Mr. and Mrs. H...in Hong Kong
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| A view to Hong Kong |
Did you ever have that feeling..just when you think that things couldn't get any better..that they don't? My foray into life as the "tag-along wife" has taken a side road..back to Vietnam. Poor Mr. H..I think I cramped his style.
I should mention that travel has been a big part of our married life. He typically travels 50% or more during the year. Just as I have my routine when he travels, I guess he has his routine too. I wouldn't know..until now. He grumbled several times that his routine was upset..that amongst other things, going to bed at midnight was not part of his routine. What can I say...I am a night owl. Maybe next time we should get a suite?
A few other things could have tipped the balance....
Mr. H: You used up all the towels during the day...
Mrs. H: I needed them for my afternoon bath..did you know there is a TV in the bathroom?
Mr. H: Did the hotel staff come along asking to turn down the room for the evening?
Mrs. H: Not sure, I put the "Do Not Disturb" sign out.
Mr. H: You drank the large bottle of "Fiji" water from the mini bar.
Mrs. H: Was that from the mini bar? I needed it for the tea kettle, for afternoon tea. I could not find the "free" bottles of water.
Mr. H: If you left the "Do Not Disturb" sign off, we would have extra bottles of water.
Mr. H: I have a business dinner tonight, are you ok with room service?
Mrs. H: Absolutely!
Mr. H returns from business dinner two hours later to Mrs. H sitting in front of a white table cloth room service cart, glass of wine in hand while eating her veggie burger and glued to the TV...
Mr. H: You are still eating? What are you watching?
Mrs. H: Shh! I ordered the movie service, I am watching "Gravity", very suspenseful, must focus!
And then it happened, I knew I was done for after this one. We checked into Cathay Pacific for our flight back to Vietnam and I was "bumped" up to Business Class and he remained in Premium Economy. As we parted to our designated sections of the plane ( it was hard for me not to contain my excitement) I could tell my "tag along" days were numbered.
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| Mrs. H settles into Business Class |
Mr. H left Sunday morning for Myanmar. Funny...I do not recall him mentioning he was going to Myanmar...I love Myanmar!
On a side note...this is all tongue-in-cheek for Mr. H. This post idea came from him, around the time that the airline mentioned my status upgrade. It was when I first learned that my presence might be something of an upheaval. Mr. H is my blog-o-meter, providing post ideas, critiques and status reports on your comments. After five years of blogging, he knows all your names by heart...in fact, once retirement rolls in, do not be surprised if he gets in on the action. He is a very good writer and he loves reading what you have to say just as much as I do. ;)
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| Coming up for air...Hong Kong |
As for Hong Kong, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I played "mall mouse" for three days. It is my analogy to the shopping experience in Honk Kong where shopping is an endless and intricate underground pathway system from one section of the city to another. Every once in a while I surfaced above ground..but more on that later.
From Mrs. H in Saigon
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| along the Saigon River |
and Mr. H in Myanmar
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| along the street of Yangon |
we wish you a wonderful week!
Dear Jeanne: Well, it was an experiment and experience. I myself, like to travel a certain way. Maybe you should wait a while and in a few months, bring the topic to the table again. I do like the way you enjoy your time in the hotel. Room service can be wonderful.
ReplyDeleteAgree Kathleen! xx
DeleteSo sorry things didn't work out as well as you thought they might, particularly since traveling with Mr. H presents the perfect opportunity to see the world. As we get older, we do get set in our ways, and obviously from many years of extensive travel, Mr. H has a certain routine when on the road. Some people handle change better than others and irritability rears its ugly head, but I'm sure Mr. H enjoys your company very much and doesn't mean to offend. Perhaps part of the problem is that he's traveling on business (which may affect your accommodations, daily schedule, etc.) and you're traveling for pleasure (when no routine is called for and anything goes). I hope you will be able to work out a way to accommodate each other so everyone will be happy on the road again. :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you Judy...I know we will. In this case, I would say practice makes perfect. The real trick will be when he retires and tries to step into my routine. I will hold that thought on our next trip. ;)
DeleteWhat a cute post! Jeanne, you really do need to write a book!
ReplyDeleteThanks Stephanie...it is what five years of blogging does to you. ;)
DeleteHYSTERICAL!I LOVED IT!
ReplyDeleteMr and Mrs H LOVE that you did! ;)
Deleteso funny + Mr. H. will adjust to your coming with. xxpeggybraswelldesign.com
ReplyDeleteI am sure he will Peggy, especially as we are to be parted shortly for five months. Life will be looking a different by then. ;)
DeleteAh ha ha this makes me laugh at how familiar it sounds! Well, except for the part about Mr H and blogging. Mr R has absolutely no interest in participating. To that I sigh with relief! xo Carole
ReplyDeleteI feel a rocky retirement road ahead for Mr. and Mrs H.... ;)
DeleteAh, this one is easy. As long as it's a business trip, you need to adjust your schedule to his - go ahead and get up with him, have breakfast and your tea in the dining room (or room service) and keep the "do not disturb" sign off so you get lots of towels and water; shop in the morning and take your afternoon bath and go to bed early. Then when you travel for pleasure, you can be as lazy as can be!
ReplyDeleteIt all sound like fun - at least for you!
I like your style Webb! ;)
DeleteBusiness travelers really do get a routine going. I think it reduces drag on their productivity:). That said, I bet Mr. H. could grow to really enjoy having Mrs. H. to come home to after long days of meetings.
ReplyDeleteThank you Lisa..I am so glad Mr. H reads these comments..ATTENTION: MR. H ;)
DeleteThis post is a classic, Jeanne! You SHOULD write a book!!
