I've been singing that song all week. You know - "Meet me in Saint Louis" - but not the original Shirley Temple version... No, in my young mama world, it's the VeggieTales version that keeps going through my head, even though it was only a few minutes long (You know, the one from the "Are You My Neighbor" video)
Never mind.
I obviously don't get out much.
Anyhoo...
Last week I flew to Saint Louis, Missouri, to help my hubby settle into his new apartment as he begins a year contract job with Boeing. After being unemployed since April, this job is certainly an answer to many many prayers... it's just 1900 miles away. But, on to this next adventure we go!
My flight left at 6:30 Thursday morning. The night before I had taken a new anti-inflammatory for my hip, which the pharmacist assured me would make me sleepy. WRONG. Instead, it wired me... the "wide awake staring at the ceiling trying to convince myself to sleep" type of being wired. Sigh. Finally dozed off at 1:30am, only to wake back up at 4:15 to leave for my flight. I purposely didn't have any coffee, since I was planning on sleeping on the plane ride.
I had packed my bag the night before, but left it open so I could have access to my toiletries. After I was all dressed and ready to go, I went to zip up the bag... and the zipper broke.
Crap.
So, I snuck into my master bedroom (where my parents, aka babysitters-for-the-weekend, were sleeping) and I grabbed another bag from my closet. Took everything out of my first bag, transferred it to the new bag, and zipped it up. And then noticed that the side pocket, which runs the entire length of the bag, had a broken zipper. Not a big deal - I can pin it, right? Um, no... the lining is ripped, exposing everything inside my bag, and also I somehow doubt that the TSA nazis will allow me to carry on a bag that has visible safety pins all along the side.
Double Crap.
My two oldest kiddos were packed for camp, using the last two bags we have. My hubby has the others in Saint Louis. No other bags. I'm now getting way behind in my plans to get to the airport early... I frantically start looking through my daughter's closet, and find the only bag available - a bright pink and purple duffel bag from when she was preschool, with "Clarissa" embroidered on the side in bright purple thread. I throw all of my items in the bag, grab a yogurt, and run out the door.
The drive to the John Wayne airport was uneventful - the ONLY benefit to having an early morning flight - no rush hour traffic yet! (I live in southern California - this is a very real concern) As I go through the TSA security check, I get reprimanded for not doing the full body scan posture correctly, and then my bag (yes, the pink and purple one) holds up the security scanners for 15 minutes - I have NO idea what they saw in there that was so exciting, but I can only imagine what would have happened if I HAD safety-pinned the other bag and tried to fly with it! I would probably still be in their holding cell, trying to explain this all to the authorities.
Anyway, I made it through and as I sat there waiting to board, the gate attendants asked for people to volunteer to gate check their bags, as the flight was completely full. I handed over my pink/purple bag and boarded my flight. As I settled in, I chatted with a nice guy on my right who was traveling home to Saint Louis after being gone for 4 months, traveling with the Budweiser Clydesdales. Cool! I turned on my phone to listen to some music and drift off to sleep, only to discover that when I synched my phone the night before, all of my music had been deleted, leaving me with only my daughter's playlist - the soundtrack to Frozen. NOT what I had in mind. I sighed, turned off my phone, and settled back into my chair as we started to taxi to the runway.
That's when the captain's voice came over the loudspeaker "Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize, but we are experiencing engine malfunction and will need to return to the main gate." I don't know much about flying, but I do know I'd rather have engine failure on the ground as opposed to taking off! As we sat there on the jetway, I knew that any hopes of making my connection in Minneapolis were shot - I only had a 40 minute window. And sure enough, the captain came back over the loudspeaker and asked us all to deplane.
I exited the plane, took the postcard the captain was handing out with the Delta number, and dialed it. The lady I spoke with regretted to inform me that there were no other flights on Delta out of the John Wayne Airport that would get me into SL at a decent hour (decent being before midnight!), but asked me how quickly I could get to LAX, for there was a flight leaving at 9:30. I glanced at my watch - it was 7:30. "If I can haul butt, maybe I can make it" I thought. But, oh crud, my bag... it's beneath the plane. Sigh. Quickly I flagged down the gate attendant and asked if there was any way they could quickly find my bag - I mean, it was one of the last ones put below, and was bright pink and purple, for Pete's sake - easy to find! He assured me he would get on it... as he ambled off with a pace that would rival that of a hundred year old tortoise. With time clicking by, I entered panic mode and thought "I don't have time for this... forget my bag, I'll just go to Target when I get to SL and get what I need!" And I took off for my car.
