The Best Laid Plans...

The day dawned bright and clear. I had been eagerly anticipating the day. I had planned, although not to the minute a day of enjoyment for Guillaume and I, and I was eager to treat him and make the day a memorable one. Well, it turns out that the day has now become a memorable day, but not perhaps for the reason I had set out for it to be.

Off to Monterey we caverned to actually take a horseback ride along the Pacific Grove Coast, the 17 mile Drive to be precise. The minute we step into the stables area we can see that the horse ride is not perhaps going to be as strenuous as hoped or expected, the horses look a little worn. Looks weren't deceiving in this case, the horses we rode and the horses that are stabled at the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center are on loan from the Heartland Ranch, and are typically the horses that are too old for more than gentle walking, or have step issues. They spend a few years at the stables then back to the ranch to be put out to pasture. Needless to say our ride was a gentle, methodical meandering ride along the coast and through the trees.

However, the scenery was beautiful. The coastline is amazing. We were fortunate that the fog burnt off and that we could enjoy the sun and sea breeze. The horses plodded along. Geraldine nearly sinking into the dunes with Guillaume on her back -- I wasn't sure if it should have been the other way, Geraldine on Guillaume's back ;) (As soon as I pass the camera to Guillaume I'll post some pics).

We both mentally make the best of the ride, realizing that it isn't perhaps what it could have been. For me I'm anticipating FOOD. I had packed a picnic lunch, and was pleased that the weather had cooperated and before us stretched an afternoon of fun in the sun and around Carmel or Monterey. The best laid plans, are just that -- laid but not executed, especially when you add in a secondary person.

We're coming in off the trail and Guillaume asks me, "Do you have your wallet?" Ellie: "No, it's in the car, I'll run and grab a tip." G:" Well, the keys are in the car too -- in the trunk actually." You see Guillaume deviated from his routine and took the car key off of the keys, and in putting things into the trunk had placed the car key between the rubber inlays of the trunk, and proceeded to shut the trunk. He did this prior to the beginning of our ride, but was kind enough not to let me know until AFTER the ride.

Easy, Guillaume says, I'll just borrow a wire hanger and probe and push the button on the key, which is stuck between the trunk and rubber inlays. Hmm, well not so easy as it turns out.

Before I continue let me complete the picture: We are both hungry, thirsty, and everything but the camera (of which the battery was low and then gone, preventing me from capturing the oh so inspiring transpiring events) is in the car -- we have no money, no nada.

Guillaume, who possesses the uncanny ability to merely ask for what he wants proceeds to ask the employee of the Stables for assistance: first she calls the on site security, out they come -- but to no avail, because the Audi A4 is theft preventable, and a simple door unlocking device (Read flat metal pole) is not going to penetrate the Audi wall of protection. Meanwhile Guillaume has procured use of the stables' internet to discover the Audi Assistance number. Finally reach them, establish a connection. Around 3PM we receive the call back, they will be there within 30 minutes - GREAT!!

Locksmith arrives 330PM (by now we've been semi stranded for two hours), locksmith pumps open the door, in goes the narrow metal prod, angled just so. And prod and poke he does -- for 60 minutes...Guillaume offers instructions, the locksmith asks if Guillaume happens to be an engineer, I promptly answer "YES!!!" I've given up, I wander off to find a patch of grass and contemplate whether it is ok to bargain with God. I hear a faint clap and chime of the alarm. Still reluctant to get my hopes up, I stay situated. Another 10 minutes pass, and yes we are in -- wallets, phones, keys, LIFE safely back in our possession. 3 and a half hours past the time we finished the ride.

You can rest assured that Guillaume will NOT live this down, and he checks surreptitiously for his keys at all times now. We also learnt just how dependent we are on things, and not necessarily people. We learnt about each other (I don't do well when I don't eat), (oh I'm rather tenacious), and much more. One is the fact of our dependence on things versus our dependence on people, and at the very least my reluctance to ask people for aid (it wasn't as if all hope was lost and we were stranded on some desert island...) -- but more on that in the future posts!!

I'm leaving all the days out to Guillaume from here on out...