Common Cold Cure

You may not know this about me but I was down with a terrible flu over the weekend.

I suffered from VURTI*.

I read somewhere that this infection can put you down up to a week or more.

The bug must have sneaked into me while I was walking around the mall the other day, during the hot spell. Our sky had been hazy and polluted too, from the smoke and ashes carried by the wind from the burning of forests in Sumatra in neighbouring Indonesia. Inhaling that smoke alone was enough to give your lungs serious problems. Schools and offices had been closed for the whole of last week because of the pollution.

The rain did come suddenly that evening, and I had to rush out to bring in the clothes which had been hanged to dry. I couldn't find any umbrella nearby so was caught in the shower. I had a raincoat in the cupboard upstairs but taking that would have delayed me further and the clothes would have been drenched by then. Besides I knew there was a skeleton in there which I didn't want to drop out. I would have some serious explaining to do to Grandma if that were to happen.

I went to sleep early the night before and woke up with a fever and a swollen and painful throat. It felt like there was a golf ball stuck in it. Then the nose began to run  and I started coughing.With a cold that bad you are pretty much grounded.

I was exasperated.

Fortunately for me Grandma was at hand to keep me warm (that is as in putting a thick blanket over me on the couch).


I told Grandma that I needed to recover fast. Real fast. She must be thinking that I had some sick goats to attend to or was planning to babysit one of the grandchildren again this week. She knew that I had heaps to do at The Farm but that wasn't until later in the week. What she didn't know was that Rachael Harrie had on Friday put up the Second Crusader Challenge! I had only the weekend to come up with something before my retreat to the wilderness. Now this!

The Crusade, Rachael's brainchild was launched here. I had promised to participate in the challenge. So write I must.

There I was, with my runny nose, lying down on the couch coughing away and enduring the fever. I was hoping for a miraclous and instant cure. We don't normally see a doctor unless faced with a life threatening situation or something that requires surgery. Besides what can a doctor do for a common cold.

Then, like the angel from above, Grandma came to the rescue! I heard her doing something in the kitchen but wasn't sure exactly what she was up to. By late morning I had these natural home-made remedy lined up for me:

First, a big mug of Liquid Chlorophyll,
made from special strain of Mulberry (Morus alba) leaves

Next, a pot of  tea made from this bitter-tasting Ho Yan Hor herb

I had to drink them all day long.

For lunch was porridge and Grandma's chicken soup - made from finely grounded chicken skeleton, dried octopus, and old cucumbers, with the chinese nut kei chi thrown in.

Chicken soup for the soul

To top it all Grandma surprised me with my favourite potato cake for tea! I have cooked this before, from a recipe by a blogger friend in Tanzania, but never knew it as kartoffelpuffer!

The yummy potato cake a.k.a  kartoffelpuffer

All these did wonders to my speedy recovery, and I now find myself punching away at the keyboard putting this down as my entry for the Second Crusader Challenge, brought to you by Rachael Harrie and made possible by Grandma.

*viral upper respiratory tract infection