Tastes Like a Flag Pole
A Last Minute Change of Plan!
“I wish Roberto would get Covid today,” I thought. “NOW. This second!”
Let me explain.
Last week I was running around trying to check off the endless items on my to-do list to prepare for our impending departure to France. I’d made a sizable dent in preparing the studio for rental and had even gotten my suitcase down from the attic when the unthinkable occurred . . .
I woke up Thursday morning with a sore throat. I am an allergy person so I wasn’t concerned. Yes, I was tired, but I was running around trying to get to France, dammit! But that night I had the dreaded sign of real illness: burning eyes.
I know this is different for everyone, but when I have a fever I feel like someone is boiling a pan of water inside my skull, and my eyeballs and breath feel HOT.
When I got up Friday morning I immediately tried to book a doctor’s appointment. Nothing in person available until Tuesday but, eureka, I could do a telemedicine call within the hour. Dr. Pruitt was a lovely man who was very understanding, and he told me he would put in orders at the lab to test for strep, flu, and Covid.
I drove to the lab and did all the fun swabbing. I was told I would get an email with my test results if they were negative or a call from the doctor if anything were positive. Either way it would be by the end of the day. This was around noon.
Then I went to the Amazon returns station at Whole Foods (with a mask on) to drop off no less than three dog carriers that had not worked out for us.
After the doctor’s appointment and one errand, I went home and collapsed, feeling like I had hiked the Appalachian trail.
I kept checking my emails and voicemail but there was nothing. That was good news, right. RIGHT?
At 8pm I got an email saying I had tested positive for Covid.
WTF people?! I have evaded the nasty, blasted, wretched Covid for two and a half years only to get it one week before we are scheduled to fly to France?
There was a reasonable chance I would feel better by Friday morning (six days away), but what if (and let’s be honest, when) Roberto got it? He might not start to develop symptoms until Wednesday and then we’d be f@#$%^ed.
“I wish Roberto would get Covid today,” I thought. “NOW. This second!” Then we would both be out of the infectious zone by next week.
You might remember that when we went to Montpellier in April I had a raging sinus infection.
The good thing about writing a blog is you can read your own words and, perhaps, even learn from them. In my entry from when I had that painful sinus infection and was on the plane about to take off, I thought the following:
“I couldn’t believe we hadn’t postponed. What was so freaking important that I had to be in France Sunday and not Tuesday? I was an A-class, bone-fide moron—be it one who had stuck to her agenda.”
That trip in April was miserable. We should have postponed. I was not going to make the same mistake twice. I told Roberto we needed to change out tickets.
Problem was, because I was the one who had made all the reservations, I was the one who would need to make all the calls to change our flights (this has been or experience in the past). Just the thought of dialing a number made me want to nap. And our flights were booked on three separate airlines!
I slept most of Saturday and started a round of the miraculous yet tastes-like-I-licked-a-flag-pole Paxlovid. Eventually, I was ready to face the airlines.
I will start off by saying that all the agents were kind, but not so kind as to remove the fees associated with changing the flights. The sticking point for everything was finding new flights that had seats for us AND space for the dogs (which is why I had to call and couldn’t just do this online). Airlines only allow a certain number of pets on board per flight.
First, I called La Compagnie, the airline that flies exclusively from Newark to Paris. I explained the problem. The French woman searched the flights and said that there was a flight on the 6th that had slots available for the dogs but the fee was $$$. There was also one on the 12th with no fees. The 12th seemed farther off then we wanted but we could suck it up to save the $$$. I told her I’d call her back - I had to check and see if United could also change our tickets to the same day with space for the pets.
I called United. I got a nice man from Houston. He happily changed the tickets and even issued a small credit because these tickets were cheaper! What? I gleefully called the French woman back and said, “We will take the tickets on September 12th, please, for two people and two dogs!”
“Two dogs? I thought it was one. There is only space on that flight for one dog.”
Merde and putain.
“Madame, the next flight to Paris with no fee and two spots available for dogs is Sept 30.”
That would mean losing a whole month.
This was intolerable.
I called back United, hoping to get the nice Houston man again, which of course, I didn’t. The new woman switched our tickets AGAIN, and, OF COURSE this time there was a fee. “NO, SORRY MISS WE CANNOT APPLY THE CREDIT WE JUST GAVE YOU WHY WOULD WE WORK THAT WAY?”
I called back the French woman again (yes, it seems only one woman works the phones for La Compagnie. This turned out to be a gift.) I told her we would take the tickets on the 6th that had the $$$ fee. And, yes, I double checked that there was space for two dogs. (These dogs, I swear to god, it’s a good thing they are cute or they would get left behind tout de suite.)
The only thing left was Paris to Montpellier. The change meant we now have a seven hour lay over in the Paris-Orly airport. Ah well. As people love to say, “The Paris airport has better croissants than any French bakery in the United States.” We’ll enjoy exploring every store in Orly and trying to stop the dogs from peeing in them.
PS- I tested at home for Covid twice and they were both negative, so make sure those home kits haven’t expired, folks! It’s Monday and Roberto is still bouncing around healthy and happy. Keep your fingers crossed for him.
Jusqù’a la prochain fois (until next time),
Carolyn & Roberto
Oh no! Feel better soon and tell Roberto to wear a mask and take his vitamins. Fingers crossed. Flight changes are trés horrible. Love your doggies ♥️