Thursday 23 July 2009

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...

8 comments:

  1. You always have such interesting post Rose. I have chosen not to buy into the fear mongering that the press is participating in over the swine flu. Is it any worse than any of the other flus? How many people had the other flus over the past year and how many died from it. How many people had colds over the past year? The swine flu appears to be pretty mild. They are saying it COULD mutate. Here in Canada we have been hearing about the bird flu for the past few years and west nile disease and warning us that they could become pandemic. Neither have occurred. Yes, something like this could happen. We could have a massive earthquake here, there could be a Tsunami, and pigs might fly (excuse the pun). I call this fear mongering and refuse to buy into it. I travel on the buses almost every day and every time we go out we risk catching something but we can't buy into the fear - that is a sure way of catching what is going around. Take good care of yourself, wash your hands and the rest is up to God, the Universe, the Goddess, whatever you call it. It is one of those things we have no control over.
    Be healthy. I like pigs too, they are funny little characters!

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  2. And we wonder why Mother Nature and her beloved animals are paying back humanity for the state of the the people that walk our Earth.....

    Money, selfishness and greed, the root of all evil upon this planet, too many are unconscious to the connection of all in spirit, that not only the pigs are us, but everything upon this planet is of us.

    When we regain the love for all we will finally have our garden of Eden......

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  3. Here in the U.S. on last night's news they just announced that they are looking for several thousand volunteers to test the vaccine, so I would say it's on the horizon. And, you're correct; things always do work out!

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  4. I work in a hospital... and get DAILY H1N1 updates. lol, it's hard not to panic with that. Since children come in and cough and snot all over me every day, I've been careful to wash hands a lot!
    We have a checklist that was sent to us regarding symptoms to be aware of that are indicative of possible H1N1 flu symptoms and not just the regular flu- would you like me to copy it here for you?
    Really, out of 300 cases in Nova Scotia, only 9 were hospitalized. More people die from the regular old flu than this one every year.
    Take a deep breath- you will be fine :)

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  5. Leone - Thanks for that lovely compliment! I guess they have to tell us how bad each bug can be because there is always the possibility one could be the biggie....

    Gemel - It's a dog eat dog world and an evolutionary arms race... One day something will evolve and get us...

    Holly - Thanks for that, it is good to hear that the Brits arn't being too bold...

    Ms Yogini - I bet those updates don't help at all! I have looked at the stats and they are interesting... That you have less chance of dying from it if you get it, but you are more likely to get it....Would love to see the symptom list being a spoddy science geek....

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  6. We, being a vets office, get the Ministry of Agriculture updates and they said from the very beginning that it isn't the Armageddon the media is making it out to be...the worst is does to the pigs is cause abortion....beyond that, sniffles and its very self-limiting...

    yes, it could mutate...so could anything...look at MRSA...and why did Staph. mutate? Because we are eejits and try to meddle in things that are not for us to meddle in....like dole out antibiotics for a sniffle or create vaccines to appease the panic-mongered masses. 'Flu viruses are constantly mutating..this winter's 'flu is different from the last one...and so will H1N1...

    Ah...you may have gathered this is part of my soapbox repertoire....;)

    xo

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  7. excellent- i will post it here monday :)

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  8. Thanks Ms Yogini! I am sure others will be interested as well.... (I can't be the only science geek?)

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