Jumped in the car and started driving up the 405 towards LAX. As I was driving - it is now 8:00 am, I come to a complete standstill. A quick check on Google Maps shows 3 accidents ahead. Realizing that I am operating on pure frazzled nerves, not helped by lack of sleep and funky medicine, I call my good friend Bill (who travels a LOT for his business, and whom I have known since I was 2) and say "Help me out here - I know I'm not thinking through this clearly, and I need you to talk me through this. Do I have any chance of making this flight out of LAX?" "Nope, Sal, you don't have a chance - not parking at LAX, getting through security, and getting to the flight before it leaves. But here are a few other flights you can get changed to - call Delta back and get transferred." He prayed over me and wished me well.
Of course, when i called Delta, all of the other flights out of LAX were completely sold out. (Who knew that Saint Louis was such a popular place to go to on a Thursday morning?) But, the gate agent asked me, "How quickly can you get to John Wayne Airport?" Yep - the same airport I had just LEFT and driven 40 miles from. She explained that there was another flight, on another airline, that was leaving at 10:30 that would get me into SL at 6pm. It is now 8:45am... I can do this.
Got off the 405N, and flipped around and headed back to the John Wayne airport. Made a quick call to my hubby, letting him know of my new travel plan, texted Bill (voice text - don't freak out, people) to thank him again for talking me down off the ledge, so to speak, and made it to the airport by 9:30.
Parked the car, walked into the airport, and went to the ticketing agent to get my boarding passes.
As I explained that, no, I wasn't checking any bags, because I still HAD one somewhere in this airport, she informs me that they will not allow me to board the flight without my bag.
I just stared at her.
Are. You. Kidding. Me.
All of this, the driving, the panic, the deciding to leave my bag in the first place, the driving back, the rebooking of tickets, the traffic... to be stonewalled now because my bag isn't with me? Oh good grief... at this point I'm almost shaking, so beyond frazzled, so exhausted, so frustrated, so needing a stiff shot of coffee, or something stronger...
Reluctantly she gave me my boarding passes and told me that I would have to let the boarding agent know about my missing bag. I went through security - again- (by the way, I totally ROCKED the body scan posture this time!)
I walked up to the gate agent, gave her my boarding pass, and explained that my bag was somewhere in the terminal. She confirmed that they would not let me board without my bag... but they would have someone look for it immediately. I had just walked away when the gate agent called me over and said those magic words "Mrs Henry, we have your bag - you are free to board the flight" I turned around and said "Praise Jesus, that's the first good thing that has happened today!" As I turned around, I saw the Clydesdale guy standing there, chatting with one of the stewardesses. He was also waiting for them to find his bag so he could board the flight. "My bag is just a normal black bag, though," he said,"You were smart to pack in something bright and noticeable!" I just cracked up. Who knew, right?
I boarded the plane, we taxied without incident (!) and took off. Finally. On my way. Landed in Dallas, connected without any delay, and finally landed in St Louis - only 3 1/2 hours late - not bad, considering all I went through to just get on a plane! My hubby met me at the airport, and we left for my dear friend Jamie's house, where she had a delicious meal and glass of wine waiting for me.
The rest of our time together was wonderful - hubby started his new job, Jamie and I explored every option trying to find furniture for his new apartment, and God surprised us with blessings galore. Furniture waiting to be donated - check. Estate sale with highly priced antiques, but a kind lady who offered us her two pure leather couches for under $100 - check. Craigs list ad with a bed that had never been slept on - check. Amazing. Refreshing. Worth every hectic moment getting there. And Jamie and I rewarded ourselves with much-needed pedicures, per our tradition of getting them done together while we were stationed together with the military. We had a wonderful double date, us two couples, explored the Hill (the Italian area of SL), and went to see the Arch - which is gorgeous, by the way!
A good weekend... a lot of craziness followed by a lot of blessings... but looking back, I can also see the blessings through the crazy. I mean, I would have NEVER packed my items in a bright pink and purple duffle bag, but if I hadn't, they may not have found my bag as easily, and I would still be wandering around the John Wayne airport trying to find it! OK, not really... but you know what I mean.
So that's my story... I have informed my hubby that we need to get new luggage, and that it will all be bright pink and purple and I really hope that is ok with him. He just laughed. Oh, he has no idea how serious I am! hehehehe...
Meet me in Saint Louis, baby!
Never mind.
I obviously don't get out much.
Anyhoo...
Last week I flew to Saint Louis, Missouri, to help my hubby settle into his new apartment as he begins a year contract job with Boeing. After being unemployed since April, this job is certainly an answer to many many prayers... it's just 1900 miles away. But, on to this next adventure we go!
