« By Richard Jones | Main | Regretful Retraction»
May 8, 2003
No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
Because it's crunch time here, there have been lots of free perks for the team members. Free espresso and snacks twice a week and free dinners every night. I had been enjoying dinner here for a few days, and yesterday was no exception. Indian food was ordered, and we all partook in naan, basmati, korma and various curries. Satiated, and having put in a full day of work, I went home.
At 2:30am I woke up with a terrible stomach ache. At 3:00am, the Indian food, having been plotting its escape from my stomach for the past 7 hours, made a break for it. And again every hour until 7:00am. At 8:30 I phoned my boss and left a message about how I may or may not show up at work today. Microsoft policy states that those infected with a contagious condition stay home. Since I didn't think my experience would influence the Indian food in the stomachs of others, I rolled into work around noon (I was feeling much better at that point).
Between the time I got up and the time I went to work, I felt like crap. Worse than crap. I felt the way crap feels when it has a hangover. Between the nausea and the aching joints, I debated going to work at all. To soothe my aches, I drew myself a hot bath and soaked for a while. This brought back memories of Japan, where I made a habit of soaking in the 40°C furo (Japanese hot tub). I love when I first come out, and it feels like I'm radiating warmth.
The warmth was only temporary. The aches are back, and I'm about ready to call it a day (a very short day, mind you). Strange that no one else seems to have had the sickness I experienced. Maybe I shouldn't have come in to work at all today.