40th Birthday Trips

So my friend P. turns 40 in June. She didn't want to wake up in her own bed in her own life on her 40th birthday. It was too big a day! Too much of a milestone! So, she and her boyfriend started plotting where they might go -- Portugal, Turkey, Greece. Yeah, Greece! That's the ticket, Greece! The only problem with Greece was you have to get on a plane to get there. And if you're going to an island? Damn. It's a taxi and a ferry and another hard-to-get taxi and oy what a schlepp!

Now, one of the very first things I learned about my friend P. back when we were becoming friends our senior year of college was that while she had traveled widely -- India, Japan, Kenya, Europe -- she didn't really like it. Sure she liked being in a new place, but she really didn't like getting there.


But, still, I told her last week over lunch, she should go. She'd be so happy when she got there. She'd be so happy to BE there.

Well, I talked to P. the other night and I asked what she did over the weekend and she said, "I made reservations to go to Canyon Ranch for my birthday." I was like, "What?! In the Berkshires?" She said, "Yeah, because I thought about that hard-to-get taxi from the ferry and then I thought about Canyon Ranch and I got in touch with how I really felt about being at Canyon Ranch, and that's where I'm going."

Can I just say? I love that. It's like, I don't know, P. decided she didn't want the huge gorgeous salad filled with things she knew would be gorgeous but she didn't know that much about and that she'd have to spend an hour washing to make sure all the grit was gone, anyway. Instead she chose the huge bowl of ice cream that she knew she'd love. The only downside is she's not taking me.

Happy Birthday, P!!