I didn’t intend not to write for a week. But the sinus infection that took hold around Mother’s Day, along with two, back-to-back business trips in the US and Canada, took their toll on me physically.

I did as I promised in my last post. I put the bad girl to sleep and slipped into good girl mode to meet Tank’s family.

It was nothing like I’d expected based on my past experiences. Tank’s daughter gave me a big hug when she greeted me. She’s a joy to chat with—a bright, cute, energetic young woman. Very petite. I could feel her bones as I embraced her.

It didn’t surprise me that she’s very protective of her father. That came out loud and clear as the three of us chatted before dinner. And as she watched his behavior with me at the restaurant. Her concern is palpable. She wasn’t shy about expressing her views about his health and wellbeing.

All the stress I went through trying to decide what to wear and how to look wasn’t worth it in the end. There’s no false pretense with these folks. Only, I really didn’t get to know them—or them know me. The way the seating occurred when we dined is that Tank and I were at the end of the 12-person table that housed his daughter and her cousins, ranging in age from 10 to 18.

So it was only as we were leaving the place that I had a direct question asked of me by his father as we walked to our respective cars in the parking lot:

“What do you do?”

“Well, that depends on the time of the day, the day of the week, and the month of the year.”

“So what will you be doing next week?”

“I’ll be speaking in front of a thousand people. And selling books.”

“Has my son seen your books?”

“Nope. He hasn’t asked me about them.”

“He won’t. I suggest you give him a copy of your latest book and assign a couple of chapters of reading, followed by a test.”

Of all the things I could “test” Tank on, my last book wasn’t at the top of the list in my mind!

We drove back to Tank’s house. I stayed till midnight, then drove myself home, anticipating the fun we’d have Saturday night at a swing party with my friends. On Saturday morning, while still in slumber mode, I found myself scratching my legs. When I looked at them, I noticed a few red marks where my nails had been. So I decided to get up and take a closer look. That’s when I noticed the hives on my stomach and my breasts. When I turned around, I realized they were all over my back, my ass, and my upper legs.

Crap. Where did they come from? I was taking antibiotics for my sinus infection. But it had been a week already. And the hives had just shown up. Ah. I bet it was the newborn kitties. Tank’s sister’s cat had had four babies and I’d held two of them and snuggled them close to my body and my face at her home before we’d gone out to eat.

I immediately called the pharmacy. That’s when I learned it would take at least three days for them to subside—that’s if I took Benadryl every four hours. I fired off a text message to Tank.

“I have hives. From the kitties. I’m going to get drugs.”

“Maybe we should cancel tonite. You should rest. You have a big week ahead of you. Why don’t you see if we can meet your friends for drinks and dinner instead.”

Cancel? Cancel going to a party? No way! I’d been waiting for weeks for this party.

I looked at myself in the mirror again. He was right. There was no way I could bare my skin looking the way I did. Even with the lights down low, someone was sure to feel all the bumps on my skin.

So I wrote the host a note and sent our regrets. And proceeded to call my friends to see if we could alter our evening plans. Which they all agreed to do.

And then I sat down and laughed. Never in a million years have I had something like this happen upon meeting a man’s family. What a memory to behold.

Here it is, a week, later, and the vestiges of my hives are still visible on my ankles and feet. The result of wearing hosiery for four consecutive days. With my St. John knit dresses and skirts. A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. Wearing four inch heels and showing a little leg as a speaker goes a long way in getting high marks from a mostly male audience.

That reminds me. I need to go take some more pills :) Tank and I are meeting a couple for lunch tomorrow. And there’s a chance I might be back at his sister’s home this evening!