Conjunctivitis

Jessica has pink eye.

I went to jury duty today.  For the first time, and I found it very interesting.  We were a group of over 80 people, watched a little movie about jury duty, listened to a very inspirational speech by our jury manager, and then waited to see if we would be called.  Half of our group was called, and we trouped 4 flights of stairs to a court room.  Where a very nice judge explained it all again, and then the selections were slowly made.  One by one, with some being excused.  I was half hoping I would be picked, and at the same time dreading it.  Oh, to spend three days, possibly four, on jury duty, and then also being responsible for the outcome - a lot of pressure.  It was only Petite Jury, so not a huge deal.

So I was just as happy to walk out of the courthouse and back into my life.

Which included getting Jessica from Aftercare, and bringing her to her art class.  Where I left her with my phone, since I was going back to the house.  Her mother picked her up.
As I was walking out the door, I looked at Jessica, and noticed that one of her eyes was swollen and red.  She has pink-eye, I thought....
It came on so fast!  One hour later her mother brought her to the doctor, and yes, that's what it was.

Quick lapse into the past, my young readers may exit stage left now.
Years ago, my folks were both still alive, we went to Lake Constance in Germany (Bodensee).  Erika was doing her European tour with a girlfriend, and Nicole and Chuck were with me, so was Kerstin, my niece.  We were there with my folks camper, and the week was pretty lousy as far as weather was concerned.  The kids slept in the camper, so did my folks, and since there wasn't enough room, I slept in the tent in front on a well, what do you call those things?  You  lay on them on a porch, or deck... like I said, the nights were... something to be desired.

During that vacation Chuck came down with bright red eyes.  Our departure date back to the States wasn't that far away, but we still had a few days in Germany before boarding that plane.  And the eye didn't get better, even with over-the-counter drops.  I had to bite the bullet and go see an eye doctor with my son, fearing all the while that the bill would be exorbitant.   Made an appointment, went to probably one of the most well-equipped offices I've ever been to.  And my diagnosis was confirmed (I do have some kind of badge for being a mother of three, someday I'll find it), pink eye or conjunctivitis.
Medicine was prescribed, picked-up and we were asked to come back a few days later.  No bill yet.  So we bought the meds, came back, were pronounced healed, and presented with the  most ridiculous low bill of any medical service I've ever seen.