A Tasteless Tale
Perhaps you may have noticed that I haven't posted to LJ for quite some time. This is largely due to the fact that I have felt like nothing major has happened in my life to inspire an update. Sure I could treat you with the general mediocrity of my corporate-slave life, but something tells me that you would much rather spend your time living your own life than reading about how I just got new tires for my car or that I had a chicken sandwich for lunch today (which are both true, might I add).
Well, something has happened to finally inspire a post.
As some of you may know, for some time now, I have been afflicted with a case of onychomycosis; or, as those in the medical profession may refer to it, CTD -- Crusty Toenail Disease. Basically, my toenails are brown. So, having been inspired by the commercials where "Digger" the dermatophyte lifts open a person's toenail like a trap door and crawls into the toe like a Luke Skywalker figure entering a toy tauntaun, I decided to get a prescription for Lamisil -- the cure for brown toenails. Naturally, being a person who can jump into things without considering the consequences, I did not research the side effects.
It turns out that one of the "uncommon" side effects of Lamisil (as opposed to the "common" variety which includes diarrhea and nausea, and the "rare" variety which can be liver failure leading to terminal death) is the loss of the sensation of taste. So, as a result of the medication, I have lost my sense of taste (and please, keep your "bad taste" and "has no taste" puns to yourselves).
It started to give out a little over a week ago when things started tasting merely bland, but it has gotten to the point where I can taste virtually nothing. All I have to go on is texture and feel. A piece of supposedly delicious cheddar cheese could be an Elmer's glue stick for all I know. A perfectly ripe nectarine might as well be a ball of moist Wonder Bread. A can of sweet, nourishing Coca-Cola could just as well be sparkling brine. All the subtleties of flavor have become completely lost to me.
One good thing about this condition, though, is that I have lost some weight. Now you may not know it unless you have been pool-side with me, but as I have aged I have developed a post-30 paunch which I hatefully refer to as my "first trimester." Since eating has ceased to be a pleasure and is now just a mechanical function to sustain my life, I no longer feel the need to shove yummy foods down my gullet because I may want more. My portions have decreased because eating is just a task for me. Additionally, as opposed to having a bacon cheeseburger or taco salad for lunch, I now have raw vegetables. And why shouldn't I? To me, it's all just matter, so why not go for the healthy, zero-fat matter?
Fortunately, as time has gone on, various flavors have been slowly returning. At first, everything I ate tasted bitter. Then, salty sneaked back. Today, sour has timidly reintroduced itself to me. I am anxiously waiting for the others (sweet and savory) to come back, because eating an M&M is like eating a bitter, slightly salty, crunchy pellet.
.
Well, something has happened to finally inspire a post.
As some of you may know, for some time now, I have been afflicted with a case of onychomycosis; or, as those in the medical profession may refer to it, CTD -- Crusty Toenail Disease. Basically, my toenails are brown. So, having been inspired by the commercials where "Digger" the dermatophyte lifts open a person's toenail like a trap door and crawls into the toe like a Luke Skywalker figure entering a toy tauntaun, I decided to get a prescription for Lamisil -- the cure for brown toenails. Naturally, being a person who can jump into things without considering the consequences, I did not research the side effects.
It turns out that one of the "uncommon" side effects of Lamisil (as opposed to the "common" variety which includes diarrhea and nausea, and the "rare" variety which can be liver failure leading to terminal death) is the loss of the sensation of taste. So, as a result of the medication, I have lost my sense of taste (and please, keep your "bad taste" and "has no taste" puns to yourselves).
It started to give out a little over a week ago when things started tasting merely bland, but it has gotten to the point where I can taste virtually nothing. All I have to go on is texture and feel. A piece of supposedly delicious cheddar cheese could be an Elmer's glue stick for all I know. A perfectly ripe nectarine might as well be a ball of moist Wonder Bread. A can of sweet, nourishing Coca-Cola could just as well be sparkling brine. All the subtleties of flavor have become completely lost to me.
One good thing about this condition, though, is that I have lost some weight. Now you may not know it unless you have been pool-side with me, but as I have aged I have developed a post-30 paunch which I hatefully refer to as my "first trimester." Since eating has ceased to be a pleasure and is now just a mechanical function to sustain my life, I no longer feel the need to shove yummy foods down my gullet because I may want more. My portions have decreased because eating is just a task for me. Additionally, as opposed to having a bacon cheeseburger or taco salad for lunch, I now have raw vegetables. And why shouldn't I? To me, it's all just matter, so why not go for the healthy, zero-fat matter?
Fortunately, as time has gone on, various flavors have been slowly returning. At first, everything I ate tasted bitter. Then, salty sneaked back. Today, sour has timidly reintroduced itself to me. I am anxiously waiting for the others (sweet and savory) to come back, because eating an M&M is like eating a bitter, slightly salty, crunchy pellet.
.