Peg Called

I'm sitting in a darkened living room on the sofa basking in the sound of "no sounds". No children, no television and no phone for the moment. That doesn't last long. Peg called. For the past week, thoughts of her and friends laughing, snorkeling and island hopping would flutter through my brain and I would smile at all the fun she must be having. I was invited along then they begged and I kept smiling and declining. I had already told them I had seen THE TITANIC and shipboard I would not be. They laugh and continued their excursion planning when island docking.

Peg's ship unsailed (unsailed not a word) her at the port in New Orleans where her husband swooped in driving the long white passenger van and picked up Peg and all her cruise friends. Seven days at sea and their vacation ended this past Saturday; they hurry home to return to their normal routines.

Peg was not as brimming with joy as I would have expected. After the first normal greeting, everything went downhill quickly. Peg was angry and disappointed with the cruise. Actually I didn't hear much about the actual cruise, as in "food, ship accommodations, port of calls, etc. I heard about the less then accommodating behavior of almost everyone that was traveling with her and her refereeing of the friends on this journey to hell.

She waited all year for this cruise; her chance to get away from children and spend some time with adults only. She booked her trip with 7 friends. Everybody had done this before; these friends had all sailed together in the past. I listened and for the most part I was quiet and interjecting only a "oh no!" and an "oh My!" occasionally. Five of these well known friends and more then one of them a relative went off the rails; sniping, whining, binging to bring on a diabetic coma, falling down, panic attacks; Peg had it all to fix. Her cruise was spent babysitting all.

She was so upset during the cruise she couldn't, and this is her words, "get her mind to slow down" so she didn't get much sleep for the entire trip.

I told her to call her doctor and get 5 Valiums, a few Ambien and do a medicinal chill. Of course she won't but I do believe if she could sleep a solid 8, things wouldn't appear so wrong.

In retelling this story, it was humorous to my friends. Peg doesn't see any humour in it right now and I told her to give it a few months. Right now she is just angry; unreleased anger married to frustration and disgust makes for a bitter bunch of days and that is where she stews. I let her blow off steam; I don't know if it helped. I'm hear to listen. It's too late to make it better and since I didn't make the trip I owe no apologies and for this I'm grateful as it seems everyone Peg knew or thought she knew were less then savory characters on this, her voyage of the year.