By Ricky Swindle

Muffler Shop Musings

Howdy, friends!

I had a friend who sent me a funny the other day in my inbox. I get a lot of those from folks all the time.

Folks know I enjoy humor and I truly believe life is better when you have a little something to tickle your funny bone.

The point being made in the little snippet was whose pain tolerance is higher between men and women. The question being pondered was what is the worst pain?

Would it be the childbirth experience for women, or being a man and having the experience of getting kicked in the groin?

The answer the author gave, being a man himself, is it has to be being a man suffering from a kick to the groin area.

His reason being that although childbirth is an excruciating ordeal for sure for a female, after about a year or so she might say “I think I want to have another baby.”

But, never will you ever hear a male groin kick survivor utter the words, “I think I would like to feel that sensation again.”

Makes sense to me.

Well, moving on down the column, my eldest Grand Heathen Rylan Clair was in Le Bonheur Hospital for a while week before last.

She was exposed to Covid at school back in September. I remember it vividly because she had been with me the day before the school nurse called to inform her mother, so we all had to get tested.

I worried all weekend about the forthcoming Covid test I would be subjected to that Monday.

Covid, I thought. I can’t have the Covid, I’ve got a store to run with employees and customers depending on me. I don’t want to have to close up my little store and quarantine for 10 days.

I know my wife loves me but 10 whole days, 240 straight hours of her having to deal with only me would put her in a unbearable situation, and an unbearable situation for her will be a very uncomfortable situation for me.

Every negative scenario you could conjure up entered my mind to be added, subtracted and deducted upon.

Everything but the illness itself. The thought of actually being sick never crossed my old gray haired gourd I carry on my shoulders.

We all tested negative except for Rylan, so her mom, dad and brother had to quarantine a week with her because they all reside together.

Old Big Daddy had missed the cut and was still handling business as usual.

Rylan, bless her heart, had  the full Covid experience. No taste or smell for several days along with fever and everything else served on the Covid getters menu.

She got better after a week or so, but really has not gotten better.

Rylan has always been a very, healthy athletic child but not since September. It’s like she cannot get over the hump of the illness.

I have read several articles dealing with the subject of “Covid Long Haulers.” There are a lot of folks, both young and old, who are experiencing health issues directly related to being exposed to the virus long after it has supposedly ran its course in their bodies .

In the past year we have lost a lot of older folks and some younger folks with pre-existing health issues due to Covid.

Looking at Rylan, I can see how that can happen with her being a healthy 14-year-old and still battling the effects of the virus.

An older person or one already with health conditions doesn’t have much of a chance in a fight that’s still giving a reasonably healthy young lady all these problems six months down the road.

In retrospect, I should have been more concerned with actually being sick instead of my mind being diluted with everything else. Just human nature I suppose. No one ever thinks that “I” might get sick.

Rylan was the major reason I took the Covid vaccine shot. If that little healthy girl can’t kick that virus to the curb in half a year, then I probably wouldn’t be much of an opponent for it myself.

She’s doing better for now it seems. The Le Bonheur folks are nothing short of top notch and have her on a healing plan we all are confident in.

She spent the weekend fishing on their place and fussing with her brother, so as for now all is well.

Folks, take care of yourselves, your older folks and your young’uns. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow so let’s make the best out of today.

By the way, if you enjoy this nonsense column, I still play local music artists and talk two  hours of nonsense with Johnny Pace every Saturday morning 9-11 on www.undefinedradio.com and Facebook Live on The Local Yokels Show Facebook page.

Tune in and prepare to be un-baffled.

Write to rickyswindle@bellsouth.net