But it's Just the Flu!

I recently read a book called The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History, an account of the 1918 "Spanish Flu" (although it was probably American in origin, not Spanish) pandemic. The book itself was kind of a let-down... I was hoping for more of an on-the-ground description of what society went though, and it focused more on the "major players," that is, the scientists and other important folks who played a part. I don't remember any of their names and quite frankly did not care which one was a social outcast, which one blah blah blah... So, not what I was looking for, but all in all, pretty interesting.

(Side note: Why can't I read junk fiction like a normal twenty-something?)

Essentially, though, I came away with one thing: AN INCREDIBLE FEAR OF THE FLU.

Seriously, that's some scary shit.

Especially when you live in a place voted least likely to have access to Tamiflu (well, OK, so there wasn't a vote...).

Especially when the current strain is nicknamed "Bird Flu" for a damn good reason and you live on the edge of a wildlife refuge seasonally housing a gazillion migratory birds, and Asia ain't that far away, as the crow... er... duck flies.

Especially when you are a fairly healthy 20-something... a member of the group most likely to be killed by these strains of the flu since they essentially turn your very responsive immune system on hyperdrive and your body's response kills you.

Especially when your housemate has been vomiting for three days and you have a mild headache.

How do you spell "hypochondria?" How about "paranoia?" Or "illegal Mexican pharmacy?" Because according to a recent study, there ain't anywhere near enough antivirals in the US to deal with a serious influenza pandemic.