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early this morning i took my parents to the airport (second time this week, i practically live there now). when i returned home i was hoping to catch some zzz's before waking up to work. i couldn't fall asleep though and spent the next 2 hours lying in bed with my eyes closed. it was pretty quiet for for the first hour, until the birds started chirping. when i finally did wake up again, i started working for the next 8 hours. the client was mysteriously quiet today, no phone calls, no e-mails. i was sort of worried, yet at the same time it's nice to work without any distractions for a change. i drove to the cafe briefly to drop off some stuff for my aunt. for lunch i ate the leftover pizza slices from emma's. sometime in the afternoon my neighbor renee rang my doorbell with another one of her chronic computer issues. she lost her internet connection and when i went over to her place, i saw that her cablemodem was unplugged. next time i'm just going to pretend i'm not home and not bother answering the door. in the evening i heated up another chicken pot pie in the toaster oven (even though the instructions clearly forbid such actions) and watched some thursday night television in between my hacking coughs. it was warm enough underneath a blanket on the couch that i didn't need to turn on the heat (i kept the house at the default 60 degrees). i think i might run down to the 24-hour cvs and get some medicine. i can't find my nasal spray anywhere and i saw a commercial today for some new over-the-counter post-nasal drip medication.

update: i got mucinex DM for my cough. not sure what the DM stands for, probably not "dungeon master" or "depeche mode," two of my guesses. it's supposed to provide temporary relief for coughing, diminish the cough intensity, and the impulse to cough. it contains guaifenesin (the name sounds familiar, must've seen it before), an expectorant that clears up the phlegm, and dextromethorphan (ah, that's where the DM comes from), a cough suppresant. although there's no mention of it, i wonder if it's going to give me vivid dreams like the alka-seltzer flu tablets i took last night (none of which i was able to remember this morning). after taking two tablets, i feel a little better already (but could just be the placebo effect). walking back, i deposited a check at the ATM, before finding a book on the sidewalk (that's so cambridge, people are so educated they just throw out their used books onto the streets): "armor attacks: the tank platoon", advertised as "an interactive exercise in small-unit tactics and leadership." it's essentially a glorified choose-your-own-adventure book for military geeks, with the occasional "roll the dice" or "go to page so-and-so" directions. the back of the book contains a glossary of tank lingo along with specs and photos.