Ski Lodge

1// Book Club

December 23rd, Thursday
First week of Winter Break

Reader, I'd like to thank Pride and Prejudice for being the greatest book ever.

You see, this account really starts with my mother's weekly book club. Every week, my mother and her three best friends meet at one of their houses to gossip and also to review a book. This week, all three doctors/mothers were discussing Pride and Prejudice over wine and cheese, and I was watching Dr Greene's children Weston and Laura upstairs in my own house. (I was back home for winter break.)

I didn't go downstairs until Weston asked me for a glass of water, and when I finally descended the marble staircase of our very nice home, I found all three middle-aged, book club women in the office, completely drunk, and giggling at the computer.

"What are you looking at?" I asked, not really sure if I wanted to hear the answer.

"Nude men!" Dr Becker called out, which sent my mom and Dr Greene into a fit of laughter.

"Don't scar my daughter!" My mom laughed, "honey, honey." She leaned over to me, almost tripping over Dr Greene and her chair. "Sorry," she apologized... not to Dr Greene but to the chair. "We're watching... no, wait," she laughed again, "we're looking at a website for lodges. There's no men. Or at least no nude men."

"Lodges?" I questioned.

My mom awkwardly pulled me over to the computer by my arm, "yes, ski resorts with lodges. In Colorado."

"That might have nude men!" Dr Becker added with a grin and a wink.

"Or alcohol," Dr Greene joined in.

"I think you've had enough of that," my mom hiccupped, "but I might get another glass for myself."

The screen showed a beautiful cliff side ski resort with a huge snowy courtyard surrounded by cobblestone streets with fairytale-like, townhouse-style lodges and shops lining the stone sidewalks. The streets reflected the glow from of vintage street lamps, and it was all set high in some sublime mountain range.

"Look honey, honey look," my mom smudged her fore-finger on the screen, "the lodges are skinny little itty bitty townhouses, but seven stories high! And we'd all fit into one lodge- one family on each of the top floors. There's a pullout couch in this tiny living space outside the bedrooms on each floor for you, and Weston and Laura, and Emmett. And the bedrooms will be for the adults, of course. And the bottom two floors are living space and kitchens and washers and dryers and stuff. And then all the bathrooms are on the third floor which is a little strange but totally doable. And we just booked it!"

"Wait! You what?" I leaned closer to the screen. On the top right, a little pop-up read, 'thank you for your purchase.'

"Yeah, why not?" Dr Greene threw her arms in the air, "you kids are all on break right now, and I've got vacation days saved up."

"But Christmas!" I yelped.

"We won't miss Christmas, honey," my mom hugged me, "we leave the day after."

"We will get to go on a plane! I haven't been on a plane since Laura was born!" Dr Greene exclaimed.

"Oh lord, we are old! Emmett's in med school, and Trisha sweets you're in college! I still remember when you were in diapers" Dr Phillips cried.

"I'm the youngest!" Dr Greene yelled, sending all three mothers into another fit of laughter.

I snuck by them and into the kitchen, where I got Weston's glass of water.

On my way back up the stairs, I wondered what the reason for this sudden trip was. Other than the unusually high consumption of alcohol my mom and her friends seem to have. Perhaps, I soothed myself, they would forget about the whole trip tomorrow... or maybe I could get dad to cancel the trip... or perhaps there would be a snowstorm and we'd be stuck. I really didn't want to go on a trip with Emmett Becker; I was determined to enjoy my holiday break.