travel lesson learned (humor)

This is a true story of me doing my best Lucille Ball impersonation. I know it is long but I hope you at least get a chuckle.

My not so funny at the time cpap incident started with a trip to my cousins’ small town wedding. I booked a room at a local motel on the recommendation of my great aunt. She said it was basic no frills with a view of Lake Erie. What she didn’t say was that it was straight out of the 40’s maybe even the 30’s. There was no office attached, but I expected to see Norman Bates at any moment. They had just left the door unlocked and the key on the bed. I was tired after leaving home in the early a.m. & driving 5 ½ hours to represent my branch of the family at the wedding. It was about 9:30 pm when I arrived at the motel, I immediately turned the window air conditioner on to cool down the room. (It was mid-August) I just wanted to plug in my cpap and go to sleep so I would be well rested for the long drive home. I washed my wedding face paint off and jumped into my jammies, and started setting up my machine, only to find, not only does this room look like it’s straight out of the 40’s it is wired that way as well. My cpap cord is three pronged and there are no grounded electrical outlets in the room. The air conditioner is a window unit that has a grounding adapter attached. I debate for a few minutes should I use the adapter from the window unit for my cpap and be miserably hot all night, I decide the answer is no. (If I only had a do-over) I throw on some clothes and try the local K-mart I just miss the closing at 10:00pm. I try several local gas stations looking for an adapter or an extension cord no such luck. I am told there is an all-night K-mart 15 miles down the road, I get back in my car; shift around because the oversized key chain from the motel is poking my leg, and off I go. I purchase the adapter and four cases of pop. (Great deal $1.75 per case for name brand cola) I arrive back at the motel (11:45) no key. There has to be a key, it was poking me on the way to K-mart. Search the car. – Try all my keys. Call the motel’s 3 phone #’s –all have answering machines. Back to K-Mart – check the parking lot- check with management- check with the guy who has just swept up and down every aisle. NO key. (1:00 am) Back to the motel- Now I make angry frantic calls to the motel management answering machines. Search the car again. Call mom (a night owl) whine, bitch, and cry. Stare at the motel trying to resign myself to sleeping in my car knowing that I need cpap to get any decent sleep. If I could only reach the air conditioner… could I get in the window?

I stack 4 cases of pop outside the window and balance precariously. Gently push running air conditioner through the window and maneuver it so that it lands on the bed. Get wet because the air conditioner drained down the front of me when tipped back. Climb through the window (this was not a pretty sight) and unlock door. Wrestle air conditioner back into window. Put pop in trunk get ready for bed …again. (2:00am) Turn cpap on secure my mask look up at the ceiling and realize a battalion of large mosquito type bugs followed me in the window. (Did I mention the big lake nearby) Still some how optimistic of a good night sleep, but know it wont happen with mosquito squadron maneuvers going on overhead. I stand on the bed and slap at the bugs on the ceiling with a slipper. Almost tip over cpap machine because I am still attached. Break out in hysterical laughter, because if I don’t laugh I’ll cry especially since I realize how silly I look as a jammie wearing, full face masked, bed jumping, slipper slapping, sleep deprived hose head.

Needless to say I always carry a grounding adapter, extension cord, and I just recently added a power strip to my cpap traveling case.

Thanks for the laugh, Lulabelle!

You are lucky you didn't break into the wrong room. A hacksaw works wonders for that ground prong, it sounds like your CPAP is a pretty old. Jim

What an image and yes a perfect Lucy situation.

Thanks,

TerryB

My mom would call it a "Carol Burnett" weekend. I had many of those growing up. I'm chuckling now at the memory of a couple of them.

hehe

Lynne

What a great story....something I bet that could happen to me...lol...and I thought I was the only one ...whew...

this is very funny, i'm glad you kept your sense of humor...........have you heard the jellyfish and diver story.......i'll pm it to you soon.........

oh boy that's funny, about as funny as me drowning the alarm clock

[quote="Lulabelle"] I realize how silly I look as a jammie wearing, full face masked, bed jumping, slipper slapping, sleep deprived hose head.

thats hysterical, good thing the cops didn't come while you were trying to climb in the window! pat