Hurricane Shot

Apparently some readers are curious about my biography picture, especially about why I'm holding on so tightly to my hat. The shot was taken on a Girl Cruise with dear old friends, BA Colley and Sandy Aubitz, whose family IS FuzionPrint. Thank you again, Brian Aubitz, Ann, and Ashley, for doing such a beautiful job with "My Nun and Her Husband."

To share the entire story of our trip, Titanic sans iceberg, would take another book. I'm not up to that, at least, not anytime soon.

The wind was howling as chairs blew around and OFF the deck. A young man in a white uniform approached us three.

"Ladies, you MUST go inside right away," he urged. A table flew up behind his head briefly distracting him.

"Quick, Sandy, take my picture," I said.

Sandy snapped the shot.

"LADIES!"

No pool time. No excursion. No relaxing outside in bright sunshine; we opted to play bingo. Now that WAS dangerous. This is not the game I envisioned. I wrongly assumed it would be pleasant and quiet, designed for elderly, senile people------along with bored passengers like us. Wrong, the game moves at breakneck speed with very competitive players of all ages!

I, for one, couldn't keep up with my eight bingo cards and the ever changing patterns: the normal straight line, along with squares, X-shapes, diamonds, etc.

Eh gads.

Quitting, I exited to enjoy a soothing cup of hot tea. My hands still trembling, I could barely stir in honey. Bingo is not for the faint of heart.

That evening we were encouraged to retreat to our cabins due to extremely rough seas. I listened as another white-suited authority announced, "If we have to go to the lifeboats, you're not allowed to take luggage. Griping my purse to my chest, I slept in two new cashmere sweaters, a treasured necklace with the word "Fearlessness," which was a gift from my children, my expensive Spanx bra, pearls, and the aforementioned hat.

The storm subsided by early morning. We didn't have to abandon ship after all. We docked just after 8 a.m. AND Sandy's picture turned out fine, certainly good enough for marketing my books.

Do any anxieties remain from our ill-fated cruise? No. BUT, please never ever shout, "Bingo" in my presence. Fearlessness. Har har.

Because I still haven't figured out how to accept responses to my blogs, please contact me at milamwritesbooks@gmail.com