Tuesday 3 October 2017

Rhodes Diary Part 1

I quite like that few minutes before sleep when you are surrounded by darkness and quiet, when you have time to put your affairs in order. A chance to reflect on the day and plan for tomorrow before the comfort of the pillows and the tiredness in your eyes sends you off. I smiled, three people had wished me a happy holiday today, all three thinking I was leaving tomorrow despite the fact I wasn’t leaving until the early hours of the day after tomorrow.
What if they were right and you are wrong? What if you are leaving in four hours’ time?
            “Don’t be daft,” I said to myself. I closed my eyes. I started making a mental note of what I had to do tomorrow. Pay phonebill, buy some suntan lotion, iron, pack, send a couple of emails.
What if they are right? What if you are leaving tomorrow.  
“Don’t be daft,” I said again.
You’re right. It’s definitely Wednesday, but why did they think it was Tuesday? Maybe you told them Tuesday. Why would you tell them Tuesday if it was Wednesday? Unless it was Tuesday.  Maybe because it is early hours in the morning, you’ve got yourself all confused.
           
“Shut the fuck up and go to sleep. It’s Wednesday.”
Okay, okay,  It’s certainly Wednesday. But wouldn’t it be a shame if you missed your holiday because you were too stubborn to get up and check. It’ll only take two minutes”
“Shut up,” I said.
            You’ve still got time. It’s midnight. Plenty of time to iron and pack and turn off the water. Ha, you will look like a right cretin getting to the airport on Wednesday only for the check-in person to tell you that the ticket was for Tuesday.
            “Okay, you win,” I said and switched the lamp on. “You know we’re going on Wednesday,” I said as I went into the living room. I found the envelope with all the holiday information in it. “We could be asleep by now. But oh no, you wouldn’t let it lie.”
Better to be safe than sorry.
I opened the envelope, knowing full well what I’d find. I stared at the date for ages and checked my phone just to make sure then just before I put it back in the envelope, I checked it again.
“Happy now?” I said and turned the light off and pulled the duvet around me. I could hear the fridge humming like it did every night.
Hey, is that the normal fridge sound?  Have you left it open?

“Shut up.”

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