Some of the things that my body does (and possibly yours as well) are counterproductive. Case in point: I’m fighting a cold that makes me sound like Hellboy (according to my son Alex, age 11). My throat hurts when I swallow. So why does the condition of “throat hurts” produce the reaction of “salivate excessively”? Hello, more saliva means more swallowing, which hurts more.

To deal with this, I’m employing the tactic I used last night, albeit not deliberately: stay up so late that I fall asleep almost immediately when I go to bed.

It’s not what you might call a good plan, but it’s what I’ve got.