Turkey weekend

As I sit waiting for the return of the husband from the city with baby daughter and boyfriend I offer this update:

Today at work was one of those days and I don't mean that in a good way. Suffice to say I had interactions (of various degrees of intensity/pleasantness) with administration, staff, physicians, other facilities, family, patients, and more. By noon I could cheerfully have walked away without looking back. A colleague asked if I liked my job and when I matter of factly said "no" she agreed that she wouldn't like it either. On a positive note - the pirate shirt was a big hit.

At one point a frantic mother of a university student called me - I have no idea why as I have no connection to her issue but perhaps she thought I was Public Health, perhaps she said the M word and switchboard put her through - and said that a) there were more cases of mumps at the university b) the university was offering MMR immunizations in a building which was quarantined and the students were leary of entering (they're smarter than the authorities already apparently so don't need to go to school) c) the student wouldn't be home in time before the local Dr. office closed could she come to OPD? - in case you were wondering the answer to that is NO!!! d) the professors at this university had voted over 84% in favor of striking d) this mother stated "she might lose her semester and I've just paid over $13,000 and that's only until January - did you know it was that much?" I assured her I was quite an expert on the cost of tuition and thought to myself 'lady it is the ONLY reason today that I am sitting at this desk talking to you'.

I was thrilled / relieved that the father of these children offered to follow through on his plan of the pick up in Halifax even though he has to be up at 4 a.m. tomorrow and has four boats in during the day. I was not relishing the thought of a 6 hr return trip after the day I'd put in. There was an update a while ago from daughter # 1 who had located them on the way back reporting that her sister was 'pumped' - I would say that was a given - and eating KFC as they headed home.

As I sit typing this Procol Harum is entertaining me on Sirius radio with Whiter Shade of Pale and I am instantly transported back to November 1972 when I was on a Mediterrean cruise with EduCanada while in grade11. We traveled on a former WWII troop carrier the SS Nevasa and yes...it was as decrepit as it sounds and... the trip of a lifetime. The food was disgraceful served by furtive foreign crew who leered at us silently, we had dorms with over 20 bunks squeezed in which were very far below deck and patrolled by a Nanny who made sure we were IN bed, we were expected to do homework, had a cranky spinster chaperone and less than 5% of the students were able to function and not seasick at sea. I was in that fortunate group thankfully. For a total of $400 we flew to England, on to Naples to the ship, day trip to Rome, on to Greece - Athens and Mycanae, Tunisia and Carthage, Malaga and then up around the Bay of Biscayne to Southhampton for a few London days of theatre, Tower of London, Big Ben, St. Pauls Cathedral etc. before heading home. There were 12 of us from NS, about 200 from Saint John NB, 500 from Newfoundland (lots of Catholic girls schools) and another 500 from Birmingham, England. Every night up on the top deck there was a crowded disco (remember makeup and punk were popular then) with a British crew member as DJ and the last song was always Whiter Shade of Pale which signalled the end of the evening. Just hearing the first few bars of that music takes me back to the swaying deck full of bell bottomed jeans, army surplus jackets and long hair. Magic.

Time to shake off my daydreaming and get the welcome wagon out for Turkey Day.