grace.kindness.peace.disruption.pain.processing.rinse.repeat.have a nice day.

Learn …

• 999 – The 911 equivalent for the UK and Ireland.
• LemSip – well known cold & flu remedy in the UK & Australia
• CBeebies – A BBC television channel aimed at children 6 and under.

Source: Wikipedia.org

Then Watch …

Then Read …
One of the true blessings of being back in the educational environment is exposure to whatever bug is currently in vogue. This being said, I'm surprised at how little I get sick. I don't take the best care of myself, and by the best care I mean mediocre care. Let's plug our new findings back into the aforementioned statement just to make it clear: I don't take mediocre care of myself. So you can understand how surprised I am when my housemates fall to the left and right of me with unfortunate illnesses as I walk through unscathed. Perhaps the positive effects of coffee and lethargy have not been studied enough.

However, this week I have not been so lucky. I have fallen ill with what some have identified as in-flu-in-za. This apparently common ailment has helped me raise my body temperature (at times) to 102+ and left my eyes sensitive to the touch – oh, and it hurts to look right, left, up, or down. A result of the having such a body temperature was a nostalgic favorite of mine – chills.

The last time I had chills was April 19, 2006 – this being the day that will live in Matthew Prentice infamy: the day I came down with malaria. Laying there shivering, my mind floated almost two years back to memories of ice packs in strategic areas of the body and with good friends caring for me as I laid on the linoleum floor. I was oh so thankful for Cami, Faye, and Michelle way back then.

Thankfully, my fever has broken today. I hope that this is the beginning of the end for this battle with the "flu" (as the kids are calling it these days).

Ok. It's apparently amateur night down in Florida. Some hooligans, perhaps ruffians, have stolen baby Jesus from a nativity scene. Now I'm not saying I don't know anything about liberating nativity scene characters, and I'm not saying I do, but what I do know is that baby Jesus is not to be touched. Shepherds? Yes. Sheep? Definitely. A camel? Extra points – especially if it ends up on top of a building. But baby Jesus? That's just poor style.

This caught my fancy today … which makes me think that I need to kick the crap out of my fancy. Anyway, here it goes …

I got out of the house this evening by tagging along with some friends to see a movie. I really didn't care what movie it would be – any movie not watched on my laptop while under the influence of narcotic painkillers would do. I've felt quite cooped up recently, seeing as I've spent the bulk of my time in my bedroom or at school. A taste of freedom and spontaneity would be good for the soul. Now, I go to a school that prides itself on finding beauty in art and culture, including movies. This being the case, I have little fear that any of my classmates would ever lead me to the next "Howard the Duck," but in any case, I would not have really cared tonight. I was not disappointed in their choice.

Long story short, the film we saw ("Lars and the Real Girl" – click for trailer) was brilliant, beautiful, and surprisingly educational. It's about this guy (Lars) that has some issues (developmental, psychological, etc.). In a strange move (for everyone but Lars) he "meets [a girl] on the Internet" who he has delivered (yes, delivered) to his house. The "girl" turns out to be a life-sized doll that becomes a transitional object (thus entering the educational aspect of the movie) for him. His brother & sister-in-law, as well as their town, end up going along with Lars as his transitional object is utilized in his development. The movie is sad and depressing at times, but has beautiful themes of humor, hope, beauty, and love. It was actually quite helpful as I had to read two articles about object relations (including transitional objects) last week for class. Seeing this movie helped the articles make even more sense.

So, in short, if you have a bum knee and want to get out, tag along with some friends to watch "Lars and the Real Girl." Or, if you're mostly healthy and are willing to relinquish $7-9 to a high school student in a funny hat, then watch "Lars and the Real Girl." In either case (which should cover most everyone – who doesn't love emotionally awkward high schoolers, after all?), it comes with my recommendation.

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I've been cut, drugged, and virtually mugged. On a positive note, I've gotten some great sleep over the past few days.

So for those of you who may be out of the loop (which may be many), I had knee surgery on Thursday of this, my first reading week at MHGS. In retrospect, this may not have been the best decision as I did not consider that though I'd be down for a few days due to the surgery, I'd also be on thought-inhibiting drugs during all of those days. This is a convenient way to procrastinate on an important paper, but it is ever becoming an annoyance as the due date is Monday.

In any case, the surgery was an apparent success. I'll know more after a yet to be scheduled follow up appointment. Both knees were affected by meniscal tears, and the left knee carried a small cyst (see the white below) that bothered me. No more. All gone. Good riddance.

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I have been blessed by many people since going under the knife. Thanks to Catherine for keeping me company, preparing a few meals, and for worrying for me. Thanks to my parents for their parental concern and get well basket. And thanks to the guys in my house for helping out with so many odds and ends – from food to ice.

Click on either of these two photos to see the album of surgery pics. There are a few good ones of me in the operative get up getting my knees shaved. Good stuff!