The trip did not start well. The night before we were to embark on the Spirit of Tasmania, The Accountant and I went to a wedding. It was a lovely wedding, but as the Accountant was busy counting, he could not arrive until the reception. There were the usual speeches, toasts and dances but the Accountant kept elbowing me in the ribs to leave as he was concerned about not finishing his work before the family holiday.
A few hours later I woke up in a fever feeling ill and dizzy. I promptly fainted in the hallway and woke up lying diagonally on the floor with my head jammed up against the wall. The Accountant looked slightly concerned as he pulled me up, and went to get ice for the back of my head and a cool flannel for the fever - all the time muttering that he was not getting his necessary rest….
I awoke feeling not great and spotted the blood stain on the wall from my head on my way to the kitchen. I was feeling not so great as I took the boys to school and even less human as I worked with the dancers in the studio. There was still packing to do and last minute washing. We had to get to the boat by 6:00pm. Who organises a family holiday on the last day of school, the day after a wedding, where both parents are working and one of them has a bump on their head?
Over a quick dinner in St. Kilda The Accountant regaled me with stories of 20 foot waves in Bass Strait and other ferry disasters. He knew I was nervous about the voyage. Luckily the Korean ferry disaster had not happened before our holiday, otherwise I would have gone to the airport.
The family cabins were very cosy and comfortable, and whilst I looked on enviously at people quietly enjoying their wine or tea, our family headed straight for the games room. After that ordeal was over it was straight to bed for everyone and a very easy night of putting everyone in their bunks. I did not sleep so well, even though it was very comfortable, as I woke with my bunk tilting sideways and the ferry creaking ominously. The engine speed was determined by the huge waves pounding the ferry. And I spent the rest of the night making sure Henry did not fall out of the top bunk. He kept rolling toward the outside rail (about two inches high - who designs these things?) and I kept getting up and pushing him back (whilst trying not to look at the foaming water outside).
The last words The Accountant offered me before he went to sleep were: "If you see the waves above this porthole - then you know we are really in trouble. Goodnight".
