This Won't Hurt A Bit

Except that getting six vaccines DOES hurt. Quite a bit, in fact. Let me re-phrase: it hurt me and not Matt, a fact of which I think he'll keep making me aware for the next 6 or 7 months. (Let's be honest, though. Of COURSE it hurt him, too. He just doesn't want to admit it because he wants to be able to make fun of me.)

Doctors, friends of doctors, and general worriers, Matt and I are now inoculated against the following illnesses: Hepatitis A; Hepatitis B; Typhoid; Tetanus, Diptheria, and Pertussis; Polio; and the Flu. We might add Meningitis to the list, and if I need to, I'll be getting a Yellow Fever vaccine. The kind people at the Allegheny County Health Department shot us both for a mere $400! When you think about it, this is a lot less expensive than say, treating Typhoid. But it still seems like a lot of money for some needles full of dead virus.

And of course, this is not the end of our trip-med stuff. Oh no! We've got a list about a mile long of prescriptions (to ward off Malaria, among other unwanted illnesses), over-the-counter meds,
topical creams, and general first-aid gear to take with us. We intend to stay as healthy as we possibly can, even if it means stopping just short of licking a stranger's hands. I mean, sigh, we were really hoping to do that while we were traveling, but at the advice of our physicians, we'll refrain.

The one upside to getting the vaccines today is that I felt that it entitled us both to a treat. Which turned out to be a banana fruit freeze for me, and a coconut fruit freeze for Matt. Mmm...frozen fruit with tapioca pearls. Maybe my arms will hurt enough that I'll need another one tomorrow!