Louisiana memoirs(1)

I was half asleep midway through my latest Ludlum re-read('tristan betrayal') when the pilot's announcement woke me:"ladies and gentlemen,our agonizing wait is over and we have been cleared for take-off".An approving chorus of grunts greeted this welcome but patently overdue pronouncement.

Right at this moment,a middle aged lady decided it was time to answer the call of nature,making her way down the long aisle towards the toilet at the back of the boeing 737. One of the LSU pharmacy seniors in the row beside me with whom I'd earlier exchanged idle banter looked towards my direction in puzzlement that matched my own.

The next sound was that of the toilet doors slamming shut and then...silence.

Two minutes later,the dreaded follow-up announcement was made:"cabin crew to prepare for take-off".

Again,Rodney cast a furtive glance in my direction and we both erupted in uncontrollable laughter.

The girls sitting in front of us initially wondered what was so amusing,but then the plane took off and a sequence of loud thuds appeared to emanate out from the back of the plane.Rodney explained to one of the girls what was happening,and they,in turn laughed uncontrollably.By this time the rest of the passengers had realized what was happening and every one awaited the emergence of the unwitting actress at the center of this episode.

Finally,the plane was above the clouds and the "fasten seat belts" sign was turned off.
Our lady reluctantly emerged from the toilet after almost 7 minutes of being bounced around the tiny airport toilet to rapturous applause from all the passengers and the palpable embarrasment of the cabin crew.

Several questions arose:

Could one have expected the poor lady to hold her number 1 or 2 because the plane was about to take-off??What if she suffered one of those detrusor instability syndromes and loss of bladder control?

Did Rodney and I act immaturely by somehow drawing unnecessary attention to the poor lady's plight?

Had the airline staff/cabin crew failed in their duty to enforce safety protocol??

All,valid questions to which there may be no definite right answers....but for my part,I can say that I was less than proud of the role I played!