“There is no medicine like hope, no incentive so great, as expectation of a better tomorrow”

- Orison Swett Marden

It never fails. It starts with a little tingle in my nose and slowly works its way through my system until one morning I wake up and just feel like death. I could act like nothing's wrong but by evening I know that I'll be throwing back tissues like popcorn at a movie theater. The sad part is that no matter how unique I may see myself as being, I too will succumb to the “common cold.” And this is how my week went.

Monday I was doing great; not a sniffle or sneeze could be found. Tuesday on the other hand, I started feeling a little tired but chalked it up to lack of sleep. Wednesday though, I wasn't fooling anyone. My nose was so red I could pass for Rudolph's cousin, and my throat's so hoarse I could do voice over work for Mr. Ed.

Now the debate unfolds; do I call in sick for work or do I go in and share my “bless yous” with everyone else? Seeing as though I'm the giving type I waltz right into the office and proceed to cough on anyone who dares come close, because I believe in two mottos: “misery loves company” and “share and share alike.” So I make it my duty to invite everyone I know to join the party in being sick.

I like to think of it as sort of a team-building exercise in the fact that once we're all hacking away; we can work together to get rid of it. And this is where the fun begins. You see, when you're sick everyone gets to “play doctor” and offer up any remedy that might sound convincing. There are the old wives tales, but frankly, I'm young and single and really not looking for a serious senior relationship. Still, I do like a good story so I'll take the wisdom with a grain of salt.

“Starve a cold” is a popular one. I would take this advice but, it was make your own taco night at Bradley's house so I had to pass on that one. I could have gone the Yiddish route and had some chicken soup, but the way I saw it, it didn't pan out well for the chicken, and it was healthy!

True, there is the “sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever so you can rest medicine,” which would have been fine, although my symptoms also included pouting, moody, whining like a little girl because I couldn't rest. Who makes that medicine?

So, on I suffered through the days and nights (OK, it was one day and an evening, but I still suffered!).

Then I was on the mend and I plan on taking it easy today, knowing full well that when Monday comes around there will be someone at work with a little cough and I can walk right up to them and say. “Sounds like you're coming down with a cold. Have you tried #...”

Auburn native Bradley Molloy's column appears here, each

Sunday, in The Citizen.

He can be reached at

lovonian@hotmail.com