Hanging My Shingle

Sorry I've been silent for so long. Rachel tends to require a lot of attention when awake. She is TWO after all. But also, I haven't felt very good...and now I know why.
About the middle of last week, I was feeling really sore through my shoulders, neck and back of my head. I figured I hurt my trapezius in a workout. In some cases it was a steady pain, in others I'd feel these stabbing pains in the back of my head, neck and shoulders. I kept trying to stretch the muscles and shiatsu massage them.
Around Friday night, this huge rash developed, mostly on my neck and the back of the head. We figured it was a heat rash, but it didn't get any better all weekend. And when Rachel would hug me on that side, the pain was excruciating.
So on Monday, my wife says, "Your rash isn't getting any better; maybe you should see a doctor." I get squeezed in at 3:45 and by the time I get there, my energy has flagged and I have the worst headache I've had in years.
I take off my shirt. The doctor takes one look at my neck and shoulders and says. "That's shingles."
I say, "What?"
I have shingles. I had chickenpox as a kid and apparently, the virus that causes chickenpox remains dormant in your body waiting for an opportunity to strike when your immune system is compromised. In most cases, this happens to the elderly, but I guess I'm just ahead of my time.
My sore muscles were actually the virus attacking the nerve endings in my head, neck and shoulders. That explains the stabbing pains.
Shingles only attacks one side of the body. It doesn't pass the midpoint.
So...I am now taking some horse pills that are supposed to stun my nerves back to normal. I'm taking prednisone for the rash and Vicodin if the pain gets to be too much. So far, I haven't needed the Vicodin; Advil works just fine.
The rash will likely stay 3-5 weeks. But at least I'll have a new accessory for Halloween. I'll stand shirtless at the door and in my best Peter Lorre voice, exclaim, "I'm hideous!"