I have something to confess, and you're not going to like it. Here it goes.

I like Courtney Love. Really. I think she's great. I grew up listening to Hole. It was pretty much essential listening for teenage, female misfits in the mid-'90s, and I was not exactly the prom queen. I do not think she killed Kurt Cobain, and I find her dashed-off, misspelled MySpace missives utterly delightful. The decision to name her last album America's Sweetheart? Brilliant.

So naturally, I was concerned to hear that Ms. Love was rushed to the hospital at 3 a.m. on Friday, complaining of laryngitis, chest pains, and throat irritation.

But when I found out that her ailment turned out to be nothing more than strep throat, I was downright proud. That's my rehabilitated girl, having completely legitimate and explicable health problems! Nothing like a few days of bed rest and antibiotics to cure that non-sexually-transmitted bacterial illness!

My only lingering confusion is about the chest pains. As far as I can tell, they're not a symptom of strep. Should we be worried?