Compromise

My sister is arriving from North Carolina tomorrow, my youngest sister, my half-sister, my 16-years-younger-than-me sister. How do I remember that she is 16 years younger than me when I have difficulty figuring out the ages of my other four siblings? Simple. When she was born, I was already in the same hospital, recovering from an appendectomy. I was 16. Not an event I easily forget (my appendectomy, not the birth of yet another sibling). My step-mom had the kid, stayed two days in the hospital, went home, and I was still stuck in the hospital for another week. I wasn't even allowed to go to the maternity ward to see the newborn. (As far as I know, appendicitis is not contagious. They even had wheelchairs back then.)

So, said sister is arriving, tomorrow, at noon, approximately. Driving up from NC. And, she wants the front bedroom, the large bedroom with the big windows, the best bedroom in the house, the bedroom all four girls used at one time or another growing up here, the bedroom I have come to call home over the last few weeks. And I agreed to move, to the smaller bedroom, the "boys bedroom". Why? Am I a wimp? Should I stand my ground and dig my heels in and say "I was here first"? Shouldn't the older sibling have seniority? Shouldn't the first one to arrive in CT get dibs on the best room? Isn't possession nine tenths of the law? Well, yes, yes and yes. But, I'm not. You see, we have agreed to a compromise, of sorts. She gets the bedroom to sleep in, but I get to keep my stuff in the room and use my laptop, which is hooked up to the DSL line in that bedroom. She, being much younger and smarter and more on top of the latest and greatest technology, has a wireless laptop, which I do not. So, I get to check my email, my Facebook account, and blog away the hours, unless she is sleeping at night or napping (a southern tradition). I decided I could live with this, for the sake of family harmony. And hey, its only for a week, during a holiday dedicated to peace and love and good will. I think the babe who's birth we are celebrating later this week would approve.