You know what really sucks right now? No, it's not the weather - which is sunny and in the 70s (though there's a bit of haze out there). It's not the traffic (though a protest of our President tied up a good deal of traffic around my office at Wilshire and Fairfax today). It's not sports (are you kidding? There's football AND basketball on at night).

Nope. It's the fact that I've got a cold. Or the flu. Or possibly some hideously disfiguring disease that hit me like a ton of bricks right about quitting time today.

I've got all the symptoms of nondescript cold/flu. A few aches here and there, sinus drainage, sore throat, exhaustion. The fun stuff.

What could suck worse than all this?

Except possibly having this kind of ick running through your system when it's nice outside?

Except having so much bird flu information on the news that I'm convinced that I might have it, despite never being near the droppings of any Asian avian beasts (at least, as far as I know)?

Or how about having it when you've got a whole lot of writing work to get done on the new script, not to mention some notes to work on for the old script?

Or how about having it when you have to drive to Rancho Mirage in the high desert tomorrow for a dinner meeting, stay in a hotel, and then get up for an early meeting before driving back home?

Oh, yeah. I've got all three of those conditions going for me. Yippee.

So I'm wiped. Probably I should go to bed, but because it's 8:30 and I'm not in the second grade, I'll probably tough it out for another hour or so. Which will probably only make that ride through the Inland Empire and the desert all the more charming.

Buh.