This takes some of the sting out of it

I've been ambivalent about my AARP membership. I mean, it seems like the first step on the long, lonely road to mah-jong and the early-bird dinner special, and this is not how I'm ready to see myself yet.

I just used my first AARP benefit, though, and I'm one happy camper. Or, more precisely, one happy traveler.

The Hibiscus Motel in Key West just confirmed my reservation at $260/night for 3 nights. Trust me, this is a GREAT deal because I'm traveling the last week in December. Many hotels in Key West demand a minimum 5-night stay that week. Others jack up the price inordinately because it's New Year's and, well, they can. I was afraid that, to get a good price, I'd have to settle for being stuck out by the airport or near Sears Town, but this motel is in Old Town, the good neighborhood for this gal, who likes to spend her Key West days shopping, people watching, and drinking margaritas.

So my red and white AARP card is about to move to my wallet. Not where anyone can see it, mind you, but it will be in there! (Mah-jong anyone?)

I'm not deleting it ever

Last week a customer service rep from The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center called to tell me the Lucy nightshirt I ordered had been returned to them because of a mistake in my address. She asked me to confirm the correct address, the shirt came, and I've been slipping into it ever since.

The coolest thing about this entire episode -- other than that the shirt itself, since the whites of Lucy's eyes are soooo bright I think they glow in the dark -- is that when the call came last week, Caller ID read: Lucille Ball (short for The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center). I love coming home, checking my messages and seeing that Lucy called me.

As silly impulse purchases go, this one has brought me a great deal of joy.