My flight left at 6:30 Thursday morning. The night before I had taken a new anti-inflammatory for my hip, which the pharmacist assured me would make me sleepy. WRONG. Instead, it wired me... the "wide awake staring at the ceiling trying to convince myself to sleep" type of being wired. Sigh. Finally dozed off at 1:30am, only to wake back up at 4:15 to leave for my flight. I purposely didn't have any coffee, since I was planning on sleeping on the plane ride.
I had packed my bag the night before, but left it open so I could have access to my toiletries. After I was all dressed and ready to go, I went to zip up the bag... and the zipper broke.
Crap.
So, I snuck into my master bedroom (where my parents, aka babysitters-for-the-weekend, were sleeping) and I grabbed another bag from my closet. Took everything out of my first bag, transferred it to the new bag, and zipped it up. And then noticed that the side pocket, which runs the entire length of the bag, had a broken zipper. Not a big deal - I can pin it, right? Um, no... the lining is ripped, exposing everything inside my bag, and also I somehow doubt that the TSA nazis will allow me to carry on a bag that has visible safety pins all along the side.
Double Crap.
My two oldest kiddos were packed for camp, using the last two bags we have. My hubby has the others in Saint Louis. No other bags. I'm now getting way behind in my plans to get to the airport early... I frantically start looking through my daughter's closet, and find the only bag available - a bright pink and purple duffel bag from when she was preschool, with "Clarissa" embroidered on the side in bright purple thread. I throw all of my items in the bag, grab a yogurt, and run out the door.
The drive to the John Wayne airport was uneventful - the ONLY benefit to having an early morning flight - no rush hour traffic yet! (I live in southern California - this is a very real concern) As I go through the TSA security check, I get reprimanded for not doing the full body scan posture correctly, and then my bag (yes, the pink and purple one) holds up the security scanners for 15 minutes - I have NO idea what they saw in there that was so exciting, but I can only imagine what would have happened if I HAD safety-pinned the other bag and tried to fly with it! I would probably still be in their holding cell, trying to explain this all to the authorities.
Anyway, I made it through and as I sat there waiting to board, the gate attendants asked for people to volunteer to gate check their bags, as the flight was completely full. I handed over my pink/purple bag and boarded my flight. As I settled in, I chatted with a nice guy on my right who was traveling home to Saint Louis after being gone for 4 months, traveling with the Budweiser Clydesdales. Cool! I turned on my phone to listen to some music and drift off to sleep, only to discover that when I synched my phone the night before, all of my music had been deleted, leaving me with only my daughter's playlist - the soundtrack to Frozen. NOT what I had in mind. I sighed, turned off my phone, and settled back into my chair as we started to taxi to the runway.
That's when the captain's voice came over the loudspeaker "Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize, but we are experiencing engine malfunction and will need to return to the main gate." I don't know much about flying, but I do know I'd rather have engine failure on the ground as opposed to taking off! As we sat there on the jetway, I knew that any hopes of making my connection in Minneapolis were shot - I only had a 40 minute window. And sure enough, the captain came back over the loudspeaker and asked us all to deplane.
I exited the plane, took the postcard the captain was handing out with the Delta number, and dialed it. The lady I spoke with regretted to inform me that there were no other flights on Delta out of the John Wayne Airport that would get me into SL at a decent hour (decent being before midnight!), but asked me how quickly I could get to LAX, for there was a flight leaving at 9:30. I glanced at my watch - it was 7:30. "If I can haul butt, maybe I can make it" I thought. But, oh crud, my bag... it's beneath the plane. Sigh. Quickly I flagged down the gate attendant and asked if there was any way they could quickly find my bag - I mean, it was one of the last ones put below, and was bright pink and purple, for Pete's sake - easy to find! He assured me he would get on it... as he ambled off with a pace that would rival that of a hundred year old tortoise. With time clicking by, I entered panic mode and thought "I don't have time for this... forget my bag, I'll just go to Target when I get to SL and get what I need!" And I took off for my car.
Jumped in the car and started driving up the 405 towards LAX. As I was driving - it is now 8:00 am, I come to a complete standstill. A quick check on Google Maps shows 3 accidents ahead. Realizing that I am operating on pure frazzled nerves, not helped by lack of sleep and funky medicine, I call my good friend Bill (who travels a LOT for his business, and whom I have known since I was 2) and say "Help me out here - I know I'm not thinking through this clearly, and I need you to talk me through this. Do I have any chance of making this flight out of LAX?" "Nope, Sal, you don't have a chance - not parking at LAX, getting through security, and getting to the flight before it leaves. But here are a few other flights you can get changed to - call Delta back and get transferred." He prayed over me and wished me well.
