In-between Two Tuesdays...

...There was this ill-fated holiday.  Well, not what was expected, in any case.

In a nutshell:

All plans for dinners and large group get-togethers were cancelled.  All plans for visits to the new World War II museum, the Aquarium and Zoo cancelled, too as well as the much planned old cemetery photo excursion.  Did get to have breakfast with my dance teacher & her daughter which was lovely, an early lunch with the sister and her grandkids, and three other lunches alone at nearby restaurants where the walk to and from didn't exhaust me.  A Pimm's Cup and Roast Beef Po-boy at The Napoleon House (still the same after all these years). a shrimp po-boy at the Pontalba Cafe, then Red Beans & Rice with Andouille sausage, and Oysters Bienville (with the sister) at Felixs'.  I had a seafood platter delivered from another fave place that was too far to walk which turned out to be the best (and only true) dinner of the trip.  I think I wrote about this earlier.  Kept the ice bucket filled for drinking water or tea, and ice packs for the multiple fevers that showed their undying love for my body all week.

The Saints played on Sunday afternoon - and won.  I didn't know what that meant until half way through lunch the sister suggested I'd better get back to the room before all Hell broke loose. The fans (gay & straight) take over the Quarter after a winning game and the crowds are absolutely nuts. One of the housekeepers at the hotel described it best, "it looks like someone stirred up a giant ant hill." The images on the news fit that description exactly. Never seen anything like it and happy to watch on TV rather than streets.

Tuesday, 1 am: I awoke with a headache and fever of 101. The usual routine followed and I eventually dragged myself out of bed, showered and dressed for the shuttle. At 3:30 am (on the dot) the airport shuttle picked me up, already hot and drizzling as he put my bag in the van. We made three more stops at various hotels to pick up others catching early flights.  Shuttles usually make 10 stops before heading to the airport, but we were the only 4 onboard.  Therefore we arrived at 4:15 am rather than a half hour later. Self-checked my bag, got my boarding pass and woke up the TSA staff, being the only person in their usually long, snaking line. Made my way to the gate while searching for a place to snag a breakfast snack and coffee.  Nothing open until 5 or 6 am. Frequent flyers were recognizable by their paper bags and boxes containing piping hot coffee and breakfast foods from outside venues.

Hunted down a scrambled egg/bacon/biscuit sandwich (all fresh stuff, no rubbish) and a great cup of coffee and settled in to wait for boarding - another hour away. The headache was long gone but I remained feverish. Took two more Tylenol on the flight that seemed to help. Linda was waiting and had brought along a sidekick, Debbie (also a host at DL) for company and we had a nice ride back to the beach. They kept asking about details of the trip and I felt bad because there was little to relate. Lots of dead air in between small talk followed.  And that was the week that was.  Quite the exciting time, huh?

Arrived home and began feeling very tired; I'd been up and moving for 11 hours, after all. Unpacked and stored luggage, made a salad (not eaten), had a yogurt, lots of water and began to get chills again. Got into bed to warm up, found the fever was back (at 101.9), tried to read, but fell asleep around 2:30 pm. Woke soaking wet at midnight, changed everything and went back to bed until 5 this morning.  No pain, just weakness.  All things considered, it felt great to sleep in my own bed, surrounded by my own stuff in my own little place. Nice to be home, really.

Called to report to the Oncologist before the office visit tomorrow.  He is in surgery all day, they have my report. He ought to be up to speed in the morning when I see him for another set of labs and consultation.

Got out to do the things I slept through yesterday:  picked up the held mail at the P.O., made a short stop for a few groceries, then back home to make a substantial lunch.  Having eaten mostly grocery-store prepared sandwiches and salads for a week, I was ready for something of my own. Made a pot of tea for iced tea, prepared and ate my sandwich and felt better as I sat down to type this post. 

A few images will be forthcoming of scenes, but none of people, especially not myself. 

Note: The shot above is the courtyard of The Coffee Pot Restaurant as I waited for my friends to arrive. The covered part is in front with the high-walled, open-sky part in the rear.  Great place.

And so it goes. 
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