“have you been to china recently?” asked the nurse, after she had removed the thermometer from my ear. i had come to the clinic to get a throat lozenge for my cough. before giving me one, she sat me down, looked inside my mouth, and announced my temperature was normal.
“yes – the other weekend – to teach a course”, i responded calmly. i knew this was not what she wanted to hear.
the nurse lowered her hand and slowly backed away from me. she was trying to hide her nerves, but her eyes gave her away.