Off Balance

Imagine our enthusiasm: a rare opportunity for a night out, made possible thanks to the fortuitous combination of
1/ A group of friends
2/ A kind-hearted babysitter
3/ A good restaurant

So, the evening was fun, the food was OK - but brazenly over-priced - the break from routine was invaluable.

FH started to look a little wobbly on the bike ride home.
Once home, he quickly excused himself and went to bed, while I made tea and had an hour-long debriefing session with the kind-hearted babysitter.

Then, the OK meal removed itself from FH's stomach and deposited itself all over the bedroom, hallway and bathroom in three stages (4 am, 5 am, 6 am) that seemed to roughly correspond to the three courses in which it was served.

No pretty sight, no pretty odour, let me tell you.

A bit of a kick in the teeth for an overwrought couple with few, treasured opportunities for nights out "à deux".

Stumbling out of bed after a sleepless night, thinking of the rather large credit card payment made only a few hours ago, that scene from Fawlty Towers replayed itself in my mind's eye:
Basil's dinner has made one of the snooty guests sick. When the snooty guest's husband asks Basil for a refund - in view of the circumstances - Basil is typically mean-spirited.
"If it was off, why did she eat the other half?"
"Fine!" snaps snooty husband, "in that case, you can refund half now... and if my wife brings up the other half in the night, we'll claim the balance in the morning!"

Classic