another late-starter. breakfast and a few house chores and then i pack my bags, put my list in my left front pocket, press play to the yeah yeah yeahs, and leave the house.
first stop: the bread shop. a stick of sourdough for my lunch. they always ask me if i like their sourdough. it tires me. always so desperate for feedback. why? the more i contemplate it, the more it worries me. yes, i like your fucking bread and that's why i buy it. but really it's because you're the only bread shop around and that's your least offensive loaf. of course, i do not say this.
next stop: the book shop. looking for birthday presents. one for my mum, whose birthday was last week. i'm so slack. i end up getting a cd and dvd instead. lots of indecision. what does mum like?
then it's a take-away coffee from the black star bakery. as usual the barista is cute and the coffee is good.
then it's a bus to the city, where i have to exchange some syd film fest tickets. the queue is not long, but the wait is. i'm guessing everyone was selecting their entire flexi-pass tickets then and there, as they flipped through the program, taking up to 10 minutes at the ticket booth. frustrating. people queuing were on edge. staff were fixing lights and displays. it's busy, there's a lot of commotion, it's getting late, where has my day gone?
another bus trip to uni. recently on buses i can't help thinking about 'swine flu'. i get emails from my uni about it, there's posters everywhere, its the hot topic. i'm sharing many buses, buildings, streets, swimming pools, and trains with people. but i can't really care. i'm more offended by the warnings and fear-mongering than i would be if someone sneezed in my face. here is an excerpt from an email sent to all staff and students:
If you:
Have a fever, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or cough;
Please stay at home and away from UNSW.
so harsh. "stay away from us you diseased fucking scum!" then it goes into more detail about the flu that's gonna wipe us all out.
The swine flu virus is spread by sneeze or cough droplets and the breath of
someone infected. Droplets can land directly on a person, and on surfaces such as
hands, pens, or money. They can survive on these surfaces and then be transferred
by hands to someone else.
You can decrease the spread of influenza in the community and workplace by
1 Hand washing for 10 seconds with soap and water or with an alcohol based cleaner until dry
2. Covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then putting it in the bin.
3. Avoid touching your face, eyes or nose unless you have just cleaned your hands.
4. Avoid contact with sick people.
5. Getting the seasonal flu vaccine. This vaccine does not prevent swine flu, but
preventing the season flu will decrease illness, anxiety and disruption in society.
my former colleagues in health promotion (disease preparedness) will be creaming themselves over this potential pandemic. they're probably manning those stupid hotlines.
incidentally, the hotline is 1802007, in case you've walked into a sneeze today. it really should be something that translates into a word. something like 794639 (as in swiney). i suspect the hotline was created in 2007 though, the year of the pandemic that never arrived.
i find point 5 very contentious though. does getting a flu shot really decrease anxiety and disruption in society? probably not as much as telling people that every time they handle pens or cash they are risking their lives.
anyway, enough ranting. lunch time is truly over. time to write something academic.
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