I got my flu shot this weekend. In fact, I got two of them--swine flu in the right arm, flu flu in the left arm. Strangely, I never felt so in danger of contracting the flu than I did as I waited in line for my flu vaccine.

A few hundred people, herded together on one hospital floor, waited, and waited, and waited. Thankfully, or not--Are waiting rooms good places to wait?--the floor seemed a giant waiting area. Think: colorfully painted bus terminal with children's books, an aquarium, and various gadgets and gizmos aimed to distract youngsters. I always bring a book--just not this weekend. Claustrophobia set in: people bumping into me, breathing on me, reaching over me to grab an US Weekly. "I like you. I just don't like your germs," I ESP'd one space invader.

Most of those gathered were in some at-risk group: children, the mentally retarded, cancer patients. A few people awaiting the coveted shots wore masks. It seemed more a negative advertisement scaring everybody about the swine flu than it did an effective precautionary measure. Whenever anyone coughed, people looked upon them suspiciously. There was a heavy "Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" vibe.

One mother, Francesca--I know her name because her children all wore sweatshirts announcing their maternal lineage--flipped out when she discovered her daughter using chapstick that she had found. Did its previous owner have the flu? Francesca probably knows by now. Francesca's paranoia intensified as her son stared closely at himself in a fun-house style mirror. Had he kissed himself in the mirror, Francesca angrily inquired. I had a better view, and knew that he hadn't. And if he had, I am pretty sure that reflections of people are less contagious than actual people.

Like Tom Petty sang, the waiting is the hardest part. I waited in line to fill out a form. And then I got a number, 157, and waited 45 minutes to hear it called. Then a woman dressed as a nurse escorted me and my young companion to a room where she informed us to wait for the actual nurse. Fifteen minutes later, the nurse arrived. The shots hurt, but in an effort of psychological manipulation, I laughed hysterically each time the needle plunged into my shoulder. I didn't fool anybody. My young companion's reaction to the needle was not of the laughing kind.

Mission accomplished, the nurse informed that we had to wait some more: twenty minutes, in fact, lest we, presumably, drive away light headed. Just as my young companion needed to be held down to receive the needle, the staff would have needed to hold me down to keep me waiting in that waiting room any longer. I departed, happy to be immunized from the flu; happier to not be waiting around any longer for a poke in the arm.

There are no guarantees. Will one be safer if inoculated against the flu than by just eating well, sleeping well and living as clean as possible? There are no guarantees.

But the hysteria that's been forwarded by our government and through our media to push these shots seems a bit over the top and I think I'd rather take steps to maintain basic health and hygiene than to take a chance that the shot will in fact make me sick.

Now there's something in your veins, bloodier than blood.

I'm a public school teacher, which puts me in close contact with many sick kids ten months out of the year. I've never had a flue shot in my life, nor have I ever had flu. Just luck? Maybe, but many of my coworkers who religiously receive flu shots somehow come down with it, anyway.

Just to be safe, just to be certain, I'm not receiving a flu shot. I'd hate to get sick.

Everybody I know of who has had a flu shot have gotten (crazy but true) the flu.

Not to mention this current batch was rushed through and not thoroughly tested. And the way the gov. is running these days, I'd say that's chancy.

there is never any guarantee with the flu shot. as someone who works in a research lab surrounding influenza, the shot only helps so much. Due to the ability of the virus to mutate rapidly, there is no way of knowing if the shot will cover the newly mutated strain of the virus.

I have been receiving a yearly shot and (knock on wood) have not gotten the flu in years.

I agree with you asdf, I also think the hype behind these flu shots has been made worse by the media and government. The other reason for there being a big hype is because the target of the H1N1 flu does not follow the norm. Instead of the very young and old being affected, it lands on individuals in there late teens to mid 20s the most. but there is a logical explanation for this that no one thinks about. The last time there was a flu influenza was in 1968 which coincidentally was a H1N1 strain. Everyone who was alive and lived through that has built up a little bit of an immunity to the current H1N1. Most of the people who are getting the H1N1 flu now were not alive in 1968 (clearly there are outliers, there always will be).

sorry, ** The last time there was an influenza pandemic was in 1968

I was reading a blurb a couple of months ago about some crazy environ”mental”ists who want to have us stop producing and using toilet paper to save the forests.

It went on to inform about how items as simple as good toilet paper, soaps and basic hygiene items have eradicated or slowed about 90% of diseases and sicknesses that used to kill many people within the last 100 years.

Certainly, today we are in much better shape with better clothing, better food, better water and arguably better air. And the use of sanitizers of all sorts seems to be prevalent.

I know that simplifies things and nothing is certain to protect in every situation, but it makes sense to me.

Think there's injustice in the world? Start with the cradle of human evolution....

http://www.sphere.com/2009/11/23/deadly-skin-trade-preys-on-african-albinos/?icid=main|main|dl1|link3|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sphere.com%2F2009%2F11%2F23%2Fdeadly-skin-trade-preys-on-african-albinos%2F