Swine Flu Arrives Here

[Occhidiangela]

Five people have died in our county since swine flu started its fun and games among Mexico's population a few months back. The last two 'round here were a sixth grader Mrs Occhi's niece attended school with, and a nurse at a local hospital. The sixth grader was sick Friday, dead on Tuesday from a swollen brain. The lady, 47 IIRC the news reports, apparently had viral pneumonia as well. Y'all know where I live.

Mrs Occhi just came home. She works for a dental hygenist. A coworker's son has just been diagnosed with swine flu.

I got a flu shot the other day, but it wasn't a swine flu shot. I think I'll eat some BBQ pork as a preventative tonight, when I go to a friend's house for a few beers before the local high school football game, which is played with a pig skin.

Please join me in a lively toast to death and destruction, from the microbes. If only it killed the cock roaches, I'd be happy.

Occhi

[--Pete]

Hi,

Please join me in a lively toast to death and destruction, from the microbes.

I understand that Glenfiddich is an effective antidote to all flu. And a fifth of prevention is better than a shot of cure. Or, at least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.:)

--Pete

EDIT: First sign of senility is when you can't remember the name of your favorite scotch:(

[Jester]

Five people have died in our county since swine flu started its fun and games among Mexico's population a few months back. The last two 'round here were a sixth grader Mrs Occhi's niece attended school with, and a nurse at a local hospital. The sixth grader was sick Friday, dead on Tuesday from a swollen brain. The lady, 47 IIRC the news reports, apparently had viral pneumonia as well. Y'all know where I live.

Mrs Occhi just came home. She works for a dental hygenist. A coworker's son has just been diagnosed with swine flu.

I got a flu shot the other day, but it wasn't a swine flu shot. I think I'll eat some BBQ pork as a preventative tonight, when I go to a friend's house for a few beers before the local high school football game, which is played with a pig skin.

Please join me in a lively toast to death and destruction, from the microbes. If only it killed the cock roaches, I'd be happy.

To your continued good health, and the end of killer microbes. May the gods of statistical epidemiology spare you and yours - may the bad news be an outlier, and not a sign of things to come.

-Jester

[kandrathe]

Here's to Occhi avoiding the flu!
Sterilize your throat, whatever you do
Brandy, rum, vodka and whiskey too,
but don't mix it with wine, or Mountain Dew
Crowds you'll shun, even one's or two
Go rogue, and sail off with your family as crew
Tis better than the injection of medical stew.

Cheers! There have been a half a dozen cases at the place I work too.

[DeeBye]

EDIT: First sign of senility is when you can't remember the name of your favorite scotch:(

Glenfiddich is my favourite scotch too, and I can never remember how to spell it. I blame it on too much Glenfiddich.

(I copy/pasted your spelling of the name :) )

[LennyLen]

Glenfiddich is my favourite scotch too, and I can never remember how to spell it. I blame it on too much Glenfiddich.

It's a shame Grant's is so terrible, it's easy to remember how to spell. I'm rather partial to Bruichladdich myself which I can also never remember how to spell.

[--Pete]

Hi,

I'm rather partial to Bruichladdich myself which I can also never remember how to spell.

Wow, interesting history. I might just have to try some (if I can find it).

--Pete

[LennyLen]

I might just have to try some (if I can find it).

You definitely should, especially if you're a fan of Islay malts.

I was lucky enough to get invited to a "Whisky Appreciation Symposium" last year that ran for a week (there were about 300 whiskies on show), and I spent a few hours with one of the Bruichladdich distillers. He let me try some of their 1973, and it was absolutely divine. I've tried most of their other whiskies, and have definitely enjoyed them all.

[Occhidiangela]

Thank you all for your very kind sentiments, I'll be taking a medicinal dose of my Glenmorangie today, the current resident of my scotch bottle. While I love a good scotch, I have lately taken to sipping two other whiskeys, Tullamore Dew, an Irish blend, and Wisers higher end Canadian Whiskey, in a square bottle. Less expensive, and for a general after work sipping evolution, very smooth.

But desperate times call for desperate measures, so Glenmorangie it shall be today.

However, given that Mexico was site of initial outbreaks in our hemisphere, I might need to get closer to the source and sip on some of the high end tequila I have in the cabinet. I rarely reach for that, but now and again, a little bit over ice with some lime squeezed over it is a regional sipping event worth having.

Mrs Occhi insists I take "Airborne" every day. I have my doubts as to its medicinal effectiveness. I think the hype/ads for it overstate its quality. Since it makes her happy, I dropped one in a cup a few minutes ago and am swilling it down. It just ain't as good as coffee.

As to our recently departed sixth grader, I found out last night that she had been slightly ill for a couple of days, and third or fourth day her mom found she was not responding to standard "treat a sick kid" treatment and so took her to hospital.

It's a pracitcal matter that not everyone with a slight sniffle panic, but the devilish thing this virus has is slightly ambiguous symptoms at first,

I am also concerned about a different kind of virus.


My daughter has a laptop computer, which, I have come to find out, has not had its Norton Anti Virus and so-on updated for over three months. Subscription expired ... I gave her a butt chewing for that oversight, as I am happy to pay for subscription renewal to keep her reasonably safe.

I do have a question:

what are the recommendations you all have for open source/"free" or "shareware" anti virus alternatives to Norton?

McAfee I detest. Norton is OK, I guess. I have Trend Micro on the current machine, but my experience has been mixed on its utility.

Is there good stuff out there? If you are tempted, don't just tell me to buy a Mac.:P

Occhi

[kandrathe]

Thank you all for your very kind sentiments, I'll be taking a medicinal dose of my Glenmorangie today, the current resident of my scotch bottle. While I love a good scotch, I have lately taken to sipping two other whiskeys, Tullamore Dew, an Irish blend, and Wisers higher end Canadian Whiskey, in a square bottle. Less expensive, and for a general after work sipping evolution, very smooth.