ReplyDeleteHave a great week! xoxo
Thank you Sandy! xx
DeleteOh dear, that's not good. I was hoping we would be travelling along with you too.
ReplyDeleteMinor adjustments Loree...smooth sailing ahead, I am sure of it! ;)
DeleteI don't think the Do Not Disturb sign ever leaves my door!
ReplyDeletexo
I LOVE that you just said that! xx
DeleteI laughed through this post. If I were Mr. H. I could have overlooked all but your flight upgrade would have been the last straw.
ReplyDeleteI think it was Kyle..he laughed when he read your comment. ;)
DeleteHi Jeanne please tell Mr H to stop complaining! Ha! Ha! ha! But then if I were Mr H I would be upset with your Business Class upgrade. Not with you but with the airline. He should have brought you along to Myanmar. :)
ReplyDeleteAgree Pamela...and normally, he is the one to receive the upgrade. He said they must have made a mistake but was happy to let it go...kind of. ;)
DeleteEvery transition in a marriage presents its challenges, and how wonderful that you two are chuckling about the one you describe in this post. Chuckling or not, if you are going to continue accompanying your husband on his business trips, a slight change of perspective might be helpful. Since your husband is working on these trips, maybe you could view your primary role, or job, as that of a supportive spouse. Chuckling notwithstanding, he might be pleased to be asked to tell you more about his routines on such trips and what (else) you can do to be supportive. I remember that it took awhile for my husband and I to figure out how to travel together comfortably when I was working...as well as, when I gave up that job, how to live together constantly (at home) when we were used to my being away travelling on business 10-12 days each month.
ReplyDeleteWell said Leslie..I am a bit nervous about your last reference to living together constantly (at home). I am sure we will adjust but I imagine there will be a few "peace negotiations" along the way. Not sure I am ready for that chapter just yet. I may write to you for advice when it rolls around. It will not be that far off. ;)
DeleteJeanne, I laughed out loud at this post. Although my husband and I frequently travel together for work there are other times when I tag along and I know that I sometimes crimp his style. I too am a night owl and reading at 1:30 makes my husband grumpy, consequently his waking at 4:30 does the same for me. I also love to stay in the room and room service even when I am supposed to be at the dinner with my husband. Once I said I was not going to go to a dinner and was going to stay in the room, then a client of mine called for me to go to dinner with them and I ended up at the same restaurant at a table next to my husband. He had no problem but the people he was with did.
ReplyDeleteI hope that you have a wonderful week Jeanne. I cannot wait to see what you have been up too? Have you been painting?
xxElizabeth
You crack me up Elizabeth...love that you ended up at the next table. What is life if we can not take it all in stride. I laughed myself silly writing this post. I wonder if I am losing my mind???
DeleteI am in a major organisation push at the moment...lots to do before heading back to the USA in May. I am hoping to paint when I settle back into life at Tahilla. ;) xx
Oh, Jeanne! I so loved this post (and all the others, too, of course!) and am enjoying reading about your adventures as the "tag along wife." Wonderful! Looking forward to reading more!
ReplyDeleteSo glad Larissa...thank you! xx
DeleteIt sounds like you are enjoying this next part of your life. Who knows how many 'parts' we will have, so get the most out of them. Who will be the 'tag-a-long' farmer in New Hampshire? :)
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely Mary...I keep that thought with me every day. Good question on the tag-a-long farmer!
DeleteJeanne, this was so funny. I can just picture it all. If you both can laugh at the mishaps that traveling together brings, than you are in good shape. In the future, these experiences will make great stories around the dinner table with your children and grandchildren. So excited to hear about your move to the U.S. in May. Would love to meet up for tea sometime when I am traveling in New England! xx Sunday
ReplyDeleteThat would be lovely Sunday...I will be there May-September. I will drop you a note.. xx
DeleteP. S. Just an afterthought .... after reading some of the other comments. After traveling the world for a good part of his life, how easy do you think it will be for Mr. H to settle down to the potentially somewhat quiet life of a gentleman farmer in New Hampshire? When a former colleague of mine retired from a career which had included, among other things, many years of living in the hubbub of Shanghai, he wanted nothing more than a quiet cabin in the wilds of North Georgia. Alas, it happened not to be what his wife wanted at all. Due to my retirement, I've lost communications with him, but I hope they came to a happy settlement and now enjoy the best of both city and country. :-)
ReplyDeleteJudy...you have asked the question of all questions, the one that comes up more frequently as time passes. We have two lives on the drawing board. One in New Hampshire and one back in Sydney...to spend time with our children split between both countries. How long we can keep it going is another matter. It would be nice if our country and city living were a tad closer...but for now, we are just rolling with it. Time will tell... ;)
DeleteI'll never be in your shoes, but I think you should be where you think you both would be happiest. A lot of folks opt to be close to their children (and grandchildren), regardless of whether it's city or country. Others are independent enough not to require that much closeness. Maybe you will be lucky enough to have the best of all worlds--a home in both hemispheres for at least as long as you can travel back and forth. :-)
DeleteI hope so Judy! It will be interesting to see if our children follow in our footsteps and look for opportunities to work abroad or decide to stay in one place. It is a common question amongst expat parents. It could easily go either way with our brood. ;)
DeleteThe travel becomes challenging and fun even when traveling together doesn’t happen very often.The surprises become part of the romance. And your story sounds lovely.
ReplyDeleteTraveling with one's spouse on a business trip---a glimpse of retired life together! Beware!!!
ReplyDelete