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01/26/2007: "Damned Rhinovirus"

Yes, it's Cold and Flu Season here at the Home Office. I was complaining about how cold my house was, and all the things I was going to do in the future to fix it, but the ol' Cold Virus didn't want to wait.

They say that the average common cold lasts about a week; mild ones fade after a couple of days while the nasty guys can hang on for two weeks or longer. I'm on Day Eight now, and it still has a pretty good grip. The runny nose - fuzzy head stage is gone, but the damned thing has taken residence in my lungs and is looking to homestead. Let's just say that between my croaky voice and tubercular cough, no one misses the fact that something's wrong with Stan.

I have one of those jobs where the progress of the project is closely linked to the progress of Stan. I'd just love to spend a week on the couch with chicken soup and lemon tea, but that's just not gonna happen. A lot of people would drag themselves into work out of a sense of inflated importance or a fear that their job is at risk. They even have a name for it - "presenteeism". Fortunately, I'm a pretty mobile guy - give me a data port for my laptop and ready access to coffee and I'm good to go. I took a recovery day Monday, but since then I've been moving from location to location using the virtual office facilites Boeing so conveniently offers. This way, I can get in my work without infecting my team. Of course, the others in the Hoteling Center are less than happy ...

The worst part of being sick is that it cuts down what you can get done in a day, and the biggest impact has been here at the MB. You just don't feel very creative when you're under the weather. A quiet weekend and lots of fluids should have me back to my prolific self by Monday!