A little cold

I'm fighting a little cold right now...

Well, actually, I've been fighting it since last friday.

Well, yes, I have been in bed, and yes, I am stuffing myself with garlic capsules.

'So..?' you may ask. Well, in true Olympic spirit, me having a cold is a bit like Michael Phelps saying he can't swim. You see, I have been very, very proud of the fact that I have not had a cold for just on eight years. I've told thousands of people that I had a cold every year until I began drinking alkaline water and therefore it must be absolutely wonderful for your immunity.

I have seen it over and over again; a friend arrives laden with cold bugs, hacking his heart out.. and I get a bit of a feeling that something is trying to break in.. and then nothing. The same with Cassie. And now...

Well, I've decided to come clean. I'm sure some people will decide that alkaline water doesn't affect immunity because my amazing record has been broken. But what if I hadn't told you? Could I ever write about alkaline water in the same way again?

It might seem a small thing to you, but I'm over dishonesty. I realise that we are all dishonest to some degree, even in the name of good relations. But I'm wondering at the toll dishonesty takes. Having to remember every little biggie you told every time you meet that person again. having to remember what you said when and why. Remembering even why you told the lie in the first place!

I was in email conversation a couple of months ago with someone 'in the business' and the topisc arose. This person, in whom I had held great respect, confided in me that because the world is dishonest, he felt he had to 'go along with it' in his own advertising.

I certainly agree that the temptation to tell 'porkies' looms large in every business owner's mind. When he visited Byron Bay, David Suzuki referred to the internet as the 'information superhype-way'. I agree. It's not just the outright lies. It's also the 'sins of omission' and the downright premeditated strategy that website marketers use. They know you are only on their site for minuites. They know your attention span is short and they know the web has accustomed you to accepting answers as long as you can get them fast, so they deliberately 'fuzz' their information supply to make it just too hard to tell if they are telling the truth.

So here's one for the record. I, Ian Blair Hamilton, alkaline specialist, recommender of alkaline balance to all and sundry, have a cold! So there!

..and it stinks. I almost forgot just how ratty a cold can be!