The Cure for all Ills

So the whole cast of "Medea" is in various stages of cold-and-flu hell. The dark side of theatrical bonding: get your periods all at the same time, get sick together. At least most of us seem to only have colds, unlike one poor girl who obviously had something worse because she actually barfed onstage yesterday during our first run-thru. Talk about the Actor's Nightmare.

I'm battling my own symptoms (nothing worse than achy bones, sore throat and a stuffy nose, thank the gods) with a drink so potent it could singlehandedly be the cure for the common cold- and so easy to make:

• cut up some ginger and throw it in a pan of boiling water
• after the water has absorbed the gingery goodness, ladle a cup of it into a glass or mug.
  
• Add the juice and pulp of 1 lemon, and spoon in a generous dollop of honey.
  
• If you need extra kick, add a sprinkling of cayenne pepper and a clove of garlic, smashed or sliced. Make sure you eat the garlic as you take sips of the Potion.
  
• If it's night-time, feel free to also add whiskey, rum or brandy if you want a deep and lovely slumber.
  

The Lemon-and-Honey is a potion from my childhood, and indeed we were seldom given anything stronger, as my mother doesn't really believe in drugs. (Having the constitution of an ox, she doesn't need them.) The cayenne and garlic I first tried last year at my friend Steve's , and I was so impressed I straightaway started making all my potions this way.

I'd take a picture of the Potion, in all its golden splendor but- whoops- I just finished it!