It's Hard to Keep a Good Woman Down

It has been an honor and is actually very humbling to see the response this blog is getting by friends old and new, near and far. (who came up with the word 'blog' and what on earth does it mean?). Some of you have had the opportunity to get to know Susan first-hand, and others are meeting her for the first time. From your comments and emails, her father and I can see that you appreciate her for the unique and lovely person she is. She is now, always has been, and always will be, an upbeat optimist who attacks life with enthusiasm and good humor. Would you like a first hand account of one example?

In November 2008, our family embarked on a Carnival Cruise together from the Port of Tampa. Everyone flew to our home in Florida and we enjoyed a few days of swimming, biking, and recreational cooking together before our 5 day cruise. It was the usual western Caribbean itinerary of Grand Cayman, Cozumel and so on. We also planned to take a day trip to the Mayan Ruins in Cozumel as that was one of Tracey's goals in life and a big interest of hers.

Now, keep in mind that at this point, Susan was about 4-5 months pregnant with our precious little grandson (and monster) Tan. So on the day of the Mayan ruin trip, we enjoyed the usual enormous breakfast and left the cruise ship for the excursion. We were subsequently loaded onto a small vessel with seating for about 100 people, and we set off across the bay. The boat seemed to go about 100 miles an hour, wildly crashing through the choppy waves, careening toward our destination. We held on for dear life, salt spray splashing up at us, people juggling drinks and food as they tried to move around the boat and stay on their feet. It was a wild ride and lasted about an hour. 55 minutes into it, with the pier in sight, I realized Susan had turned an interesting shade of green, and had that familiar look on her face that I knew so well. Her eyes sort of bug out and her mouth twists sideways in a cute little grimace. It was all over. By that I mean, it was all over the boat, all over the deck, all over Susan. Tracey took one look at her and made her own beeline up and over the back of the bench in a furious scramble to miss being hit. So there we were, somewhere in Mexico, and Susan was just covered in vomit - totally and completely.

We all got off the boat and keep in mind that we had to keep up with the rest of the tour, but somehow she managed to find a bathroom and stripped off. Have you ever been in a bathroom in a tourist town in Mexico? If your answer is no, then I recommend that you cross this off your bucket list and forget it. Anyway, speaking spanish she quickly bought a tee-shirt to replace the soggy and smelly one that was soaking in the filthy sink, and put her Capri's back on after being rinsed out in that same sink. They were soaking, dripping wet. We then piled into a bus for a 90 minute ride to the ruins. Have you ever been in a tour bus all day in Mexico with someone who has just tossed their cookies? Same recommendation as above, forget it.

Needless to say, we got the distinct impression that people were avoiding us all day. Can't imagine why. Here's the point. Through it all, Susan never once complained, fussed, or otherwise had a spoiled day. Quite the opposite, she and we had a great time exploring and spending time in Mexico. There is no such thing as a bad day for her, and she scored a souvenir tee-shirt that she still has. Susan's good humor and ability to laugh at herself when things go wrong is a remarkable life lesson for each of us.