This time last year

Can't think of anything to blog about tonight, so I've decided to give you a rerun like they do on TV! (If you keep a journal, you've always got plenty of material to draw from.)

OK, today is May 18. Last year on May 18, I bought a cigar! No kidding! For Mark, no less! Here's the story in three scenes:

Scene 1--When I was a little girl, The Arlington Hotel in Hot Springs was in its heyday. Nightclub stars and Mafia bosses and even U.S. presidents stayed there. My family couldn't afford such luxury, but the hotel advertised in my dad's newspaper, and instead of paying us, we got to vacation there free! My sister and I always liked to pretend we were rich little girls when we'd ride up and down the elevators.

Scene 2, which takes place many years later--Annette and I stayed there a couple of days (t was between 15 and 20 years ago, but I don't remember which baby she was pregnant with or I could tell you exactly.) So we're sitting at a little table out on the veranda, and Annette starts pushing her nose up. When I figured out she was pretending she was a snooty rich woman, I did it, too. It was so funny! Well, maybe you had to be there...

Scene 3--Last year Mark and Lisa decided to go to The Arlington on my recommendation, which made me a little nervous for two reasons:

1. After I recommended it, I started reading reviews on the internet from people who had stayed there, and one called it a roach motel!

2. Samantha and Emily were going to spend the night with us for the very first time, and I was afraid Emily might cry.

Oh, yeah, back to the cigar. When they dropped off the girls, I gave Mark a cigar and Lisa some bon-bons so they could sit out on the porch and pretend they were rich people, too! (He may still have the cigar. He didn't smoke it.)

Happy twist at the end of the story--Emily DID cry, but it was when they came to pick her up, and it was because she didn't want to leave!