1 Usually in this kind of situation the tape has bad blocks.

2 The system was playing up a bit last week, so I took the hint and made a second backup.

3 Actually ... in this kind of situation, usually the tape controller adapter has gone stupid.

Everything looks fine ... until you actually need to restore data ...

4 Which is why I made the second backup to another server, using rsync.

1

Yep, thinking you can relax and have a holiday completely throws off your system, and it responds by turning on you.  Every time.

Feel better soon!

2

We have colds like that here in our hemisphere, too. I just got over a bad one earlier this month, as a matter of fact. I've just gotten over stage three -- in which you cough up all sorts of nasty stuff at odd times, unexpectedly. It's much better than the first two stages, though!

Hope you get over all of this as soon as possible -- if not sooner!

I've found that straight scotch helps the sore throat when you are out of tea and honey . . . ;->

3

It's been said that of all the things that won't help a cold, Bourbon Whiskey is the best. But I doubt they sell much Bourbon in Strilia, and I doubt you like it. So perhaps some local equivalent will do in a pinch.

4

Yay Pixy's alive.

I'll share a family seekrit with you for cold / sore throat relief. We'll mix the tea and honey, which works pretty good as you know, but also add in a bit lemon juice and a bit of bourbon (for it's medicinal purposes of course). I'm not sure why the combination works so well, but for some reason it's better than the off the shelf stuff.

Feel better soon.

Surely they sell Wild Turkey, Jim Beam or Jack Daniels bourbon in Australia. I mean life would cease to exist without Kentucky Bourbon Cake or Chocolate Bourbon Cake. Really it would.

5 I can independently confirm through comprehensive surveys of bars and clubs in most of Australia that bourbon is available to us.

Scuse me while I go lie down.

6

RFNA you say? That's terrible, but I feel as though I gulped down a spot of N₂O₄ with a N₂H₃CH₃ chaser.

Get well soon!

 

7

OK this is probably too late to do any good, but a gram of Vitamin C every couple hours has been scientifically shown to reduce symptoms.

Colds

At least 29 controlled clinical trials (many double-blind and placebo-controlled) involving a total of over 11,000 participants have been conducted. These trials were reviewed in the 1990s^[5][6] and again recently.[16] The trials show that vitamin C reduces the duration and severity of colds but not the frequency. The data indicate that there is a normal dose-response relationship. Vitamin C is more effective the higher the dose. The vast majority of the trials were limited to doses below 1 g/day. As doses rise, it becomes increasingly difficult to keep the trials double blind because of the obvious gastro-intestinal side effects. So, the most effective trials at doses between 2 and 10 g/day are met with skepticism. Reports from physicians have provided ample clinical confirmation.[17]

The controlled trials and clinical experience prove that vitamin C in doses ranging from 0.1 to 2.0 g/day have a relatively small effect. The duration of colds was reduced by 7% for adults and 15% for children. The studies provide ample justification for businesses to encourage their employees to take 1 to 2 g/day during the cold season to improve workplace productivity and reduce sick days. The clinical reports provide the strongest possible evidence that vitamin C at higher doses is significantly more effective. However, the effectiveness typically comes at the price of gastro-intestinal side effects. It is easy for physicians to minimize these side effects since they cause no lasting harm. Adult patients, however, have proven reluctant to subject themselves to gas and cramping to deliver an unknown benefit (the duration and severity of colds is highly variable so the patient never knows what he/she is warding off). It is well worth the effort of identifying the small subset of individuals who can benefit from high daily doses (>10 g/day) of vitamin C without side effects and training them to regularly take 5 g/day during cold season and to increase the dose at the onset of a cold.

The trials proved that vitamin C is more effective for children. Reports from the field confirm the observations in the trials and suggest that children are less prone to vitamin C side effects.[18] Colds and flu are a serious problem for children. Every time a cold infects a child, its growing mind and body must divert energy from its usual business of growth and development. If the cold is followed by an opportunistic infection, such as bronchitis or ear infection, more energy must be diverted. Colds are the number one trigger for asthma.[19] Pre-school children in daycare are nearly constantly fighting infections (5-10 per year).[20] Chronic disease in childhood is believed to sometimes have permanent developmental consequences which can contribute to decreased life expectancy.[21]

Also, the sicker you feel, the more C your body can probably utilize.