Imodium Break

Back on Friday after a very exhausting week.

Everything went as planned on Monday and we settled in to our hotel for the short break. The next day 'Christmas Day' we were notified that one of our charges had been unwell the previous evening. Romy and I consulted NHS Direct who advised a visit to A & E. We spent many hours in A & E and it was eventually decided to admit the patient for further investigations. I escaped from the hospital at about 3.30pm, absolutely starving, and wolfed down some fish and chips.

That evening during dinner there were crackers and a general festive air, and Father Christmas was announced ringing a bell and bearing gifts for the visitors. The next day was to be our excursion to a fish and chip restaurant in Brighton, followed by the pantomime matinee of Cinderella. However, during the night I had an embarrassing attack of diarrhoea which went on all night and continued into the morning. Romy got me some Imodium, but this failed to take effect before we were due to depart, so I was trapped in my room, while poor old Romy had to deal with everything alone - two coachloads of punters and wheelchairs.

There was one wheelchair in fact - needed by three people, and poor Romy pushed this back and forth three times to get people in and out of the restaurant and theatre. Apparently both the panto and lunch were a success. I had recovered slightly by the evening, but was not well enough to make an appearance. There were a couple more people also feeling ill with some diarrhoea and vomiting.

Yesterday I felt I had overcome things and had a little toast, lunch and supper, and spent some of the day shopping. I still felt exhausted by the end of the day, so Rosemary cheered the punters on for the last night of the celebrations.

By 7am today, the day of our return by coach, my illness had returned with a vengeance. Overdosing myself with imodium I managed somehow to get up and dressed. Romy called with the news that twelve others had come down during the night or that morning with vomiting or diarrhoea. We consulted NHS Direct once more, who advised giving out Imodium all round, supplying sick bags and giving everyone bottles of water. Our hospital patient was returned just in time for the return journey after Romy rang the hospital to hurry them up and send him back to the hotel in a cab. We were all rather subdued in the coaches, and finally arrived back, a few still very unwell, including me. We cabbed all the sick ones back to their houses. I shall give up all food for several days and exist on flat Coke and Dioralyte. I do hope everyone is better for Christmas. Romy showed me the film she made on her camera of everyone singing and enjoying themselves greatly the night before, so it was all rather a sudden onset.

To cap it all, yesterday, I had a call from a friend to say that a neighbour who was quite young, in his late forties, had been found dead at home after going for a short rest. Although I did not know him well, he was a very nice guy and I had seen him around often over the past twelve years. I last saw him a day before we went away, exercising the husky dog he had bought for his wife. It always seems so dreadful when a comparatively young person dies.

I spent some time in Grays Antiques this afternoon looking for a present for Julian. There was absolutely nothing suitable and we agreed to spread our wings and look further afield in the New Year. However, we did find a nice bag in Browns which met the case for Christmas. Julian tells me this goes well with her other things and is very pleased with it. I am beginning to think that maybe either Richmond or Brighton might be good places for small antique jewellery shops.