THE KING OF PENTACLES, THE EIGHT OF RODS AND A REVERSE EIGHT OF PENTACLES

Carol raced through the airport, her small carry-on rolling behind her with it’s wheels rattling. She arrived at the gate of her connecting flight just as the words “cancelled” flashed up onto the over head board. Carol, panting and out of breath, placed her hand on her hip and bent over slightly to catch her breath. “Fuck.” she swore on a exhale. She pulled her phone from her bag and checked the flight status app. Nothing until tomorrow morning. Carol was stuck in Detroit. The earliest flight available was a 6:15 AM flight. Carol stepped up to the counter to make sure she would be able to get on that flight. A man in a business suit stepped up next to her at the counter and Carol gave him a side eye. “I think the line starts behind me sir. Not next to me.” Carol said as the man’s elbow bumped her shoulder. “Oh sorry…I didn’t see you standing there.” The man stepped back as one of the flight attendants stepped up to the counter. Carol looked at the woman’s tired face and her name tag. “Candice, it looks like you’ve had a rough day too. I know this sucks for you.” Carol put on a smile and tried her best to look sympathetic. Candice nodded wearily and asked how she could help. “Is there any way I could get a boarding pass for that 6:15 morning flight to New York?” Candice typed on the keyboard in front of her and shook her head. “The earliest I can guarantee you is 8:45 AM.” Carol nodded and replied “Put me on it!” Candice typed a bit more and printed out a boarding pass. “Thank you soooo much.” Carol said as she took the boarding pass being handed to her. She gathered her things and turned away from the counter. Then she started searching for a hotel room and scored a suit at closest Marriot with points from her travel card.

As Carol made her way to the hotel shuttles, she felt a little despondent at spending another night alone in a dreary hotel room. She paused at a take-and-go kiosk and pondered the questionable salads and sandwiches. Then she shook her head and decided to treat herself at the hotel and order room service. The hotel shuttle was waiting for her when she stepped out of the airport. Carol hopped on, dragging her carry-on bag and sat quietly as the shuttle made it’s short drive to the hotel. At check in, Carol ordered a salmon burger, fries and some tonic to be delivered to her room. She had two airplane bottles of gin in her purse. She opened the door to her suit and kicked off her heels as she walked into the room and then face planted onto the bed. Eventually she rolled over and pulled herself up to a seated position. She pulled her laptop from her bag and connected to the hotel WiFi. Carol had already filed her report for the consultation she had done for UWM, so she opened a browser window to scroll through beach properties. This was becoming Carol’s new favorite pastime. She found that she could spend hours looking at various condos and bungalows for sale in places like Hawaii and Florida. Carol knew that this new obsession was a sign that she was burnt out and tired of this hectic life that consisted of airports and hotels.

A knock at the door signal the arrival of the room service she had ordered at check-in. She got up and answered the door. Carol let the attendant into the suit and managed some small talk as the young man rolled in her dinner tray. She tipped him and then shut the door behind him. Carol rummaged in her bag and pulled out one of her little gin bottles and made herself a gin and tonic before tucking into her meal. She scrolled through house listing while she ate until she came across a cute little bungalow on the island of Maui. It was not directly on the beach, but nestled back into the jungle across the road from the beach. Three bedroom, two bath, with a carport. Carol scrolled through the images for the listing. The interior looked fairly new and in good shape, but the front porch and back patio were the things that peaked her interest the most. Carol could picture herself sitting on that front porch with her morning cup of coffee. She could see herself puttering around in the gardens around that back patio.

Carol wanted this house.

Carol opened a second tab in the browser window and logged into her bank account. She looked at the balance in her savings and then she looked at the purchase price of the house. She could do this. She could buy this house easily. The next question was if she bought this house, what would she do about a job? She had a sizable nest egg, but she wasn’t any where near retirement. She would have to get a job. Carol thought about this as she munched on a french fry. This job of her’s could be done remotely. Maybe not with the current company she worked for, but she could freelance. Carol took a drink of her gin and tonic and then clicked on the link to contact the realtor selling the property. Then she started making new plans that did not include being stuck in a airpot hotel in Detroit.