Monday, December 5, 2011

Busy, Busy, Busy But Rest is Coming

I haven't had a chance to read lately and I'm suffering withdrawal symptoms. Last Thursday we drove to Arlington, Virginia to a conference about COPD. That evening we drove all over town looking for a restaurant we like; Legal Seafoods is a chain of restaurants with clam chowder to die for and everything else seafood you ever loved. The chain originated in Boston but we discovered one in Arlington. We found the street but the street numbers made no sense and we were up and down until finally there it was. Then we drove around and around looking for a parking space close enough for Dave to walk. (We forgot to take the wheelchair.)

The restaurant made me think we were in NYC. Tables about 4" apart and LOUD. One woman had such a loud cackling laugh, we thought she was laying eggs, and a middle-aged guy next to us was entertaining three women with his knowledge of Washington, etc. He was probably from Podunk, but since he was paying, they were a good audience.

On the way back to our motel, I hit the curb of a street divider in the dark. Bang - down went the left front tire. Turned out the left rear also had a big bubble on the side. Everything went downhill from there. Our car spent the next day at a tire store while we went to the conference which, while good, was too much oriented toward professionals, particularly doctors. I learned quite a bit and the packet of materials we received was excellent but about 4 pm I just hit the wall - hardly any sleep and too much expense that worried me.

Sat. we came home, rested for an hour and then went to a basketball game. I wanted nothing more than to curl up in our own bed and sleep for 5 days, but Sun. we had to go grocery shopping. Now we have a busy week of appointments beginning this afternoon. It won't be until next weekend that everything will quiet down so I can just get some sorely needed rest.

Maybe I can read while we wait at all those appointments this week.

7 comments:

  1. Doesn't sound like the greatest trip! Hope you get that rest!

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  2. I'm with Jill - that doesn't sound like a fun trip at all. I hope things improve this week!

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  3. Barbara....so sorry the trip was so stressful. The noise, traffic, and just plain frantic-ness of that Northern VA/DC/Baltimore always make me so glad to be home in Maine after one of our visits. My adult children, and grandchild still live in NOVA, and I well remember the crazy streets in Arlington (particularly if you don't understand the naming/numbering scheme). I worked in Arlington from 1989-2004, and believe me, I was more than ready to retire from the rat-race!

    I hope your appointments go well for you this week, that your car behaves, and perhaps when you get your shopping done, a light fluffy snow will fall to make everything beautiful and encourage you to sit down, sip some tea or hot choco and enjoy a good book. You have all of our permission to rest up and relax.

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  4. Sounds like your trip wasn't what you were hoping for. Maybe it was just nice to get away? If you really want to keep reading, may I suggest checking your library for audiobooks and/or MP3 books. When I've got a lot of things I have to do, it's one way to keep reading.

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  5. SOunds like a stressful weekend to me. Hope your week goes better.

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  6. I'm tired just reading about your trip, Barbara. Just going to the city is stressful enough without running into problems! I hope you soon can rest up & recover.

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  7. Thank you, everyone. I appreciate your thoughtful comments. I hadn't driven in big city traffic for quite a while except in Phila. where I'm familiar enough with the roads and traffic to feel more at ease.

    Tina, we do have some snow now, just enough to make everything beautiful and warm enough to melt everything on the roads. Perfect. Candace (Beth Fish) has me trying new kinds of tea and I'm greatly enjoying those new experiences.

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