Chapter 3 Cut yourself some slack

Verse 1

Here i am at work with this autumns first cold. I say the first cause i have a distinct feeling there will be more to follow.
But the thing i am asking myself is, why am i at work with nostrils alternating between clogged as a highway at rush hour and runny as the Niagara Falls? To add salt to my wounds i am developing a cough seemingly designed to shake my ribs to pieces.

Verse 2

Things were a lot easier when i was younger and just having started my first fulltime job. I was 18 or 19 something with my own apartment and calling in sick on a Friday, or Monday for that matter was easy as pie.
Being able to sleep late on Friday so that you were fit as a fiddle for a full night on the town was great and the fact that you faked sickness to do it wasn't a big deal those days.
You might think that running the risk of meeting your workmates at the pub later that night would prove awkward but you knew that there was a good chance that they would do exactly the same next weekend.

Verse 3

But not so any more. For some reason i invariably decide to soldier on. Coughing and sneezing at work while prolonging my suffering by not staying home and taking it easy.
Added to this is the fact that if i would be sensible enough to stay at home i could count on being cared for and pampered with by my excellent girlfriend.

Verse 4

Perhaps this is the time to revert to my old ways while being sensible. A Friday is coming up and i just might call in sick. With this in mind i suspect that i will make a speedy recovery over the next few days followed by a catastrophic decline in health just in time for the coming Monday.