FEBRUARY 11 — Getting high on cough syrup was not how I imagined my illness going.
I have been sick for nearly two weeks and circumstances have made it difficult to take medical leave.
The doctor I saw halfway through my illness did not give me much relief, only giving me antihistamines and cough syrup, not even bothering to check my lymph nodes or look down my throat.
It took me a few days to realise my strange dreams and being in a stupor was from my cough syrup — I usually buy my own, non-sleep inducing cough medicine or rely on lozenges and copious gargling.
The body is a funny thing — mine cleared Covid-19 in three days and I was mostly functional but rather tired for weeks.
Yet this time my body is struggling with what should be a routine illness and I have been told that getting Covid leaves you with a much weakened immune system.
Dealing with this new fragility has been aggravating because I had plans. To skate, to yee sang with friends, to play more Fire Emblem Engage.
Not an auspicious time of the year but perhaps being ill is a reminder that I have to be even more health conscious in this neverending damp we call weather.
Curious, I searched on Twitter to see if other people had stories to tell about the drug I was taking and it seems that it is actually possible to develop an addiction.
Still it seems that the substance is important enough that you can get it over the counter even if it can end up with people like me dreaming that Johnny Depp is US president or hallucinating that red ants are swarming my pillow.
Perhaps the government or medical establishment is confident enough that regulation will keep people from developing a serious dependency on the drug.
Speaking about regulation, opinion has been divided online about the benefits of regulating fireworks.
Personally I hate fireworks during the festive season. One of my neighbours has developed a liking for the type that sounds like mortar cannons and it makes me sad to see my dog cowering under my bed from the noise.
The proposal to legalise fireworks on paper seems to be the way to better control how fireworks are used instead of the usual practice where fireworks are smuggled in and people just buy whatever they can get their hands on.
At the same time, I see no benefit to fireworks. Besides damage to health and property, fireworks also harm the environment and wild animals.
I hope the framework for legislation will be made public and that we, the citizens, get to chime in.
My personal opinion is that fireworks should be banned from the vicinity of housing areas.
There needs to be designated spots for fireworks as well as an age limit for certain fireworks — with children only allowed access with adult supervision.
If we insist on allowing firebugs to set off fireworks then limit when they can be set off.
Setting them off past midnight shouldn’t be a thing but having experienced some inconsiderate rando having his own fireworks celebration at 2am, I do not feel sympathetic to the cause.
Yet at the heart of this is the lax enforcement culture. What’s the point of regulation if it only exists on paper?
Council workers as well as the police should have the authority to shut down unlicensed fireworks sales and the public be given frequent reminders on where and when they are allowed.
Still, it will be interesting to see how this government approaches fireworks legalisation and if it will also become a source of added revenue.
If alcohol and tobacco can be taxed, why not fireworks? Maybe one way to get people to set off fireworks responsibly is to make it very expensive.
I look forward to not having to deal with fireworks ruining my sleep and holiday cheer.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
