After the ball was over...........

Left the ship yesterday midday and moved to hotel to have a couple of
days on my own. It always sounds so idyllic and opportunity doesn't
normally arise. So thought I'd experiment with a couple of days on
my own partly to see if I could hack it. Nice hotel, near shops and
restaurants, lovely big airy room, well appointed. Spent all afternoon and
evening writing bid and budget for friday deadline. Finished at one am
and then slept fitfully. Woke early and decided to take everyone's
advice and get ferry to Tobago. Arrived at around 1pm and taken to
hotel. Brilliant sunshine , beautiful beach, not wonderful hotel but
apparently only one on island with a room! - everyone either
celebrating thanksgiving or fleeing the conf! Spent afternoon in the
sea, surrounded by pelicans fishing, divebombing the sea with unerring
accuracy frequently about 12' from me! Food pretty ghastly at hotel
so thought I'd try Tobago's finest for dinner. Whilst I'd been
showering and getting ready, there had been a huge storm and downpour
and everywhere was soaked, especially the outside corridors and
marbley steps. And four steps from the bottom, my flipflops just planed
across the watery surface and I fell. Landed at the bottom and hit
the back of my head on the step behind me. I lay there in the pool of
rain that had gathered in the corridor. It was pitch black by now,
darkness falling fast and intense by 6pm in this part of
the world. Slowly I began to realise I couldn't just stay there. I
forced myself up and then looked at my wrist in astonishment. My hand
was at a most peculiar angle to my arm and the pain was intensifying
exponentially. I gingerly made my way to hotel reception, nearly but
not quite slipping again on the treacherous floor. The hotel manager
was solicitous but could do nothing. Eventually, all other avenues
having been exhausted, he called a cab and had me taken to hospital.
It's now 930pm and I've been here in A and E since 7pm. They've
examined it, given me a sling to relieve the pressure and an injection
to relieve the pain. The x-ray person has gone home and we all have
to wait till she has supper and is willing to come out again. In this
weather, I don't blame her for taking her time! The worst thing is the
overwhelming sense of isolation. It was 11pm UK time when I rang home
- he's obviously in bed and deeply asleep which irrationally makes me
want to scream. Reason reasserts itself and I realise how pointless
the call is - what did I expect? That he'd pop in the car and come and
rescue me? Well yes, dammit - never mind reason - come and rescue me,
take away the loneliness! The kids are each doing their Friday night
things and friends all busy with their own lives - this experiment in
being alone ain't going so well!