Good Morning! I look over at the alarm clock and it is 6:59. Fantastic. I am up before Alarm number one and 30 minutes before Alarm number 2. 7:00am rolls by and all I hear is a soft buzzing. Bianca snoring? No. The alarm clock that should have woken me up has become a low murmur. Hmmm…I seem to have lost some of my hearing… I panic and roll out of bed. I was not congested nor was I suffering from any allergies. Of course, in an hour I would be debating in front of my political science class. How do I rebut if I can’t hear??!! I tried all sorts of methods to equalize the pressure in my head. I squeeze my temples and puff up my cheeks. If Bianca wakes up now she would think I was trying to scare her so instead I try to ignore the numbing pain in my ears. I got ready and woke Bianca up (like I do every morning).

“Bianca I can’t hear…"

“Whaaaa….??"

Ok. I heard that slightly. My hearing is bound to improve. So I go to class and hope for the best. My ears hurt but I can hear a little better so I hear my opposing team is trash talking right before we start. Well, that fired me up to stamp down their arguments. Yay me! As soon as I got out I went to the nurse’s office. I was taken in by the kind Nurse Jackie who took my temperature and talked to me LOUDLY and ssslllooooowwwwlllly. She told me I had Eustachian tube congestion. Good news, not permanent hearing loss. Bad news, Eustachian tube congestion?? I was prescribed some medicine and sent back to the dorm with promises from the nurse that they would call me and check up on me. Awww.

Bianca, now awake and alert makes sure I am comfy and makes Karigane tea and crumpets for me. I love you!! She drives to Walgreens to purchase some Airborne for me. Since it was my first time taking Airborne I was a little suspicious. 1000 mg of Vitamin C??? That is 10x the recommended daily dose. However, I was assured that under stress and illness it was alright to take more than the recommended dose. Ok….it was yummy. So, now I feel better and am able to write this blog. It is very nice when people are concerned about you. My roommate takes care of me and I take care of her (when I can…she is really healthy and strong). So, thank you Bianca. Without you I would never have finished the Gene Lab Report for Genetics.