The Post That Was Almost Never Written

This post has been two years in the making. I wasn't exactly sure how to write it, but not writing it wasn't right, either. It was a Saskaspooning adventure and the rule is, I have to write about all of them.

So here is what happened.

My sister and her husband came to visit me and Patrick. They wanted to try saskaspooning, and so we shook the ipod and we got the Samurai.

The Samurai is a "fancy place" in Saskatoon. It's part of the Bessborough Hotel, which is another "fancy place". Anyway, we really weren't expecting an expensive dinner, but that was where we had to go.

Now, things with families can get strange. You know that. Emotions run high, especially when it's your sister's first time meeting your boyfriend, and suddenly you're thrust into a "fancy restaurant" situation.

To make a long story short, people were not on their best behaviour. We were seated at a large table around the grill, where a chef did all the cooking. We were seated with a middle-aged couple who were presumably on an anniversary date. And I still feel badly that our small, anxious party of four likely ruined their Big Night Out.

For one thing, I tend to regress a bit when I'm with my family, especially when I'm feeling uneasy. And I was uneasy -- I wanted them to like Patrick, I wanted them to like Saskatoon, I wanted them to be impressed with me. So I was on edge a bit. And then my sister was acting really, really strangely -- she said she wasn't comfortable, that she was in pain, and then sort of moped quietly at the table. It was really irritating. I was getting frustrated with her bizarre behaviour. About halfway through the meal she got up, said, "I can't sit here anymore," and went to sit in the car. My brother in law ran out after her, and poor Patrick thought we were all crazy, and I felt equal parts angry and guilty about the whole night. 

We never spoke of the terrible, awkward dinner again, until a while later, when my sister called to tell me that she now realized she'd been unwell that day. She didn't really know, so none of us  realized that her body was having issues, not her head. I had no right to be frustrated with the drama that went down. But we didn't know!

So it wasn't anxiety and strange sibling baggage that caused the meltdowns. It was illness. I am happy to report that everyone is fully recovered, and Patrick no longer things we are crazy.

Should Keri and Ben ever return, we will Saskaspoon again. Who knows? Maybe we'll end up sitting with that couple on their next anniversary dinner. This time we'll pick up the tab.