The last week plus has been a very slowed down time for me. A week ago Thursday, I came down with a sore throat and ear ache, which evolved into a fever and a crushingly painful ear ache. Last Saturday, I got in on one of the last appointments at Kaiser in the hinterlands for the fastest doctor's appointment in my life: 3 minutes.

That was the last thing that has been fast since. I was diagnosed with a middle ear infection, given 2 kinds of drops and 2 kinds of pills to take for 10 days. No stopping early.

In the 7 days since, my life has been a round of laying down, putting drops in my ear, fashioning a cotton wick, putting it in my ear right, and staying on that side to let the drops settle in for at least a half hour. Repeat cycle every 4 hours. Yes, every four hours.

Given that I don't want this ear ache to continue or come back, I have been faithful about the ear drop ritual. Thus, my world has been a round of ear drops, reading while waiting for them to sink in, a small reaction to drops that leads to fuzziness and a bit of dizziness, more waiting, activity of some sort for a couple of hours (computing, sleeping, errands), and repeat. A much slower rhythm of life than I allow myself even on vacation.

At the best of times I avoid antibiotics like the plague, not only do I hate the pharmaculture but I don't like the side effects that antibiotics have on me: fuzzy thinking, dizziness, mild disassociation, and feeling like I am floating away but not in a nice way. When half of my face was swollen last Saturday and my whole head was on fire, I got up and over my distaste for doctors and pills.

The aching part of the ear ache is gone, but I still have to continue with the meds until this Wednesday. Ear now just feels full. Full of drops. So, slowly I continue.