The Challenges of a Friendship

I usually don't share this type of stories, but I think this one will make you smile too. Let’s start saying that I took a long weekend road trip with one of my friends and by the end of day one, I felt I was taking a vacation with my Irish-triplets instead of a relaxing weekend with my friend!

So, it was a long weekend and my friend, and I decided to take a four days’ road trip from New Jersey to the Niagara Falls. We also thought we might want to go over the border to visit Canada, so we agreed to take our US passports.

From my point of view, my friend and I have a very good, “judgement-free” friendship. We have a very good idea of each other’s weaknesses, strengths, and annoyances. For example, I love driving, and she hates driving. She loves watching TV, and I do not much so. She loves watching movies, while I do not have the patience for it, unless someone tells me how the movie is going to end first. And, because I do not have much patience to watch a whole movie at once, from start to finish, quietly, I am usually watching the movie and doing something else. As a result, I do not pay a lot of attention to the movies, so, I end up asking hundred and one questions about it, which annoys the hell out of her, and anyone around it. Somehow, we do manage to be very good friends.

So, I drove to the Niagara Falls, and she agreed to come along. She also agreed to pick me up in the morning, which she did.

First, she forgot her passport. We had to turn around to get it because we were thinking to cross the border and go to Canada for the day. However, considering all the current immigration issues, travel ban’s, and immigration’s executive orders currently affecting our country (USA), and, regardless of the fact that we are both US-Citizens, we did not want to take the chance to be deported from Canada to Dominican Republic and Colombia respectively. So, we both took our AMERICAN passports with us.

I drove six hours while my friend slept five and half hours, snoring like it was in the middle of the night, and she was on her bed!! I couldn’t believe it! I couldn’t believe that she was able to sleep that deep considering I had the music so loud! But she seriously did.

After all the sleep, she woke up a little disoriented, screaming “hijo-e-puta!” when I unexpectedly and kind of recklessly made a turn, while trying to look at the beautiful country-side scenery to my side. No recommendable.

When we finally got to the Niagara Falls Park, we urgently needed to use the bathroom, for what I called an emergency bladder release. So, we walked to the visitor center just to find out that it was closed and no bathroom on site. We continue walking, trying to find a bathroom, while my friend was in her last “bladder-resisting” breaking point.

She just lost it. She peed all over herself. Really. Like she was two.

She couldn’t hold it anymore. She was laughing so hard that she just lost the battle between her bladder and her resistance. It was one of the most hilarious things I have ever seen. So, we had to turn around to change her underwear and pants.

We went over the Falls, and it was beautiful.

As we were walking to the car, we saw a tourist center, or so we thought it was a tourist center.

It was not a tourist center. It was the US-side border of Canada. As I screamed “Noooooo!!” my friend crossed the no-return revolving doors to Canada border, without any legal documents on her, while I stood there, looking at her, in disbelieve!

She did not know what to do, so she went to the US-immigration officers, CBP.

While there, immigration asked her a million and two questions, looking at her, very suspicious. (I would too!) I called her cell phone and got the answering machine. I was petrified, imagining me having to tell her daughter that her mother illegally stepped into Canada border without documents and that now, she was in trouble! OMG!

Well, my friend later told me that the immigration officer told her not to pick up her phone, I imagine because he was trying to figure out what to do with her.

About fifteen minutes later, my phone rang. It was her. Miraculously, she had her driver license in her packet. After the immigrations officers had confirmed that in fact, she is US-citizen, they opened the door for her so she could come back to the US-side of the border.

Latter, we reserved a hotel. So, when we finally get to the room, which had a nice double bed. I chose the first bed, closer to the door. She took the second bed, the one closer to the window.
I’ll go to the restroom, and when I comeback out, everything was changed. She took the bed next to the door, and she wanted me to take the bed next to the window. While it didn’t seem to matter, really, it didn’t matter, I was curious about her reasoning for her change of mind. So, I asked her why?
She said that the bed next to the door had a better angle to the TV, and since I did not like to watch TV that much anyway, she was changing the bed.

I agreed to it as if I was agreeing with the argument of a two-year-old child. At the same time, I looked at her like as if she was growing two set of head, a third eye, or something along those lines. I looked at her perplexed, puzzled, and confuse all at once. When I finally figured out what she was trying to say, I used my index-finger to “turn” the TV angle to the bed next to the window, which was her bed, and I asked her, do you mean this?

She started cracking up laughing. She did not consider the idea that it was a modern TV. One that could be easily moved or turned. The TV was not attached to the wall. It was on top of the desk. She just had to turn it. But I guess she was just having one of those days.

At this point, I couldn’t help it. I started laughing too. This was only my first day with her. I went out to spend the weekend with my friend. You know, to take a small vacation. Get out of the routine. But instead, I felt that I was spending the weekend with my Irish-triplets. Regardless of all the challenges of the first day, it was so much fun! I was still looking forward the rest of the weekend. If the first day was (somehow) such much fun, I could only imagine what the rest of the weekend will be.

I’ll keep you post!

Iberkis
p.s.
My friends authorized me to share this story with the world!