As most of you know, I travel on a regular basis to my company’s home office in Delaware. It is never a dull moment on the ride to and from Delaware through the state of New Jersey and upon arrival, the shenanigans of hotel life.  This trip was no exception.

The first hotel I checked into, yes the first was sketchy at best.  Upon arrival, I entered a totally darkened lobby and out of nowhere appeared a disheveled young man who seemed to have the access required to check me in.  As I walked the hall to my room, I passed empty cases of beer in front of various rooms and some very questionable quests.  Not my usual hotel. They were booked.

Once in the room, the hits kept coming: wet towels hanging in the bathroom, food in the fridge; hair all over the bathroom and the rest I will spare you!  I called my usual hotel and begged them to look for a room, any room, in their no vacancy hotel.  They had ONE! I packed up and checked out.  My usual hotel does not subscribe to that level of housekeeping. I am happy.

Day three of my stay and it’s 2am. I am dreaming a dream of peace and happiness. Perhaps a vision of me with Tom Selleck on a beach in Hawaii drinks in hand, and so not worried about this stinking diet.

Suddenly I hear a blood curdling scream that jolts me awake. My heart is beating and I sit straight up. It sounds far away yet quite intense.  I am afraid at first but the cry is very loud yet short in duration. Then I realize this woman is not screaming in fear if you get my drift. “Oh Mike” at the top of her lungs does not imply fear of a robbery or break in. If I’m a betting gal, she just had, albeit short, the time of her life. I’m not going to lie to you. It made me a little sad sitting here all alone in this king size bed with no copilot.  I turn my feeling of sadness to her. This “release scream” as well as the intensity was short and sweet. I soon drift back to sleep missing Chip.

In the morning I head down to the weight room and there appeared the perfect Ken and Barbie couple. They were a little too touchy feely for a 5:45 am weight room environment if you ask me. Could it have been them last night?  I’ll never know but the look between them said they shared more than the weight bench together. I was so tempted to say, “Hi Mike” and see if he indeed responded.

Let’s see what happens tonight. The chair is in front of the door and my night lights are plugged in. I am ready to return to the great State of New York where the only sound I will hear while I am sleeping is Izzy (and Chip) snoring.