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I'm Mad At BookCrossing

No, really. Trust me on this.
by bookczuk
June 5, 2007
I was a very happy person before I found BookCrossing. Honest. Really. (well, discount the fact that just immediately before finding BC I got a life-threatening illness and almost checked out of this life from it several times. That does put a damper on things.) But despite having to totally revamp how I lived my life, I was quite happy. I have a wonderful family, filled with love and laughter and grace. I had a fabulous career and a stellar reputation in my field, despite the fact that I was suddenly yanked from practicing because of that fricking occupationally acquired illness. (Wait-- that sounds like there was some bitterness creeping in there.) Okay, I'll admit it. Latex allergy and the subsequent pulmonary problems I've had bite it big time, but still, my life then was, and is now, blessed. Good. Happy. And all that stuff.

So into this world comes BookCrossing. You may think it was a wonderful thing for me to find. I mean, here I'd suddenly lost a whole world of patients and professional colleagues around the world with whom I could no longer interact in the same way and instead, I find a place centered on one of my passions. Here I can talk books and reading and life with a group of fun loving people. Seems too good to be true, eh?

Well, here's the deal. Several years ago, I was innocently minding my own business when I began to notice a newbie in the forums. She was a local -- lived on the other side of the Charleston peninsula from me. Despite the fact that we shared the same profession, we moved in totally different circles in the world of medicine, but our worlds intermingled through BookCrossing. She was funny, full of wit and charm and wicked smart. As fate would have it, we decided to meet. On the given day, I dressed with care -- first impressions are so important, you know. I headed downtown, and dropped a few books here and there on the way.

My last stop was a coffee shop near where I used to work. I casually left a book on a table and sauntered out. As I approached the door, I heard the dreaded words: Hey Lady! You forgot your book! I picked up my pace and made it out the door, with my local do-gooder hot in pursuit. I dashed around the corner and ran full tilt into a medical student who had just bought a plate of Chinese food from the street vendor and was taking it to the park next to the coffee shop for a quick lunch in the sunshine. Sweet and sour pork cascaded down my front. A piece of pineapple wedged itself in my cleavage and a splattering of sticky pink sauce decked my face like freckles. I looked up at the med student, who in fact was more dismayed at the loss of his lunch than the mess on me and suddenly had the breath knocked out of me. Why? My coffee shop pursuer had rounded the corner and run into me, book in one hand, cafe mochiata grande cup in the other. Unfortunately, as the shiver down my spine attested, the cafe mochiata grande had, like Elvis, left the building, and was slithering down the back of my dress. I was a mocha mess. It was gonna be a helluva first impression.

With no time to go home and change, I decided to try my luck at the shops on King Street to see if I could find something to wear that wasn't covered in food-stuffs. Unfortunately, I was headed not along lower King Street, where the trendy boutiques are found, but along upper King Street, which in those days catered to a distinctly different profile than I fit. I hit every possibility of shops along the way, but unless I planned to wear a choir robe or a pimp's suit, I was out of luck. I finally found myself in a shop where, had I been a member of the oldest profession, I would have fit right in (and that pimp suit might have come in handy). But I was desperate, and the store manager was up for a challenge. She finally found what would have been a mini skirt on a normal-sized individual, but on me worked as an above-the-knee skirt. Disappointed that she couldn't convince me to purchase a blouse that advertised my wares a bit more, we finally found a simple white tee shirt that would suffice. I used her restroom to wash the whipped cream out of my hair (I had two thoughts-- one that this was probably not the first time that someone had washed whipped cream off in the shop and two that I was sure as heck not gonna sit on the toilet seat.)

I dashed over and arrived at the meeting spot just moments before a leggy and beautiful blond entered. She was accompanied by a rather fine specimen of a man. We sat and chatted for a bit, and I hoped they didn't notice me giving myself little sniffs to see if I still smelled like sweet and sour pork or coffee. (You know what I mean; just like you subtly sniff your underarms when you wonder if that whiff of B.O. you just got was you.) I think we were both nervous. I'd only met a few other locals (and more than one has become a good friend, too) before that, and was timid about meeting people from online.

Anyhow, despite my odoriferous presence, we kept in touch. She was utterly charming and I found myself looking forward to our meetings. We began to build a history of shared books, shared friends and even shared a meetup-from-hell with the world's worst book hog. (I kid you not. I'll tell you the story sometime if you ask really nicely.) We've laughed together, dined together, wined and whinged together, brought our men with us to enjoy company together. We've watched the Charleston group, a fabulous group of folks, begin to really gel and form. And it was only because of BookCrossing that I found her.

But now, her life takes her to a different part of the world. While I'm happy about all the future will bring to her, I shall miss her a great deal. She has brought a wealth of wonders into my life. Her humor and brains, her quick wit, her great taste in books, her hot husband, her sense of style and verve for life. Sure, a large part of our relationship is online and can continue to flourish, but I liked having her close by to meet for a quick cuppa. Damn BookCrossing! You brought me a friend and now she's going away! It's just not fair!!! If it wasn't for BookCrossing, I wouldn't be realizing how much I'd miss her. Crud.

But if it wasn't for BookCrossing, my life would be that much poorer. It would still be a good life, but it would be without one of the gems of this world. So, MartiP, I wish you safe travels, much happiness, health and all good things to you and yours. I wish you a joyous reunion with your love, filled with good times and great adventures as you explore your new home. Take care, be happy, come back and visit. The BookCrossers in your new home are blessed. I know the Palmetto State was while you were here. You are loved here in Charleston by many.

Maybe I'll keep BookCrossing around, too. It's got its good points.....

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Taken at the farewell lunch here at Chez Czuk with Bumma and MartiP. We'll give MartiP a good bye from the Group when she comes back to visit sometime, or maybe we'll do a virtual one.....

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