ADDICTION? WHAT ADDICTION?

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‘No food in the past 12 hours and no alcohol for 24 hours?’ The lady behind the counter was stamping my papers as she asked the question.

‘What?’ I exclaimed. ‘The doctor’s paper said nothing but water for 12 hours! Whaddya mean 24 hours?’

The stamping halted. She gazed at me over her glasses. ’24 hours’, she stressed. ‘It was written in the e-mail we send you with the confirmation of the appointment.’

‘But the doctor’s paper said….’ I stopped when she gave me the look. Damn, but I hate to be on the receiving end of the look! I had just noted the hour and time in the e-mail, and, being in the usual hurry, had not looked at any of the fine print. The guilty doth loudly protest.

‘I was going by the doctor’s paper. I had a glass of wine around 4:30 yesterday afternoon.’ I growled at her, my tone implying that it was HER fault. ‘So now what?’

She shrugged as she handed my papers back to me. ‘You’re the one paying,’ she answered. ‘We’ll do part of the tests today, and I can give you another appointment for tomorrow morning IF you follow directions.’

‘And do this all over again?’ My growl went from a rumble to a near roar. I glared at her. Her next words accompanied by an understanding smile completely disarmed me.

‘You have about 30 minutes before they call you, and there’s a restaurant just around the corner. Great coffee.’

Obviously I wasn’t the only grumpy patient she had encountered in her job, and she was well aware of the cause. All of a sudden she was my new best friend! I was out of there and gratefully sipping on my first cup of sweet, black nectar within seconds. It’s astounding how quickly my attitude changed. I slipped back into the waiting room, and bashfully confirmed my appointment for Saturday morning. I followed the rules, and the next day most of my tests were completed.

Habits. How difficult it is to break them! I decided to play a game with myself, see if I had the stuff it takes. Instead of bee-lining to the coffee shop when my tests were finished, I forced myself to do the 40 minute drive to my daughter’s house. I had warned her by telephone, and the wonderful aroma of my addiction greeted me when I stepped inside her door. Self-defense, my daughter called it, LOL!

But, hey, I did it! It showed me that if I have to, I can. Maybe I should list some of my other habits and break them one by one. I think I’ll do just that today…when I’ve finished my second cup of coffee.

After all, it doesn’t pay to take ourselves TOO seriously!!!

Sending you a wink and a SMILE, folks.

Luv from the Bush in Quebec