Of course, when i called Delta, all of the other flights out of LAX were completely sold out. (Who knew that Saint Louis was such a popular place to go to on a Thursday morning?) But, the gate agent asked me, "How quickly can you get to John Wayne Airport?" Yep - the same airport I had just LEFT and driven 40 miles from. She explained that there was another flight, on another airline, that was leaving at 10:30 that would get me into SL at 6pm. It is now 8:45am... I can do this.
Got off the 405N, and flipped around and headed back to the John Wayne airport. Made a quick call to my hubby, letting him know of my new travel plan, texted Bill (voice text - don't freak out, people) to thank him again for talking me down off the ledge, so to speak, and made it to the airport by 9:30.
Parked the car, walked into the airport, and went to the ticketing agent to get my boarding passes.
As I explained that, no, I wasn't checking any bags, because I still HAD one somewhere in this airport, she informs me that they will not allow me to board the flight without my bag.
I just stared at her.
Are. You. Kidding. Me.
All of this, the driving, the panic, the deciding to leave my bag in the first place, the driving back, the rebooking of tickets, the traffic... to be stonewalled now because my bag isn't with me? Oh good grief... at this point I'm almost shaking, so beyond frazzled, so exhausted, so frustrated, so needing a stiff shot of coffee, or something stronger...
Reluctantly she gave me my boarding passes and told me that I would have to let the boarding agent know about my missing bag. I went through security - again- (by the way, I totally ROCKED the body scan posture this time!)
I walked up to the gate agent, gave her my boarding pass, and explained that my bag was somewhere in the terminal. She confirmed that they would not let me board without my bag... but they would have someone look for it immediately. I had just walked away when the gate agent called me over and said those magic words "Mrs Henry, we have your bag - you are free to board the flight" I turned around and said "Praise Jesus, that's the first good thing that has happened today!" As I turned around, I saw the Clydesdale guy standing there, chatting with one of the stewardesses. He was also waiting for them to find his bag so he could board the flight. "My bag is just a normal black bag, though," he said,"You were smart to pack in something bright and noticeable!" I just cracked up. Who knew, right?
I boarded the plane, we taxied without incident (!) and took off. Finally. On my way. Landed in Dallas, connected without any delay, and finally landed in St Louis - only 3 1/2 hours late - not bad, considering all I went through to just get on a plane! My hubby met me at the airport, and we left for my dear friend Jamie's house, where she had a delicious meal and glass of wine waiting for me.
The rest of our time together was wonderful - hubby started his new job, Jamie and I explored every option trying to find furniture for his new apartment, and God surprised us with blessings galore. Furniture waiting to be donated - check. Estate sale with highly priced antiques, but a kind lady who offered us her two pure leather couches for under $100 - check. Craigs list ad with a bed that had never been slept on - check. Amazing. Refreshing. Worth every hectic moment getting there. And Jamie and I rewarded ourselves with much-needed pedicures, per our tradition of getting them done together while we were stationed together with the military. We had a wonderful double date, us two couples, explored the Hill (the Italian area of SL), and went to see the Arch - which is gorgeous, by the way!
A good weekend... a lot of craziness followed by a lot of blessings... but looking back, I can also see the blessings through the crazy. I mean, I would have NEVER packed my items in a bright pink and purple duffle bag, but if I hadn't, they may not have found my bag as easily, and I would still be wandering around the John Wayne airport trying to find it! OK, not really... but you know what I mean.
So that's my story... I have informed my hubby that we need to get new luggage, and that it will all be bright pink and purple and I really hope that is ok with him. He just laughed. Oh, he has no idea how serious I am! hehehehe...
Meet me in Saint Louis, baby!
4 comments:
I could feel the tension creeping into my neck and shoulders as I read this. I travel a.lot. It's rarely a simple thing anymore, always some sort of delay or hiccup, but I am so glad you reached your destination and things settled down. Hope your hubs loves his new job and everyone has a good year.
Awesome!! I love you so much, my Friend!! Glad D settled in, that you got in a visit with lovely friends, and that you made it home in one piece!! What a whirlwind! Blessings abound, even if they show up in different packaging than expected!! <3
Love,
E
Oh, heavens! What an ordeal. You ever think you were on an episode of Punked? I have threatened to buy sparkly neon luggage to make baggage claim a cinch.
You are a great writer, my friend! I was right there with you experiencing the frazzle and fighting the traffic between airports! I am so thankful that you were able to see the blessing amidst the crazy. That is grace!
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