Funny how a little virus can knock you flat on your back for a couple of days. This past weekend our family joined up with my brother-in-law and his girlfriend in the Shenandoahs for a nice weekend of hiking and just relaxing in the mountains. Of course, within 3 hours of arriving, I was vomiting like I’ve never vomited before in my life, and spend the next 11 hours running to the bathroom every 15 minutes. As fate would have it, my wife joined me around 1am and we began the sick dance until later the next day.
I don’t think there is anything worse than being sick in a place other than your home, nor the feeling that you are 2.5 hours from your bed (and your own bathroom). Add to it that you have a 9 month old child to take care of, and you are almost overwhelmed by a feeling of complete helplessness. Before E’s arrival, we probably would have sucked it up and stayed the long weekend, but you when you are moving at a snail’s pace, and bright lights and loud noises make you nauseous, you want to be on your home turf. So, we piled into the car and hightailed it over the river and through the woods home.
The point of this little anecdote is that we’re back in commission. I have been completely out of what’s going on with the world, with the obvious exception of the going-ons in Haiti. The media coverage (TV, radio, social, and online) have done a great job in getting the stories and images out, as well as driving donations. Speaking of which, I read that text-based donations have surpassed $22M which is amazing, but also shows the power of mobile-based campaigns. I’m also very impressed with the Red Cross’ social media participation – they definitely get the power of it, and have figured out how to do it right.
Anyway, time to hit it hard and play some serious catch-up. I hope everyone is feeling healthy and motivated.
