriate comfort Mom's give to sick children..... so glad it's over!