• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

lawsie

The long-term storage silo of a human mind

  • Andrew Culture
  • Beat Motel Podcast
  • Observations
  • Consumer Info
  • Tech
  • Music Consumption
  • Musician Stuff
  • Graveyard
  • Buy me a pint
Home » blog » To work for a wage, in sickness and in health.

To work for a wage, in sickness and in health.

Published December 21, 2009 by lawsie Leave a Comment

Here I sit with curved spine huddled over my desk waiting for another Christmas to come, and for a sickness to leave. Working on my own at home means I usually avoid the annual winter ‘what’s going round’ but this year a couple of journeys on packed London Underground trains gave me a sufficient dose of the foul feculence of germ spoiled strangers that I myself have become failed and fouled.

When I was an employee (rather than a self employed fool) disease could bring with it delicious compensations – days on the settee watching television utterly smothered by huge warm duvets and surrounded by indulgent drinks and tasty treats. In times of careless wellness spoiled by busyness and stress I would gently sigh and look forward to catching something horrid. I would daydream of snotty tissues, daytime telly and replacing my colleagues for curled up cats. It was like looking forward to a vacation I didn’t have to pay for by forfeit of a chunk of the few days leave my employer graciously granted me each year. To spend five days with a water bottle in a cosy lounge was as delicious as two weeks exploring the world on vacation, and all the more glorious for leaving my annual leave tally undamaged.

So as I sit here at home with nobody to cover my illness absence and no employer to mumble sympathetically but unconvincingly down a phone line at me I lament the loss of my languid lolling days of temporary and mild malady.

This morning in an attempt to remind myself that I could balance the loss of ill employee perks with the augmenting of unscheduled absences from my desk I ventured into my wintery garden. Wearing more layers than Tutankhamen (although in more disarray) I kicked through the snow, chasing the witless abandonment of childhood winters so many decades ago. I made a snowman and was saddened to discover how poor my skills have become having allowed them to lapse; traded now for skills with machines and a love for more literally literal creativity.

I turned my back on my poor play at being a snow bound Prometheus and sought the cats for winter company. After lifting them from their slumber and having them join me in my exile from the warmth of my house I sighed lightly in amusement as they mewed and shivered before seeking the least snowy path back to their warm nests indoors. I too tired of the will of adventure and made my way back to my desk, weary and wanton of recovery.

Last Updated on February 18, 2023

Filed Under: Observations Tagged With: article, prose, writing

Have you found this content useful?

Buy me a pint

This website isn't packed with obnoxious advertising but it does cost money to keep alive. Every little donation is a big help!

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Footer

Copyright © 2023 · Site wholly owned by Andrew Laws Associates Ltd | SEO by Yeseo

  • Home
  • About me
  • Andrew Culture
  • Buy me a pint
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact me