Swine flu?

I am trying to figure out how this happened. Somewhere in my really hard work week (almost 3 all nighters), there was a swine flu outbreak. I didnt realize this until I got an email from Chris asking me if the cold I had was gone (it is) with a link to an article on the swine flu outbreak in Mexico City. Walking home from work today the streets looked like Asia during the SARS scare with everyone in a face mask. How did I miss this? I am usually totally up on the latest health scare. I am a hypochondriac (not the kind that goes to doctors because I havent been to a GP since I went to my pediatrician when I was 18). When I got the two staff infections in hawaii I went to Drs on Call and they mis-diagnosed me, so I never went again. If I get sick here, all I can really do is go to the hospital. I am the type of hypochondriac that self diagnoses and self medicates. Usually with alcohol. It is used to clean emergency rooms so it can definitely take care of whatever bacteria I may be carrying around.
There is very little press about it here, so what I am learning, I am learning from searching US google and from panicked friends making sure I am still alive. The schools and museums are all closed. The race on Sunday sold out before I could register, but my mom thinks with this outbreak some people will back out. I am not sure I am brave enough to share the water stations with a race full of potentially flu carrying people, but athletes are supposed to be healthy right? The office sent out a mass email giving us great advice on how to take care of ourselves. It was in a ppt and the first slide said - if you feel sick go to the doctor. The second slide said - wash your hands frequently and cover your mouth when you cough. That was it. Really? Thanks for the help. I learned that in kindergarten.
All week in my meetings we had three people hacking up lungs complaining that they had the flu and we didnt think anything of it until we saw the scare in the news. I actually was the only one who didnt panic because I only really freak out if throw up is involved and this flu doesnt seem to have that. I slightly contemplated not going to the gym to run, but that was more out of laziness than protecting my health. I just went to get dinner and the waiters had the masks on but the cooks didnt. Hopefully the flu shot I had in september and the daily doses of Zicam will help keep me safe because I wasnt about to not eat my tacos. Pork tacos I might add - hopefully eating the animal that started the flu cant make me sick.