The headache lurked around the edges of my brain. It was soft, not so pronounced. In fact, one could almost question whether it was really there. I was in that half sleep/half awake state, where sleep seductively tried to keep me in it’s embrace, but wakefulness poked at me, prodded me, tried to pull me away from slumber’s grasp. Wakefulness had the headache to its advantage. It made me wonder what the cause of it was. And with that thought process begun, wakefulness was on its way in and sleep on its way out.

First, some context. Ernie (my husband) and I are walking our dogs through our neighborhood one day. As we pass by various folks who are also out walking, I smile, wave, say hello. What follows next is the exchange between me and Ernie. Some of you will note the Seinfeldian-ness of the conversation.

My millennial niece sends my sister and me a text about our upcoming trip to NYC. She booked us rooms at Citizen M hotel. You are going to need to download the app, she says. It’s all digitally operated. Check-in, the lights, and shades in the room. Everything. And since I am not arriving with you both, you are going to need to figure this out in advance as I won’t be able to help you. Forewarned is for….? Something

Who wouldn’t like to spend a weekend with Bradley Cooper? When the opportunity presented itself to have a free couple of days at a boutique, luxury hotel somewhere in New England where Bradley and company would be staying while filming a movie, we of course said yes.