It finally happened!

Cambodia is where dreams come true.

Ok, not really, it's actually a very poor country where people have been oppressed, tortured and exposed to the evils of several intense and homocidal regimes. Because of all the turmoil - oh yeah, and the wars that have left landmines scattered about the forests STILL - the country has little to no functional infrastructure, for things like roads and telephones. And so many of the people here are followers of Buddhism or Hinduism or animism and dont have the peace or hope that comes from knowing Jesus. So it's very sad.

But, thanks to tourists like me, some areas are beginning to pick up. Siem Reap, the town nearest the temple ruins at Angkor Wat is now the country's busiest, cleanest and safest city, with travelers from around the world coming in by the thousands, bringing industry and dollars to the area. The local businesses depend on this income and recognize the role tourists are playing in their economic development and as such, are very accomodating.

For example, we booked a trip via the internet (Expedia or some such) and found a deal on a flight/hotel package. Part of the package included airport transfers to/from our hotel. I was figuring this would mean a shuttle van from the airport with us and 9 other tourists, packing us into town and making the rounds of the various hotels. But no!

You know how I always say "some day I want to be one of those people at the airport getting greeted by a driver holding a sign with my name on it?" (I'm especially prone to saying this when I'm at the Vegas airport...for CES or otherwise).

Well that "some day" was TODAY! We exited the customs check point at the Siem Reap airport and rounded the corner to exit the terminal and there she was: a lovely young lady holding a sign with my name on it. (Ok, technically it had The BF's name on it, "& party", but that still counts! I'm "& party"!)

Her counterpart grabbed our bags and showed us to our car, where they had chilled bottled water and cool towels waiting for us. What a lovely way to enter a country. Thank you Cambodia.

Singapore is like a hangover

You know when you're hungover, you feel tired and achy and icky and weird. And it's hard to focus. And bright lights and loud noises hurt your head. Yeah.

The root cause of this, of course, is the dehydration that comes from drinking too much. And with the long plane trip, lack of good sleep and hot hot sweaty weather here, I have become a bit dehydrated.

Anyone who has been to my desk in Seattle has seen the evidence of my regular water consumption: there is a large pink cup and a large water bottle on my desk at all times. I take them to and from the kitchen several times a day to fill them up.

In Singapore, I have only a miniature little water bottle that I fill and refill often. And it has taken several days to get caught up on my water consumption, to the point that I don't feel completely cruddy. 

Due to my experience living on the west coast, with many beloved family and friends on the east coast and my regular cross-country travels, I underestimated the impact of jet lag. I may have even scoffed (at least in my head. Usually.) at the wishes of "good luck with the jet lag". I dont know if it's because I'm going the opposite way, or because of the time and route that I flew or if it's just because it's so hot here.....whatever it is, this jet lag mess is no joke.

But I'm powering through and today is much better. I'm fairly functional, staying awake at my desk and might even have the energy to walk home from the train station (instead of taking a bus). 

It's funny how God truly gives us things in life to prepare us for what's to come. Only in this case, I didn't think that all those times I went to work hungover would prepare me for my international experience. (Fritha, Pickle, Pie - I'm looking at you). 

STILL Can't. Focus. Or Breathe.

Updates from the sinusally-infected: Interesting new side effects surfaced today.

Due to the mouth-breathing and the sinus meds, I developed perma-thirst. To quench perma-thirst, I ingested LOTS of fluids. As a result of pounding all the fluids, I had to go to the bathroom FREQUENTLY today. It worked out ok I guess...I had to go to the bathroom about as frequently as I needed to refill my water bottle, so I could do both in one trip up from my desk.

Despite the frequent hydration, the mouth-breathing also caused some dry lippage. So now I have dry and slightly chapped lips, that sting a little when I eat. I'm applying lip balm often, but until my status as an HMB changes, the lips are sorta out of luck.

The good news, I dont feel TOTALLY cruddy, just in the stuffy head --- medicine head---stuffy head---medicine head swing. I'm fully able to go to work and (apparently) blog. Though I'm making no promises regarding my level of coherence.

Can't. Focus. Or Breathe.

It's official.

Despite my best efforts at...what's the word...avoiding? preventing? staving off? this disease, I do, in fact, have a sinus infection. As diagnosed by me.

My symptoms: headache, sore face, stuffy nose (but no dripping).
Additional side effects: lack of...what...oh...yeah...focus, temporary heavy mouth-breathing, inability to participate in conversations, lack of focus, perma-thirst (likely due to aforementioned mouth-breathing) and AWESOME husky, nasal voice.

