I get my first terminal illness in Japan... influenza!

The flu, influenza, whatever you want to call it, I got it. Started feeling sick Monday, and was hit hard by it yesterday. It was so bad, my manager sent me home and told me to go to the doctor this morning, which I did.

Now a flu in America means take some pills, drink some liquids, be ready in a few days or by the end of a week. Not in Japan. When I got there, I had to put a thermometer in my armpit for 2 minutes, to confirm I did have this fever of mine. Then the doctor felt by neck and jaws, looked in my throat with a light, and use the stethoscope to check my breathing. All normal stuff right? Until what happens next...

So he told me what he had to do, that I would get something up my nose, and he kept pointing to the bottom of his eye, which freaked me out, but knowing there was no way getting out of it, I manned up. So he gets this long thin qtip and just keeps going up my nose, further than I thought anything could go up it (those days as a child never prepared me for this. OK days as a teenager....last week?).

Then he said I need to do an IV for an hour which freaked me out, because it would be my first IV since getting one to put me to sleep during my wisdom tooth extraction. I could not stop my stomach from wanting to throw up, but maintained my composure and got the needle in my arm and relaxed for just 20 minutes, since I thought I would be starting work in 40 mins. The first 2 mins or so, the needle was SOOO cold, then it felt like nothing. There was a few minutes of burning and itching, but that went away and I was done as soon as it started. They diagnosed me with influenza, gave me some pills (including one that has made children in Japan, dive on the ground or start yelling randomly, AWESOME!) and told me to stay home until Wednesday.

Which leads me to right here with nothing to do outside, because I can't be around other people, nor be outside. Regardless, I felt you would get a rise out of seeing me on my "deathbed".

The doctor was even nice enough to take these pics with my cell phone!