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The mucus-production that has gone on overdrive due to a perpetual cold and cough I’ve had for the past few months has rendered me unable to smell anything. Because I’m unable to taste food, mealtimes are hardly enjoyable. In some ways, it has helped though, like in taking out the garbage. I’m now practically immune to its nauseating effects. Changing the baby’s diapers is tolerable as well. Once before, I had to clean up after myself after getting sick from changing the baby.

My olfactory impairment came in handy yesterday too. I’ve had no luck getting rid of a clog in the kitchen sink Monday night. The massive amounts of Drano I poured down the drain didn’t work at all. My sister-in-law (who previously lived with us) said the only way to get rid of that type of clog is to use a plumbing snake on the drainage pipe from the side of the house. She warned that it was a messy, back-breaking and smelly affair. I put it off for the following morning. The stack of dirty dishes would have to wait.

So yesterday morning I unscrewed the end cap of the drainage pipe through a small vent for the house’s crawl space. I plunged the snake up the pipe and tugged a couple of times. Then I went in the house and checked the sink. Surprisingly, that did the trick. Sure, I was a little filthy but the whole thing only took about fifteen minutes. And I didn’t throw up.

I’ve all but forgotten about this section of my blog. I’ve taken a few pictures with the T616 over the past six months or so however, and here are some of them:

  
Left: SFMOMA from the Metreon; Right: Son no. 2 mimicking Harold and the Purple Crayon

  
Left: Gundam head and the boys; Right: Easter bunny with the baby

  
These Star Wars action figures suspiciously look too much like this guy. Well, the one on the right looks more like Oscar Goldman, the Bionic Man’s boss.

  
Left: Came across this clever theft deterrent (it’s fake, guys); Right: Receiving respiratory therapy after an asthma attack.

I picked up my new glasses yesterday from the optometrist. I needed new ones for my herculean eighteen-month old wrenched apart my eyeglass frames (I knew I shouldn’t have handed them to him as an appeasement gesture). When I had my eye exam a couple of weeks ago, the optometrist told me that my vision has actually gotten better! So yay!

The wife and the two younger kids are sick but I’m thankful that I haven’t been afflicted so I’m able to care for them (thanks also to my understanding boss who had me have the day off). The wife is also well enough to attend classes. The eldest is fine as well. He would have been majorly disappointed if he had missed this week’s school and church activities.

When I brought the baby in to the doctor’s yesterday, he was diagnosed as having bad ear infections and pink eye. He was prescribed meds to take care of the bacteria that may have caused both infections. I’m happy that he’s getting treated for it but I came away from the doctor’s office with even better news.

A couple of months ago, the doctor found the baby to be dangerously underweight. It was little surprise to me for he had rejected cow’s milk and other substitutes after having been weaned off my wife’s milk. The doctor devised a plan of action: to feed him as much fatty foods as we can and to continue to encourage him to drink milk and juice. The good news yesterday was that he had gained 2.7 pounds since that visit. He’s on his way to normal growth. I was able to successfully get him to drink a 6 oz. cup of chocolate milk a day. I think it also helped that he saw that his older brother loved the stuff. Even at this young age, he already looks up to his brother!

I got the red spot on my nose as a result of over-agressive snot-blowing. My thumb slipped from a comfortable grip on my nose and scraped off the upper epidermal layer of the tip of my nose. I guess it was time to cut my fingernails.

I’ve had a cough/cold for three weeks now. I finally saw a doctor today. He said I had bronchitis. He prescribed me antibiotics and robitussin with codeine. The pharmacist told me the antibiotics causes diarrhea and the codeine causes constipation, which balances out, I suppose.

This one-handed keyboard spells relief for people such as me who need a break from two-handed typing. With this newfangled contraption my right hand can do all the typing, giving my sprained left hand a much needed rest. Even after my hand heals, the FrogPad would come in handy, especially when I carry the baby and code at the same time. For concept alone, I give it two thumbs up.