Wet & WIld . . . What a Week!

Our week started with a call from one of Pete's siblings telling us his mom was in the hospital.  We were all worried -- she will be 90 this year -- and thought we might be heading north to Wisconsin on Saturday, instead of south, as we had planned.  But she's a trooper, and she's doing well.  She had a TIA, a tiny stroke, and is recovering and taking all the necessary steps to remain healthy.

We spent midweek winding up our work commitments and unearthing our snorkel gear and swimsuits.  By Friday, I felt completely prepared and was settling into working on an update for American Folk Art, when all hell broke loose.  My not-even-one-year-old kitchen faucet broke and I had a geyser the size of Old Faithful in my new kitchen.  I had water dripping from the ceiling, the windows, the cupboards, the computer -- everywhere.  I grabbed every dishtowel out of the drawer and screamed for Pete.  It wasn't the cold water, either -- it was the hot and it got hotter with every passing second.  Pete turned the water off, I called the plumber and within 3 minutes -- yes, three minutes -- the plumber was knocking on the door.  Turned out he was right next door.  We went down to the plumbing store and bought a whole new set up.  He went back to the house and I ran to the grocery and by the time I got home, he had the faucet installed and was drying my cupboard doors.  I love small town life.

I was so riled, I gave up on my AFA update and just packed my bags.  I listened to the news all night -- another nor'easter was bearing down on us.  We left at 4 am in torrential rain.  The drive was hairy, especially on the Belt Parkway in Brooklyn.  We almost ran over the back end of a car in the right lane.  Earlier, on the Long Island Expressway, a car spun out and was facing us in the left lane.  Scary stuff.  But we made it to JFK with plenty of time to spare.  We were delayed for more than an hour waiting for a plane from Salt Lake to make the connection, but by 2 pm we were basking in the bright Caribbean sun, surrounded by beautiful blue water -- no plumber needed here!