But desperate times call for desperate measures, so Glenmorangie it shall be today.

However, given that Mexico was site of initial outbreaks in our hemisphere, I might need to get closer to the source and sip on some of the high end tequila I have in the cabinet. I rarely reach for that, but now and again, a little bit over ice with some lime squeezed over it is a regional sipping event worth having.

Mrs Occhi insists I take "Airborne" every day. I have my doubts as to its medicinal effectiveness. I think the hype/ads for it overstate its quality. Since it makes her happy, I dropped one in a cup a few minutes ago and am swilling it down. It just ain't as good as coffee.

As to our recently departed sixth grader, I found out last night that she had been slightly ill for a couple of days, and third or fourth day her mom found she was not responding to standard "treat a sick kid" treatment and so took her to hospital.

It's a pracitcal matter that not everyone with a slight sniffle panic, but the devilish thing this virus has is slightly ambiguous symptoms at first,

I am also concerned about a different kind of virus.
My daughter has a laptop computer, which, I have come to find out, has not had its Norton Anti Virus and so-on updated for over three months. Subscription expired ... I gave her a butt chewing for that oversight, as I am happy to pay for subscription renewal to keep her reasonably safe.

I do have a question:

what are the recommendations you all have for open source/"free" or "shareware" anti virus alternatives to Norton?

McAfee I detest. Norton is OK, I guess. I have Trend Micro on the current machine, but my experience has been mixed on its utility.

Is there good stuff out there? If you are tempted, don't just tell me to buy a Mac.:P

Occhi

I've been using AVG successfully. Smaller footprint, and they keep up with new virii like the other two big gorilla's. I've never used Norton (intentionally), since I met the guy and he was an arrogant putz. I know it is now Symantec and Peter was probably never bright enough to actually write the AV product, but on principle I've avoided his moniker since 1980. Before AVG, I used McAffee, but their product has become unwieldy, so I was looking for just a simple effective AV solution.

[DeeBye]

what are the recommendations you all have for open source/"free" or "shareware" anti virus alternatives to Norton?

Avira is worth checking out. I've been using it lately and it's really unobtrusive.

http://www.avira.com/en/pages/index.php

[LochnarITB]

Avira is worth checking out. I've been using it lately and it's really unobtrusive.

http://www.avira.com/en/pages/index.php

I've used the Personal - FREE version for a long time and feel safe with it. The only issue I have with it is the update servers can be a little flakey. At times, the update will say it is checking versions but never get any further. I don't know if it is high traffic times (it is free after all) or what, but others have mentioned it on the net too and all that you need to do is remember to try a little later and it updates without issue.

[[wcip]Angel]

Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie and Laphroaig are some of the house favourites. My personal opinion, for every day use when you're not looking for anything fancy, a Talisker can't be beaten. (Highland Park is a close second)

edit: names corrected. Damn those Scots and their asinine spelling!



PS: Best of luck with the swine-flu.

[--Pete]

Hi,

edit: names corrected. Damn those Scots and their asinine spelling!

Dinna fash y'rself, laddie, it's no a mickel thing.

--Pete

[Occhidiangela]

Angel' date='Oct 5 2009, 05:13 PM' post='173123']
Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie and Laphroaig are some of the house favourites. My personal opinion, for every day use when you're not looking for anything fancy, a Talisker can't be beaten. (Highland Park is a close second)

edit: names corrected. Damn those Scots and their asinine spelling!



PS: Best of luck with the swine-flu.

I got a bottle of Talisker from my Cousin a few years back.

A fine tipple.

Thanks, angel.

Occhi

[Zingydex]

I second AVG. I'm honestly surprised to hear someone say something positive about Norton, which is itself the single biggest virus to ever end up on a computer I own.

[Ashock]

I am also concerned about a different kind of virus.
My daughter has a laptop computer, which, I have come to find out, has not had its Norton Anti Virus and so-on updated for over three months. Subscription expired ... I gave her a butt chewing for that oversight, as I am happy to pay for subscription renewal to keep her reasonably safe.

I do have a question:

what are the recommendations you all have for open source/"free" or "shareware" anti virus alternatives to Norton?

McAfee I detest. Norton is OK, I guess. I have Trend Micro on the current machine, but my experience has been mixed on its utility.

Is there good stuff out there? If you are tempted, don't just tell me to buy a Mac.:P

Occhi

Malwarebytes. Even their free version is very effective. Download-->Update definitions-->Quick Scan. Full scan is purely optional.

[Crusader]

I've been using AVG successfully. Smaller footprint, and they keep up with new virii like the other two big gorilla's.

Scary, I agree with Kandrathe on something.

There was this little snafu where AVG quarantined some boot files a while back though on xp machines. Now that was annoying. I think that'll haunt AVG forever.

[[wcip]Angel]

Hi,
Dinna fash y'rself, laddie, it's no a mickel thing.

--Pete

No chance of working that one out on my own, English teacher and all notwithstanding.


I'm currently living with a mate who's from Scotland. Got him to translate it for me.

Do you hail from that part of the isles, Pete? Or is your knowledge of Scottish English based on some sort of perverse obsession?:)

[--Pete]

Hi,

Do you hail from that part of the isles, Pete? Or is your knowledge of Scottish English based on some sort of perverse obsession?:)

Actually, I hail from Florence, Italy (my birth name is Pierluigi Tilli Grandolfi). But I discover Rabbie Burns' poetry in high school -- and loved it. Had to learn some Scots though.;)

--Pete