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 Emily had always dreamed of a Round the World trip And the cruise on the SS Prince Ranier had been a snip at $9,000 for a month on the high seas Which was as near round the world as damn it to a cleaner from the Bronx Who'd never been much further than Coney Island She looked at the boarding card and itinerary again Visiting 15 exotic and enchanting ports in the Mediterranean and North Africa Including the a port in Lebanon If the fighting stopped
She had rushed around the malls with her credit card after work buying clothes for the trip No point in travelling light she told herself As she blew another $4,000 on a Cruise wardrobe And booked an upgrade to first class An additional $2500 bucks But which included all evening meals And a chance to dine at the Captains table She decided that would require a new watch And treated herself to a Cartier for $3,000 And shoes., Emily decided on quantity rather than quality alone But didnt skimp on herself as she bought 12 pairs for $3,000 The beauticians bill had came in at half that The beautician was very friendly though Unlike the plastic surgeon Who'd taken another three grand For smoothing the wrinkles around her eyes The legacy of the daily struggle Of countless hours of overtime just to get by He'd done a good job though But she still looked and felt a lot older than her 35 years Life had not been very kind It had worn her like weathered sandstone She'd chatted about the cruise with the beautician The girls name was Kulvinder And she'd handed Emily a Sikh amulet free of charge ' It'll bring you good fortune ' she said Perhaps you'll meet the man of your dreams' Emily thanked her kindly and later threw the amulet away She didnt need luck nor a man for life She looked down at the letter that had started it all again It was from her bank Informing her that her credit limit was being raised to some ridiculous amount She'd felt the bank deliberately wanted to get her into even deeper debt The bank had even used the ability to take an unplanned holiday in its reasons for increasing her credit limit That had been the decider They knew how much she earned as the cleaning agency she worked for had been paying her wages through the bank for years Even with overtime it was a pittance So she'd thought fuck it, I'll take that holiday of a lifetime And given in her notice to the agency and told them she wasnt coming back The ship sailed at 9.00 am the next day But Emily couldnt sleep She was too busy anticipating the throb of the cruise ships massive engines underneath her The sights, sounds and smell of the open sea Thoughts of the great temporary adventures ahead And of finally waving goodbye to the struggle And at the back of her mind wondering if the credit card company or her bank would smell a rat at this late stage And whether she should take the plunge On the return voyage or wait til she got home. Whatever she thought, I'm going  The Diceman Cometh by Autotelic
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