This has turned into an ill fated trip – which means: doomed, blighted, condemned, damned, cursed, ill-starred, ill-omened, jinxed; unlucky, luckless, unfortunate, hapless, unhappy; literary star-crossed. What has made it doomed, cursed, jinxed, and unlucky is the fact that Dubai is on my agenda. A pilot at this hotel summarized the situation: “The long way, the wrong way.” What made this into a hapless situation is the left knee pain that I am endlessly enduring, making the seventeen hours from Dubai to San Francisco unbearable and being in Dubai just a painful situation with no mobility.
Victimhood is not an option. The remedy is merely to buy a plane ticket utilizing a lethal combination of frequent flier miles and cold hard cash. But as the pain medication is making me stupid – those plans have yet to be put in place. All I seem able to do is sleep, a sleep with many dreams, probably induced by the pain medication. I did dream that the Sultan came to my room and we had a jolly time but it was obviously a dream. But rather jolly. Then a slightly bad dream involving oysters for some reason or another. Then came consciousness and now a breakfast that is best described as brilliant. Every food one could imagine – all served by polite and gracious people. I seemed to have won new friends at this hotel – which I have frequented in the past. Many are most solicitous concerned, caring, attentive, mindful, interested, considerate, thoughtful; anxious, worried; archaic tender.
So it came to pass that I am no longer at my former hotel and it was not a happy ending; for one thing, I was diagnosed with a mild case of food poisoning which had to be at the hands of the hotel as I had taken all of my meals there. But I landed on my feet, as the expression goes as this hotel has a better kitchen, the staff actually more solicitous and it is less expensive. All together it turned into a win/win. Landing on my feet is a practice that I am adept at. “If someone lands on their feet or falls on their feet, they find themselves in a good situation by luck. Everything I want, she’s got: good marriage, good home, nice children. While I struggle through life, she lands on her feet. He has fallen on his feet with a new career set to earn him a fortune. Note: This may refer to the belief that when a cat falls, it always lands on its feet without hurting itself.”
Another expression that comes to mind is Phoenix rising: The phrase rise like a phoenix from the ashes is based on a story that goes back thousands of years. … To rise like a phoenix from the ashes means to emerge from a catastrophe stronger, smarter and more powerful. It has always been true in my life – and believe me there have been ashes. There are more insights, straight from Google to you. “Phoenix rising from the ashes.” This phrase popped into my head recently, and I wasn’t sure why until I did the research. As the story goes, the phoenix is a mythical bird with fiery plumage that lives up to 100 years. Near the end of its life, it settles in to its nest of twigs which then burns ferociously, reducing bird and nest to ashes. And from those ashes, a fledgling phoenix rises – renewed and reborn.And now I get it. This is the story of my life in the past few months – especially the part about burning ferociously. Life presented me with some challenging circumstances that left me just hanging on. And now, sanity has returned. I look out with fresh eyes. The fog has lifted, and the dark clouds have moved on.”
At times words from a song pop into mind but this time it was music from lunch at the new hotel. Lunch consisted of mushroom risotto and it was absolutely delicious and I know how to make risotto – all this and I can cook too. The name of the song was You Have Lost That Lovin’ Feeling.
You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips
And there’s no tenderness like before in your fingertips
You’re trying hard not to show it
But baby, baby I know it
You lost that lovin’ feelin’
Whoa, that lovin’ feelin’
You lost that lovin’ feelin’
Now it’s gone, gone, gone, woh
Now there’s no welcome look in your eyes when I reach for you
And now you’re starting to criticize little things I do
It makes me just feel like crying
‘Cause baby, something beautiful’s dyin’
You lost that lovin’ feelin’
Whoa, that lovin’ feelin’
You lost that lovin’ feelin’
Now it’s gone, gone, gone, woh
Baby, baby, I’d get down on my knees for you
If you would only love me like you used to do, yeah
We had a love, a love, a love you don’t find everyday
So don’t, don’t, don’t,…
Yes, as I listened to that song I realized I had lost that lovin’ feeling. It was in place for a couple of months, I guess, but something happened.
Oh well, short blog as I am not feeling well. My current plans are to get better and when I feel well to make plane reservations to return to San Francisco. There is Room at the Inn (so to speak) so I can stay here until I feel better. It does feel like the worst is over.
