*sometimes you just need to love.*

finally. here it is. The Flight From Hell Update.

so heres The Story of The Return Flight:

nick and i left jamie&beakers place around 2 on sunday. drove drove drove to ft lauderdale hoping that id have enough time to shower, pack, and get some dinner before having to be at the airport. got back just before 4, showered, packed, went to BK for dinner. as we're sitting at BK eating, AA calls and says my flight is delayed till 9:30. i think "SWEET! less time ill have to hang out at LaGuardia by myself and now we can go back to the room and just chill for a bit." so we do. i nap for a little, then play on WN till 7:30 or so. then we hop back in the car and drive to the airport. he drops me off, i go check in, check my bag, all that good stuff. walk down to the gate. there are a ton of people waiting, and they look kinda cranky. i figure "well they must not have gotten the phone call." i sit, i read, i talk on the phone, listen to ipod, all that. 9 oclock rolls around, they arent even talking about us boarding. people get antsy. 9:30 [flight takeoff time] comes and goes. they make an announcement "something wrong with the plane, have to have a mechanic take a look, itll be 10 minutes." this goes on and on. long story short: there was an oil leak in one of the engines. there were no other available planes. no other flights to NYC until tuesday. people started getting crankier. finally midnite hits. i seriously lose my shit. i march up to the lady and say "LOOK. i dont even WANT TO GO TO NYC. im just trying to get to columbus, ohio. are there any other flights?" she seems nervous "ill check." she checks. there is one. for monday morning, leaving at 10:30. i say "fine. ill take it." [now. i had called my boss around 10 to tell her that there was some plane trouble but it looked as if we were still going to be able to fly and that id probably be at work no problem, but id give her a call in the AM to let her know what was going on. because i had to work yesterday from 1 to close.] so here it is nearly 1 am, and matty is on his way to pick me up. cause hes the bestest ever. im tired, im cranky, im sunburnt, and i havent eaten anything since about 5 oclock. he picks me up, takes me to dennys for breakfast and we get back to his place around 2:30. get some sleep, and wake up around 7 am. now, at the airport they wouldnt give me back my BAG cause it was still on the plane, so i had no clothes to change into, and no shower stuff and yeah. so no shower for me. so now im STILL tired, sunburnt, and i havent showered. bleh. we drops me at the airport. i go check in. i tell her that i was on flight 1468 and ask if it ever left [cause at 1 am they were still saying it was going to go. eventually.] she gives me this look of pity and says "nope sweetie, still here." she tells me where i can find my bag and that ill have to bring it BACK UP TO HER to have it checked in again. i go find it. the nice man down there says hes already taken care of everything for me and that its on the plane im getting on. [finally someone nice and DOING their job.] i go get some food. call my boss, tell her whats going on, that i should be back in cbus at 4:30 and can i come into work at 6:30 so i can shower and get clean clothes on, she says sure. sit, eat, read newspaper, listen to ipod. my new flight has me routed through dallas for who knows what reason. so i board, i sit on plane, plane sits on tarmack for TWENTY-FIVE minutes because the FUCING WIND CHANGED DIRECTIONS. start to freak out. know my connecting flight leaves like 45 minutes after im supposed to land in dallas. arrive in dallas, "bad weather" keeps us in the air another 20 minutes. LAND AS MY CONNECTING FLIGHT SHOULD BE TAKING OFF. panic. get matty to check and see if its on delay. it is. by NINE MINUTES. dash across airport, am 5 minutes too late. plane leaves without me. start crying. guy at the next counter tells me that i can go standby on a flight that leaves at 5. but he'll confirm me on a flight that leaves at 7:30 just in case. call my boss, i cry, she says its cool. call my mom, freak the fuck out. im now tired, hungry, burnt, and an emotional wreck. realize i will be stuck in dallas for the next 3 to 6 hours.

i walk to my gate for the standby flight. on the way i realize i need a DRINK, so i stop at Fridays. the cute waiter brings me my drink very quickly, tells me jokes to make me stop crying, and gets me a burger, pronto. he got a big fat tip by the way. one bacon cheddar burger and two beverages later and i was on my way to feeling better. i settled in at the gate and read and listened to my ipod while texting my life away with matty. around 4:30, the standby flight was supposed to start boarding, well it didnt. of course. the gate got shuffled around 3 different times, and it kept getting delayed. it finally took off at 8, with me NOT on board. no room. so i walked my ass ALL THE WAY across the airport AGAIN, so i could catch my 7:30 flight which had been delayed until 8:30. it took off right on time. flew quickly and i landed in cbus last nite just past 11:30. called matty, my mom, got my bag [which had gotten there, seriously, like 8 hours before i had] and got the fuck outta there. got back to the apartment just after midnite. was never happier to be in ohio in all my life.

and thats that. ill never fly american airlines again. and i hope ya'll never do either. for me. please.

but i SERIOUSLY had an absolutely positively FANTASTIC vacation and i love jamie, beaker, dave, matty, and nick even more than ever. thanks guys, it was THE BEST. just like ya'll are.

written @ 1:02 am on 02.05.05
< * >