A friend of ours once said, “You have a nice home. You should go there more often.” Between husband’s business, my job, church activities, and sleeping, we don’t see each other much. Our business travels take us in opposite directions. Unlike scuba gear, computer systems don’t fare too well under water. Once in awhile, hubby books a land-based trip and I go along.
We were well overdue for a “just us” vacation when hubby got a chance at a deal on four nights on one of the Netherlands Antilles islands. We had two days to decide which of two available weeks to travel. I checked my calendar against work and church commitments and, all bases covered, we settled on a date and he booked the trip.
Time flies when you work for a living. Throw in a few extra meetings and seasonal cold and allergy symptoms, and the days just tend to run together. Thankfully, shorts and t-shirts are the uniform of choice in the Dutch Caribbean, so catching up the laundry wasn’t a prerequisite to packing.
Hubby believes that one should get to the destination as soon as possible, so he books early morning flights. We were scheduled for a 6:05 a.m. departure. I had no idea an airplane could fly at that hour, but apparently the airlines have great expectations of their employees and equipment. Given the recommended pre-departure allowance for checking dive gear and maneuvering through the security checkpoint, we decided to spend the night near the airport and ride the shuttle over from the hotel. We assured ourselves we’d rest better and could sleep a couple of hours longer.
As we left church the Sunday morning prior to departure, our pastor wished us well and said a prayer for us. These words of his prayer especially caught my attention: “Lord, make this the most restful vacation they have ever had.” We thanked him, said our goodbyes, and headed home to finish a few last minute things and head south.
We planned on dropping the dog off at the kennel at 4 o’clock. Then hubby remembered he wanted to print our boarding passes before leaving home. Unfortunately, the dog saw his little “kennelgarten” backpack as luggage was loaded into the car. Jack Russel Terriers do not like to be kept waiting. (In case you dog lovers were wondering, pacing the floor and whining does not make computers, printers, or humans “go” faster.)
Finally, after depositing the dog, electric and insurance payments, and annual county assessment form at their intended destinations, we were off. We arrived in St. Louis in time for a quiet dinner, I took care of some last-minute E-Mail, and we settled in for the night.
We had just dozed off when the weatherman interrupted regular programming and our peaceful night’s sleep, radar lit up like the Fourth of July. His weather report was interrupted by the tornado sirens. Two hours later I finally went to sleep. Two and a half hours afterward, the alarm went off.
Good thing vacation doesn’t officially start until the plane takes off…