New Year’s Eve Spent in Rome

Instead of all the flash, the thrills, that sense of wonder of being in a foreign country on New Year’s Eve, you were sick, with a cold…translated…

Back when I was working as a flight attendant, on New Year’s Eve one year, I was set to head to Rome on work schedule, calculating the time zone differences, I would be, having my New Year’s in Rome.  Sounds romantic, I suppose, but, actually, it’d felt more like I still had to work, on New Year’s Eve.

That day, the plane was quite empty, but, eventually, it was, a redeye, long-distance flight, from when I’d come out of my own bedroom, to when I’d arrived at the room in the hotel, it’s, at least, twelve hour straight that I had to wear the high-density pantyhose, laboring.  As I took off my makeup, I’d felt my body ached all over, I had a somewhat, elevated temperature, but felt cold; heavens, I think I have a cold now, and, at a place where it’s too expensive to see the physicians to get treated, an international station (the jargon of the flight attendants meaning a counter from abroad!)

the shot the writer took with her Leica IIIc, photo courtesy of UDN.com

I’d wrapped my self up in quilt, had the instant noodle with the hot water, swallowed the anti-inflammatory meds, fell and slept.  With the jetlag and my cold, I don’t know how long I was out, feeling, drowsy, as I woke, my body felt, a little bit, better, but my mind’s, still, quite fragile.  I’d looked out, the skies are still light, so I took my almost broken Leica IIIc, walked out to the golf course next to the hotel, and, took a few shots of the withered trees, and rushed back to the hotel before sundown, to rest.

And just like so, I’d, half slept, half woke, in this tiny room in Rome, passed through the New Year, nobody else was there, no alcohol, just quiet, with me and my row of pain killers, a tiny lamp, my uniform, my luggage, and my, old, camera.

And so, due to work you’d, traveled a lot, and, you’re, growing weary, of making these rounds, especially around the holidays, because while everybody all around gets to spend time with one’s families, you have to, work, because you were, assigned to the shift, and what was worse was, you had a cold…