My Tylenol Sinus wore off exactly 8 minutes ago and my head is sorta throbbing/sorta spinning.

(...long pause while I stare at the Chick-Fil-A cow who sits above my monitor and then do a little more work on this half-page document I've been trying to finish since about noon....)

I have to sit on a series of conference calls tomorrow, where my client and I talk to reporters. Given my temporary status as an HMB (heavy mouth-breather), I'm going to have to be EXTRA aware of my telephone headset, so as not to creep out the reporters.

(I finally finish the half-page thing for tomorrow's meetings and send it off. Then I pick up the phone and call Gordy [who sits literally 15 feet from me] to ask, "Hey, did we find out if the Billy guy in Texas put that thing we had in the kits...before he sent them?" Seriously, that's a direct quote. When I heard "uhhhh" on the other end of the phone, I realized that maybe my question was not so clear and tried again, with "I mean, the poster/flyer thing...that you made for us to put in the kits that got sent out. You know, the marketing kits...or game kits." Admittedly, not much better, but functional, as it led Gordy to confirm that Billy did put the things in the kits.)

Time for more Tylenol Sinus, this time, with orange juice.

Bus home, then long walk with Pickle, for some good fresh air. Tylenol Sinus wears off again as soon as I get home. Except that now, it's almost bedtime, so I dont want to take more daytime medicine, but I'm not quite ready for bed, so I dont want to take nighttime medicine, which leaves me in a state of really vicious mouth-breathing. Deciding that I'm not going to win the "daytime medicine vs. nighttime medicine debate" at this point, I eat some leftover quiche and ramen for dinner, brew a big cup of hot tea and sit down to watch Mean Girls.

At which point, I remember that I have some "cold remedy nasal gel" in my medicine cabinet. Now while I've been diagnosed with a sinus infection, rather than a common cold, I decide that stuffy nose is stuffy nose and I'm gonna give it a whirl. So I remove the wrapper and read the instructions. I shove the thingy up my nostrils (one at a time) and squirt. Then pinch my nostrils for 5 seconds, to spread the gel around.

Due to the drying effect of the drugs and the drying effect of mouth-breathing, I've consumed more beverages than usual today. To give you an idea, here's the list (in chronological order):

• Large mug of coffee
• Big (32 oz) Nalgene bottle of water
• Can of Diet Coke
• Refill of big (32 oz) Nalgene bottle of water
• Another refill of big (32 oz) Nalgene bottle of water
• Another can of Diet Coke
  
• Little bottle of orange juice
• Yet another refill of big (32 oz) Nalgene bottle of water
  
• Big glass of water
• Refill of big glass of water
• Big mug of hot tea

And if tonight is anything like last night, I'll have another big mug of hot tea and another big glass of water.

I have a giant mug that mom bought me at Marshall's (for like $2) and I LOVE it. It's the mug from which I've been drinking the multiple mugs of hot tea. It makes being sick more fun. Kinda like Fritha's heart-shaped juice cup.

Ah...the ramblings of a sinus-infected mind. Seriously...can't focus. Or breathe. And now I have a weird nostril good situation. So far, not impressed with the "cold remedy nasal gel".

Part Camel?

You know what I have come to realize....I consume a lot of beverages.

At my desk at work, I generally have a coffee cup, a can of soda (Diet Dr. Pepper, most likely) and a large cup of water. Sometimes I also have a bottle of water, a bottle of tea/juice and a couple of additional cans of soda.

Over the course of a typical day, I make SEVERAL trips to the water fountain to refill my LARGE (32 oz) purple cup and also consume a few Diet Cokes. Then I get home and fill my large Nalgene bottle a few times.

When I go out to eat, I generally order a beverage and a glass of water. And require multiple refills of both.

I mean, I consume a lot of beverages! What's up with that?

Maybe I run my mouth so much that my mouth requires re-hydration on a regular basis? Maybe somewhere along the line I trained my body to require that much liquid. Or maybe it's psychosematic...for some reason I enjoy the motion of "glass to mouth and swallow" and my mind convinces me I'm thirsty? (Pause to drink from the Nalgene bottle). Maybe I just have a lot of toxins that need to be flushed out.

I'm not concerned about any medical issues because (without too much detail) the input/output process seems normal. I've just been noticing how much MORE I consume than my friends and neighbors and find it curious.