1. Morning walks. This was pretty much the only time I was off the couch or out of bed and wearing something other than pajamas last week. I was sick with strep throat and Eric was gone at a conference and Sam is still on restriction, so Ringo and I were on our own.

2. Paid sick leave. There was no way I could have worked this week, although I did a few things from home. My brain and body just couldn’t function beyond taking care of the bare necessities for me and the dogs.

3. The essentials for being sick. This time around they were plenty of clean pjs, clean sheets, Kleenex with lotion (because after a few days of blowing and wiping my nose with toilet paper it felt like my nostrils were ringed with a thousand tiny paper cuts), orange juice and oranges and orange sherbert, antibiotics, cough syrup with codeine, ibuprofen, Butternut Squash soup, onion rolls, House Hunters Renovation, lots of tea, health insurance, and my infrared heating pad.

4. Sam and Ringo. They were so good for me while Eric was away and I was sick, so patient and sweet. They got me out of bed every morning, but also let me sleep most of the day and kept me from feeling too lonely or sorry for myself.

5. Eric. He almost got stuck because a storm moved in his last day in DC, but he did everything he could, even drove to another airport, to get a flight out and get home to me.

Bonus joy: getting some real clarity about changes I want to make in my life even when I was feeling so crappy I couldn’t get off the couch, flowers blooming, being able to take time off and rest without beating myself up about it, getting enough sleep, a kind and available and smart primary doctor, good friends who check on me and are on standby ready to help, feeling better bit by bit.