Spontaneity

We make a lot of spontaneous decisions in our family. But we are careful about giving them long and hard deliberation first.

I have a friend who I worked with for more than 20 years who could finish work on a Friday having booked time off from work and with nowhere to go. He would return from holiday to inform us he had gone to Mexico or the Caribbean. I always joked that he packed his bags, went to the airport and asked where they had two seats on a plane for and got on the first plane!

We could do that given enough time to plan it!

We decided a fortnight ago if not longer we would go away and give SOC a ride on a mainline train, probably LLandudno Junction to Betws-y-Coed. I sent off 25 emails trying to find B&B. Got them back and started to choose. "Hang on there's a long tunnel on that route" says Wifey, "Great" says SOC "Oh" says Wifey. Wifey can be a bit claustrophobic. "What are tunnels like?" says Wifey. I explain. "I think I can go with that." says Wifey. "I thought we weren't going to go there now?" says SOC.

You have to understand that that simple conversation took 2 days!

"Anyway" says SOC "I thought that route wasn't as pretty as the 19.5 mile one?". The route to which she referred was the Welsh Highland Railway - Caernarfon to Beddgelert.

I send out 25 more emails and the responses pour back in. I respond to a few for a few more details and one of them refers us to another B&B that does evening meals.  OK we enter into a week long protracted email exchange with the new suitor about B&B, B&B and evening meals, their menus, their photos on the web site, their parking facilities and other major essential items of information needed for a spontaneous decision. My father-in-law then has a health issue which means all spontaneous plans go on hold.

After a lengthy day at the hospital we then find that we can go away and finally book.

All things being equal we finally go in a few hours time. I wish I could get used to spontaneity.