Revenge of the Pigs

I quite like pigs and it often seems to me that of all farm animals they are the ones with the biggest sense of humour. I remember pigs nibbling my feet in my wellies at local farms. I am very fond of pigs. I don't think it is their fault that their flu and our flu have mingled.

Cornwall is an out of the way sort of a place and I guess we were insulated for a while from Swine Flu. No cases for ages but then one and then another. A few schools affected here and there. As it starts to pick up across the country in a big way, the cases start to trickle in around the county.

I returned to work after my holiday to the slightly disturbing news that swine flu has now reached my world here. Two people at work have it and another hasn't got it yet but someone they are close does. So all of a sudden, three little infected people I could have come into contact with while they were infectious.

One of them even tried to return to work, still sick and sniveling. Why would you do that? Oh did I forget to say? My company doesn't pay full wage if you are sick and I won't get any sick pay till I have been there somewhat longer. So no wonder they tried to come back and no wonder the other person who may be infectious is in work.

Nice company eh?

My company has just decided to get hand wipes and things in to try and make people feel that they are nice and proactive. This might convince some people but it doesn't really convince me. People are infectious before symptoms show and it is very easy to spread this sort of flu. From those three potential germ carriers at work, a lot of others could already have contracted it.

Over the next few weeks the workforce there could be decimated and trying to slow rates of internal infection was their only way of stopping that really, but they acted too late and now it is the hands of chance. And the air conditioning...

Does this bother me? Of course I don't like any of this. I would rather not have swine flu if I can possibly help it but if I am going to get it, I would rather get it earlier than in the middle of winter. Also now the virus is relatively mild, it could mutate and gain killing force and this has happened before with previous swine flu epidemics. Getting it now will give some immunity if it does turn nastier.

In Britain they keep saying that a vaccine is close and we will have it by winter but I have my doubts as do articles I have read on the net. It seems only the Brits are claiming this and there appears to be no back up evidence. Please prove me wrong if you can....

My potential getting sick is now in the hands of my immune system, currently decimated by nice lump killing antibiotics, and chance / fate. I am not going to panic. I am not going to suddenly start dosing myself with everything under the sun. I have tissues on my desk and I shall freely hand them out to any less organised snivelly snotty person who comes my way. I am not going to try and get this bug but if I do, the world won't end.

And people are being snotty. All of a sudden everyone seems to have sore throats and bunged up noses. People look worried when someone sneezes. People are scared. I have faith, not in my immune system but in something else... no matter what, things will work out...