Eventful Week -

Well, far be it for me to have had a peaceful return to the island. My returning present was a lovely bout of gastroentitis. After a peaceful and entirely healthy Saturday, I inaugerated Sunday with severe dehydration, high fevers, delusions which involved a rousing chorus all intoning with great seriousness "There was an old woman who lived in a shoe", and fainting spells.

After I lost consciousness for several minutes, my family decided not to believe me when I assured them that a few ginger ales and some sleep would cure my ills. Instead, I was half dragged to the car and dropped off in the Emergency Room of the hospital. Now as an indication of just how bad I must have looked, you should know that the King Edward Memorial Emergency Ward is often overflowing, and even if you arrived with a limb falling off, you would still have a two hour wait. But in this case, over my protestations that I was "just fine now, really," (by which I meant, "I'm conscious, really, so take me home," I was immediately booked into the emergency room, depribed of several vials of blood for testing, and hooked up to a machine and given over the course of several hours, multiple bags of fluids, and lots of medication. As usual, the hospital was not the most fun I'd had, ever, but the nurses and docs were quite nice (which I did not appreciate as much then as I did later).

After my hospital visit, I returned home to have a week's worth of all the symptoms of the flu, coming on a day to day selection, so that each day highlighted a new symptom of the flu in glorious detail - day one - nausea, day two - aches all over, day three - violent headache, day four - whooziness, and day five - extreme fatigue. But, thankfully, the worst seems to be over, and I've been back at work this week, which rocks.

Today was a fun day, if still fairly brisk. The new computer upgrades continue to taunt me, however, by sheer force of will, I beat it back into submission. One of our several Julia Donaldson shipments finally arrived, so that we are somewhat stocked up in preparation for her book signing on Saturday. It looks to be a mob scene on Saturday. We had a stream of sad-eyed parents coming in over the last few days, who, like me, were unable to get tickets to the instantaneously sold-out "Gruffalo and Friends" book reading. I've already gathered together all of our considerable Julia Donaldson books in preparation, in spite of the fact that it probably won't make much of difference to six year old Madam, who will probably be far more occupied with her Christmas Baby Born doll.

Big Brother made the fatal Christmas error of getting Madam the must-have Baby Born dolls, which like all the good casinos of Vegas, then keep you on the hook forever purchasing Baby Born supplies. Poor Big Brother spent all of Sunday attempting to flush out Baby's insides after repeated feedings, leakings, arm-squeezing tears, and squeaks of joy. He grew less and less impressed with Baby Born as the day worn on, and I think a little gleefully, sent Madam home with the lovely hippopotamus of joy :)

Bookstore Central continues on in its usual speed, including our daily 2007 Lullapalooza Festival of rock (at least this is the term used by the office accountants who inhabit Central's upstairs, and whose office configuration is apparently laid out in such a way, so that every desk lies directly on top of one of Bookstore Central's speakers, and thus vibrates with every note of School House Rock. We were also gifted by a vist by two of our favorite readers today, the Dashing Gentleman (DG) and Many Interests Man (MIM). Between the two of them, I am convinced that they must have the most amazing and varied libraries in all of Bermy. They are among the select who have standing order piles from which they come weekly to fish through, and add to with new orders. And they always get the most interesting books. MIM is currently going through a yogism faze and has every conceivable book on the subject to be found in print. DG, possessor of several wonderful hats of the 20s and 30s era, always gets wonderful historical books; his most recent selections include books on Mozart, the Elizabethan era, the most photographed women of all time, and a biography of Duke Ellington.

Anyway, fellow bookstore minions, it is to bed with this minion, the better to carry out nefarious book deeds upon the morrow. Take care of yourselves, and keep on reading!