I really had no intention of coming back to California so soon after the US Open in June...but things happen. My mom thought my brother was taking her to California...turned out it was a misunderstanding. He was only looking for Christmas money from her so he could take his family to California. Oops! So after looking at really low airfares, I decided, hey! Let's do it!
We decided to go in March-since February has typically been cool in San Diego. And after the winter we have had in New England, I was totally looking forward to a sunny vacation.
Now if you've ever traveled with me you know things happen-always. Not to disappoint anyone, my first mistake was in booking the trip with a layover. I misread the itinerary and forgot to include the time change in my flight time. We flew an hour to Baltimore and then still had a 5 and a half hour flight to San Diego. We had not eaten anything more than peanuts and crackers since we left Manchester at 3pm. It was my first night of no supper. I was starting to get cranky...
Then when we arrived and went to the luggage carousel....my worst fear came true. No luggage. Nothing. No clothes. Just the jeans and t shirt on my back. "That's okay, you can wear my clothes," Cousin Dotty graciously offered. "Here, I have a package of brand new underwear!" Thank goodness! And what a treat to be able to share clothes with a 65 year old! I will never again over pack...I know this is some kind of karma...
The next day we caught the Amtrack Surfliner to Santa Barbara. Since Deanna fell the week before our trip we got the extra special privilege of sitting in the Senior Citizen Car. Woohoo!!
Off the train in Burbank at Bob Hope Airport, Fr. Ray picked us up. We had a lovely champagne brunch and then headed to San Fernando to see where he lived before heading to Santa Barbara.
I looked smashing in my Tye dye T-shirt and 24 hour jeans. Ray took us to meet Fr. Jim, the 90 year old priest he cares for, and we saw his photo album of their trip to Fr. Fred's mission in Haiti.
We arrived at the Upham Hotel in Santa Barbara, and stayed in the same room we had last year. We visited with Dotty's daughter and son in law and grandaughter. It was my second official night of no supper.
Day 2 in Santa Barbara was spent shopping, kind of. But if we wanted to get in before midnight, we had to catch the 2pm train back to Solana Beach. We met Lisa for a great lunch on the deck overlooking Santa Barbara Harbor at Brophy's Clam and Seafood Restaurant. The cioppino was superb, but I should have starting carbo loading. The train ride home was uneventful, back to the Senior Car, and we arrived home to a glass of wine and some snacks..no supper, Day 3.
Do I sound like I am stuck on the eating thing?
So here we are back ini Encinitas at Cousin Dotty's-who now has a roommate. A lovely woman who has taken over her spare room upstairs. The room with the view, and the bathroom. My room. Darn. What that means is I have to share a room AND a bed with my mom, and the three of us have to share one bathroom. Oh, oh. Oh and did I mention my mom is allergic to the two cats Dotty has? And di dI mention all of her allergy meds were in the lost luggage?Oh, oh...And did I mention my mom is a constant complainer? She does not suffer in silence...
Well, so night one in Encinitas was pretty sleepless..."I'm cold, my eyes itch, my ankle is puffy, my knee hurts, I'm so stiff, I have a head ache, my feet are freezing...on and on and on...but we did cook a fantastic supper. Night two was no better than night one, mom apparently is awake every hour during the night ans she thinks everyone else is, too. At 2:30 am she says, "Can you please move over? You're too close to me. " Woke me up from a fantastic sleep...short, but fantastic. My day started at 3am... Non -stop conversation during the day continues into the night.
Night three Dotty gave up her own bed for me, and she slept on the window seat/twin bed. I finally slept throught the night.
Night 4 Dotty took her room back...she tried to sell me on the window seat/twin bed. Now my stuff (our luggage was waiting for us when we arrived back from Santa Barbara) was strewn between my mom's room, Dotty's room, and the dining room. I was a homeless person. No spot to call my own. At least it was relatively warm and the orange tree out back provided fruit and snacks.
Now in between the sleeping and eating, of course we had sunny, beautiful days..days punctuated by the non stop continuous chatter of my mom. She would talk to a wall. It doesn't matter if you respond, because she doesn't listen. She talks over everyone. She is sweet, and endearing and everyone loves her, including me. But she talks too much.
It has been a very long week...the Seniors are exhausted and last night went to bed at 9pm. Woohoo! I watched a DVD on my laptop. The days of sitting in the sun have not materialized, as the temperature has not made it past 65 degrees. Today will most likely involve cleaning, shopping for food and cooking for the St Patty's dinner party tonight. What will tomorrow bring? We shall have to see....but for now, it is quiet except for the birds chirping and the clock ticking. I have a fantastic view of a patio and palm trees and if it were sunny...the ocean. I can almost imagine being on vacation....
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