A medical freak since birth.

I was laying on the couch today in a feverish haze thinking about all the weird and/or serious illnesses I've had in my life.

Earlier, I was at an appointment at the hospital (to have my mystery lump investigated. Diagnosis: still a freaky mystery lump) and I ran in to our favorite Polish friend, Sylwia. She started cataloging my maladies (by the way, her diagnosis of my mystery lump: cancer or left behind surgical tool). And then when I got home, I talked to my mother and she listed off all the times I've had pneumonia previously. I've had it a lot, apparently.

So anyway, back to the couch and the feverish haze.

I tried to remember what my earliest freakazoid illness was, and then I remembered. And in true Brandi style, it's completely abnormal.

I was born with gills and they were infected.

O.K., not exactly gills. But sort of.

I was born with a brachial cleft cyst, which is a result of my brachial arches not closing properly when I as an embryo.

Brachial arches are a lot like gills in form (not function). In fish embryos, these arches do become functioning gills. In humans, they just go away very early in embryonic development.

Unless you're a freak like me.