I have a friend whom I've known and stayed in touch with ever since school days. We're now in our early 60s. For many years it was one of those friendships where we spoke on the phone three or four times a year and met up if we were in the area on holiday or business (we live 300 miles apart). Then four years ago her mum died and I went to the funeral and for 18 months or so after that she leaned on me very heavily — long, sad phone calls, asking for support and practical help which I supplied when I could. After that things tailed off: I'd phone or message her every few weeks or so, she'd sometimes respond, sometimes ignore the contact. I got the message — she'd moved on and we were back to where we used to be.
In January she contacted me to say she'd booked a week's leave in mid-March and we hadn't seen anything of each other for ages, so how about a few days away? She has two dogs now, so ideally we'd be looking for a holiday cottage somewhere equidistant from our homes with separate bathrooms (she has a thing about not sharing a bathroom) and an enclosed garden where the dogs could go out safely for a pee. Whenever we've stayed anywhere in the past, we've always gone 50:50 on costs.
She sent me a link to a really swish Cotswold barn conversion that costs £330 a night — so four nights for the two of us was more than £1300. I called her and explained that £650+ for four nights self-catering was a bit rich for me at the moment. I already had several commitments this year, including three weeks in the US where my nephew is getting married in September. I said I'd prefer it if we could find something a bit cheaper. I sent her details of four holiday cottages that appeared to meet her requirements, all of them stylish and modern. Some of them were half the price of the one she'd suggested. In the last month I've found a few more. She's said she'll look at them several times, but gives me no feedback. Now we're a month away from the dates she's booked for her leave and several of these cottages are out of the running because they've been booked by other people. I spoke to her at the weekend and it was clear she hasn't checked out any I've suggested. She promised to look through them and do some more research to see if there's anywhere more suitable but hasn't come back to me.
I'm guessing that she wanted the expensive place in the Cotswolds and that nothing else will do. AIBU to ask for a compromise on this? What is she telling me without telling me?