The main point is, if you don't travel
with due respect and humility for the Travel Gods, you will suffer.
And, apparently, I have not been making the appropriate sacrifices.
My trip to Ohio was not exactly a calamity, but travel did not go as
smoothly as I hoped. I had direct flights between Miami and
Cleveland, an easy 2 and a half hour flight in a puddle-jumper plane.
(The first mistake: assuming that the flight would be “easy”.)
Although I arrived an hour before my flight left, there were some
snafus, and I missed my flight. The reservation agent at the gate was
very nice, and she quickly booked me new flights, which would connect
in La Guardia (so, no more direct flight). An airplane golf cart even
whisked me across the entire terminal, and I made it to New York
without a hitch. When I got there, however, I discovered that the
airport had been evacuated due to a bomb scare. (This was the day
after Boston, and it turned out to be some innocent wires hanging
from a light fixture.) Luckily, I arrived when the had started
letting passengers back into the terminal. Unluckily, American
airlines' computers had shut down, world-wide. While I sat there in
the gate, flight after flight piling up, it did occur to me that if I
hadn't missed my flight, I would have been at Ohio already. I tried
to stay philosophical, though, because I was on vacation and didn't
have any urgent plans that day. After a few hours, they announced
that the Cleveland flights (and only the Cleveland flights, as far as
I could tell), would be allowed to board. That was because the
flights were tiny, and half-empty. The combined two flights of people
in a puddle-jumper, took our boarding passes and used a hole-puncher
on them (remember, every single computer was down), and the pilots
filled out the paperwork by hand. I arrived in Cleveland 6 hours
late, and I counted myself lucky.
The trip back started out more
auspiciously. I arrived with plenty of time to spare, and the flight
to Miami proceeded according to plan, right until we started circling
Miami. That's when they announced that the entire airport was shut
down, due to a huge storm. We diverted to Ft. Meyers, on the other
side of Florida, to refuel, and we arrived only a few hours late.
In spite of this all, I can report that my vacation was terrific. I sat around bonfires and talked for hours with my parents, I helped my dad do some maintenance on a old bicycle, and I learned that my brother can make authentic cardamom-flavored, stewed chai tea. My sister-in-law and I shopped for flowers (although we ended up being unable to plant them, due to surprise snow showers). I made coloring books for my niece and nephew. I did all the everyday things that I would do if I lived closer to all of them. And then I counted my lucky stars that we're moving to DC, where I'll only be a short, six-hour drive from my parents.
4 comments:
Hmmm, clearly not enought virgin sacrifices staking place in Miami (even virgins snow I suspect).
Try the Wine offering technique frequently and copiously is my receommendation.
Certainly you have good material for your blog. We were so happy to have you visit and are thrilled that we will see you both more often.
Nothing by halves!
isn't it funny, trotting all over the globe and we all yearn to be closer to our families? I guess when you're lucky enough to get along with them.
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