Smokers’ corner

After ending the last article praying for a cold, I was struck down by a chest infection which was a couple of rungs up the illness ladder from where I wanted to be.

All of those who have ever had man flu will know how I feel. For those that don't, it's a tiny bit worse than childbirth.

The logic behind hoping for a cold was that it would lead to losing my sense of smell, which in turn, would allow me to get through my days without smelling cigarettes on others; something that makes me crave for a cigarette more than anything else.

Sadly however, what I ended up with was quite a bit worse. Instead of spending a fortnight buying Kleenex for a snotty nose, I’ve been lying in bed suffering from the most feared of all tropical diseases – man flu.

This batch has included a snotty nose alongside a host of other interesting features including a violent cough, awful amounts of phlegm and a constant headache. At one point about a week ago my left ear popped and it still hasn't returned to normal, effectively meaning that I am now also partially deaf and receiving funny looks because I keep turning right side on every time I talk to someone.

Despite making the rest of my life upsetting, all of this has done wonders for my non-smoking. Nothing says 'let's stop smoking' more than a set of lungs full of phlegm, coupled with an unhealthy bout of coughing. All in all things are going well.

The tricky bit will be after the man flu, when the Christmas season arrives signalling the start of a week full of eating and drinking - something which in the pasth as usually led to me smoking a dozen.