Update 1 - London

I was in London with my father from the 11th to the 13th. In the end, due to a lack of motivation and energy, poor time management and me being sick (I think it was the bi bim bap that I'd eaten earlier), we didn't actually get a lot done.

However, I saw the Skin exhibition at the Wellcome Museum, which was really enjoyable and quite fascinating; I discovered another great restaurant, Giraffe; we went on a speed boat along the River Thames, and of course that was a lot of fun; I finally saw Harrods, and absolutely hated it (never, ever again - I don't like pretension, as we all know).

Oh, and you can't visit London without seeing a show, so we watched Hair, and it was so good (maybe that's a wanton use of italics, but the 'so' needed to be emphasised). Definitely the best musical I've seen since Avenue Q, and I'm tempted to see it again (much like with Avenue Q). So, all in all, the three days in London weren't as packed as they could have been, and the trip was more eventful than I'd expected it would be, but seeing a great musical made it all worth it.

On a final note, I visited 6 coffee shops in three days (three of which were on the last day), and three M&Ss in that time, too. Quite impressive, I'd say.

Perspective

It's strange how I tend to forget what it's like to be ill now, but then when an illness jumps on me I'm dragged down even more into the depths of its misery.

This academic year, I've only been ill three times - one Swine flu-type thing, one bad normal flu which involved my voice disappearing before the Spanish Oral exam, and now this. Mainly a cold, but with the side-effect of constant fatigue. I'd liken it to having miniature weights attached to my eyelids rendering me practically unable to keep my eyes fully open.

However, this is nothing. This is a minor illness that will pass in days and will leave me feeling nothing more than relieved in the end. I'm lucky, I know it. Even in the years when I had a poor immune system, it was minute compared to Lucy's condition. I can't complain about whatever ailment I may be suffering at the moment, for suffering is not the word. Lucy is the one suffering; I'm incredibly fortunate to not be in incessant, unbearable pain.

So, now I put things into perspective. I have no right to complain.

Dear Lucy,

Today's your birthday. Well, it should be. You should be having a party at the weekend, opening all your rainbow-coloured pencils and generally being incredibly happy. But you're not.

Five days after your 14th birthday, you fell victim to a baffling and rare ear problem. This Monday you will have been ill for two years. You've missed some of the most dramatic, stressful yet amazing times so far. It just hasn't been the same without you.

In reality, it's not your 16th birthday tomorrow. You haven't even had your 15th birthday. Chronologically, you may be 16, but I know that really you haven't even had the chance to live your life properly as a 14 year old.

When you get better, I promise you I'll make both birthdays special. We'll have a huge party, celebrate your new lease of life and get you back on track. I'll be here for you throughout, always. I'll do everything I can to help you repair this.

I just hope you're not too upset today. Remember: today isn't your birthday, it's just another day. But some day, with any luck in the near future, it will be. And things will all be on their way to being okay again.

Sending you love, happiness and good health,
Abby
xxxxxxxxxxxx

Okay, so, I'm ill for the first time in six months...

And I'm off school at the moment because I know that there's absolutely no way I could manage to learn feeling like this. Allow me to explain: it started last Friday with a cold that came on very quickly, followed by a cough. This became very bad over the weekend but I pushed on and tried to just deal with it. It was still horrible on Monday but I came into school because it was photo day and otherwise I might have had a blank spot in the year book (though my picture will probably have red eyes and nostrils). Going to school did help me feel a bit better, but the whole week it's been hard to concentrate because if it's not incessant coughing, sneezing or nose-running, it's the throbbing head and strange, ineffable aches.

I'm good at hiding my feelings, physical or emotional, hence the fact that when I was run over in the road by a bicycle I just got up and limped on, trying not to complain to anyone. But I knew today that if I went to school I wouldn't be able to learn very well at all, so it's better just to recover and catch up. It's only one day, anyway. My cold and cough have mostly gone away, but this has left the other symptoms worse. My body feels kind of empty which makes it hard to do things, so at the moment I'm resigned to the sofa or my bed.

I'm not sure how I'm going to feel about eating. I'm kind of hungry and there's something nice in the fridge but often when I'm ill it's completely different when the food's presented to me. It's incredibly odd for me to have lost my appetite so it's a sign that I'm really rather ill. Normally by now on a school day I would have at least had a chocolate bar as my mid-morning stack and would be waiting for lunch.

This is unrelated but weird. Before today I had no idea what The Lovely Bones was about. At all. Yesterday, I helped devise and performed in a drama piece that has exactly the same plot as The Lovely Bones. I want to read it now. I also have The Sisterhood, Hannibal, Glamour, Company and Love it! to read. That's arranged on the quality of reading material, I think.