I went home early yesterday because I felt awful. Mostly a headache, but I was also quite nauseated. I felt really bad because I had an important rush ad that I had to finish. But we were in a meeting all morning, and then I decided to finish the ad and leave. I was working hard and all of the sudden… my computer crashed. (And who says Macs don’t crash…) So I lost most of what I had done, and I went to my supervisor and told her that I had to go home. She was very understanding, thankfully, and so I took my first sick (half) day.

I slept most of the afternoon, and then in the evening my coworker/neighbor Cida called me and told me she had ingredients for a Brazilian soup that she wanted to make for me. I assured her I would enjoy the company (and the meal!) and she came over.

It was really good! It was a fish stew with vegetables and potatoes and noodles. Cida told me in Brazil they make it with the whole fish, but for my sake she just used filets. :-) She served hot tea with dinner, and I’m not used to drinking hot drinks with my meals. After the hot soup, warm bread, and hot tea I felt all warm and cozy all over. We then watched “Little Women” (thanks to the Garrisons for giving me their extra copy :-)). Cida had never seen it, and it had been about 10 years since I’ve seen it (although the book was my favorite when I was younger). It was fun to see Cida enjoy the movie. I had to translate much of it, since she had a hard time following the older English. She kept exclaiming over and over how she loved the characters, and how real they were, and how it reminded her of her relationship with her sisters. It was fun. :-)

So all in all, the day ended well because being with a friend made my headache go away – or was it the stew? :-) I enjoy Cida’s company very much, and appreciate her thoughtfulness to bring me dinner when I wasn’t feeling well. I hope I have the chance to reciprocate!