Having been sick with the flu for a month now, I have been somewhat obsessed with the question of identity. If a person is known by their enemies, then the fact that my body is an immune system battlefield that is struggling to develop antibodies against a mutating replicant virus reminds me on a moment-by-moment basis that my body depends for its integrity on its ability to recognise what is not part of my physical identity, and repel attackers. Viruses are cunning little bastards, coming in and taking over my DNA replication mechanism, and using the photocopier all night. My flu is the result of the ensuing fight for me. The boundary between what is me, and what is not me, is currently contested terrain: this will last until I die, at which point the argument moves onto different terrain. (Attchooooooo!!!)

yours, Peter T.