Escaping the Winter

When FKGuy and I left the cold northeast of Manhattan to head south for Florida, the influx of visitors was amazing. We had the guest room booked months out, especially in the wintertime. At first it was a novelty, and they came in droves (“Let’s go to the beach!” or “Let’s go to South Beach!“) Eventually, our regulars got used to just visiting us, with the occasional jaunt to the beach.

Then we moved to Key West. The endless loop of visitors began anew (“Let’s go see sunset at Mallory Square!” or “Let’s go see the 6 toed cats at Hemingway House!“) Of course, Key West is a hell of a lot more fun than Hollywood, so they keep coming. Sometimes two and three times a year. And you know what? I LOVE IT. I love every moment of it. Well, the vast majority of the moments, anyway.

So when my in-laws came down for the weekend from the Tundra (Washington, DC), I was thrilled to see them. When JetBlue announced moments after

their arrival that there would be a snow storm the day they were to return, I encouraged them to stay longer. (Want to stay ’til Tuesday? How about Wednesday?) They ended up staying just one extra day, but were delighted for the last bit of warmth.

In the days and weeks leading up to the visit, I was slammed with work, which left me making no plans for the weekend, save for one dinner reservation that later had to be cancelled. I did have the foresight to plan a meal for Friday night, (brisket, challah  – the works!)  and invite a few friends to join us. By the end of the meal, I noticed my throat was a bit hoarse, which I chalked up to too much talking during the day, since I could not possibly get sick. I don’t do sick. I have no time or patience for sick. I am much better at ignoring symptoms of a slight ailment and hoping it will go away, than actually getting rest and admitting to being sick. (You can see where this is going, I am betting…)

By the time we went out to dinner Saturday night, I had no voice at all. At The Flaming Buoy, as our server struggled to hear my order (red curry with hogfish, and yes, I’d like the rice today) she looked at me and said “Why can’t I hear you? What is wrong with you? Usually you are so loud.”  Yeah, I guess so. Midway through our meal, FKGuy decided that he was too full to actually eat any of his curry (with mahi), which later turned out to be a bout of nausea. The kind that leaves you unable to eat, or do pretty much anything for days.

So we had a weekend of alternating illness, and house guests at the same time. Now that we have been in Key West for nearly five years, everyone had ridden the Conch Train, seen the sunset at Mallory Square and done all the touristy things, so now they can just come to hang out with us. It turned out for the best that I had no time to make plans, and despite the ever present possibility of FKGuy puking his guts out (he never did), we managed to have a nice, quiet weekend.