Being Sick

Why are the standards so vastly different when it comes to men vs. women being sick?

When a woman is under the weather, she is still expected to get the kids up and ready for school, drop them off and pick them up from school in additional to taking care of all her other regular tasks. She might be able to get out of cooking dinner by conning hubby in to going through a fast food drive thru on his way home from work, and if she is really lucky she may be able to grab an hour or two nap while hubby entertains the kids. But the bottom line is she is allowed at the most ONE day tops to get over whatever is ailing her. Don't even think about asking hubby to take a day off from work to help out, that would be ridiculous!

Now when the man of the house is sick it is a completely different story. He actually gets to call in sick from work and can have the luxury of laying in bed all day and is expected to do none of his normal tasks. His bed becomes his royal throne where he lays and moans from all day. He has lost any ability to take care of himself. Forgets to take medicine unless he is reminded, fore goes eating unless food and beverage are brought to him laying in his royal throne.... AND (this is the one that drives me absolutely crazy).....feels that he no longer needs to verbalize anything. In his mind he can lay there helpless, groaning, and look at you with pathetic eyes and you are expected to know exactly what he needs.

What he needs is a good kick in the ass! That's right you can call me heartless, I never claimed to be Florence Nightingale. I can not muster up any sympathy for those who do not make the slightest effort to help themselves. My residents, who I use to work with in the nursing home, who were old and decrypted dealing with diseases that would eventually win, had more dignity in their time of illness then my husband who might have the flu.

Needless to say it has been a long week here at our house. Yes, I am grumpy and not feeling well ( I know that breaks the rules for a woman to admit she is under the weather). Yes, you will want to decontaminate your computer screen with Lysol after reading this.