To Use or Not To Use

On this Monday afternoon, I sit groggy from losing sleep from both Daylight Savings time and a hacking cough that makes my lungs sound like a set of maracas. A concerned friend brought me a box of Mucinex. She said she took it once, but hated the side effects of being knocked out and having what sounded like a mind trip.

I've looked at all the writing on the box, and nowhere on there does it say anything about "may cause drowsiness" or "use caution driving or operating machinery." Translation on those warnings usually means "Be prepared to lose consciousness for the next 10-12 hours."

The box does say it will help loosen the phlegm. That would get rid of the maracas effects, but is that something I really want to be doing at work? And what if it does knock me out? I'm sure I'd really impress everyone with my head passed out on the keyboard muttering, "The colors... the colors..."

I could just wait until I get home, but it's also Sports Widow night. I can only imagine what my munchkins will get away with if Mommy's passed out on the floor. Would "It was just the Mucinex! I didn't want to rattle when I breathed!" hold up if Human Services ends up being contacted?

So it looks like I will wait until at least the kids are in bed (hopefully early!) And we'll see if I can get up at our extra-early time tomorrow morning to catch the buses and make a Commissioners meeting.

Or maybe I'll chicken out and walk around with rattling lungs some more. At least you'll be able to hear me approach.

UPDATE: Tuesday morning, and... the stuff worked. Only problem was I had to take a full glass of water with it and guess who had to wake up in the middle of the night. My lungs no longer rattle, but now it's in my throat and am making those oh-so attractive noises I learned from the guys in my high school gym class. Hope this too will quickly pass before I have to act like a civilized member of society in a few hours.