The Joys of Air Travel

This week something very special happened to me at work: I flew to a job. For any of you who know about FUN Enterprises, this is a huge deal because 99% of our travel is driving, so when you get offered a plane ticket, you take it. With that being said, please note that any following complaints are not a commentary on flight choices made by the travel coordinators in the office but rather on the logistical plans designed by United Airlines. Now I know I don't work for an airline and I really don't know a thing about how flight plans are created, but I'll tell you one thing I do know: a flight from Boston to Atlanta that connects through Chicago just does not make an ounce of sense. Not one ounce. A trip from Boston to Atlanta should take 2 hours max, but instead I was lucky enough to enjoy a 5.5 hour journey including 3.5 hours of flight time and a 2 hour layover. Ugh. The day started around 2:00pm with a lovely trip on the Logan Express getting me to the airport at 2:30. I've been on several flights in my day, but this was my first time at terminal C, and what a delight! It was a nice quiet day so all I had to do was walk right up to the self-serve kiosk, push a few buttons and boom, there are my boarding passes. My first flight that day boarded at 4:52 so the question then became, "What do I do for the next 2 hours?" It didn't take long to figure this one out. I found myself a nice cozy chair and settled in for a little one-on-one computer time. Airport gates are the perfect location to get some really good people watching done, and here is my #1 observation from the day. When presented with the option of the usual airport chair or the decidedly New England white rocking chairs, it appears that the temptation of a little rocking time is just too great for some folks to resist. Of the 12 rocking chairs at my gate, I'd estimate that there were only 2 or 3 open at any one time during my hours spent there. The great thing about rocking chairs is that they don't discriminate. Anyone can sit in an airport rocking chair and still look fairly normal, posing as a tourist passing through the area. Once I was able to get over my fascination with the rocking chair lovers, I made my #2 observation of the day. A former hairdresser of mine, a woman that I had not seen for at least four years, was sitting a chair away from me. If you've ever been in one of those public sighting situations, then you know how tormenting it can be trying to decide whether or not to say hello to this person who may or may not remember you from years past. What made my ordeal just that much more difficult was the fact that there was a cute little baby distracting my hairdresser and her family, so much so that I couldn't get a good chance to interrupt and say hi. I waited and watched for the better part of an hour trying to get a word in edgewise, but it just didn't happen. Eventually, I gave up and started making my pre-boarding preparations including buying an $8 magazine and gum combo pack for the flight. By the time I got back to where I had been sitting, my seat had been claimed by a fellow passenger and I got stuck with the only empty seat in the middle of a college speech team. To put it lightly, these kids didn't take a break from warming up their instruments. Great. Finally our flight boarded and while walking down the aisle to my seat WAY back in the plane, I spot the hairdresser again, and I realized that this was my chance. I casually leaned over and asked whether she used to work at the Hair Condition and what do you know, she looks to her mom and says, "I knew it! I knew that was her!" As it turns out, she had seen me at the gate too and was trying to figure out why I looked so familiar. Isn't it funny how airports work? Granted I was in my home state, but still, meeting up with a hairdresser from a salon that isn't even open anymore? It was pretty cool. That was the most fun I had that day, it was such a great little treat. My third and final observation for the day hit me when I arrived in Chicago for my connection to Atlanta. As I was digging in my bag for my wallet, I pulled out my car keys and discovered that I had forgotten to take the little Swiss Army knife off my key chain. I swear I didn't mean to do it, I didn't really need it for work since I knew I would have plenty of scissors around and I had fully intended to leave it at work that morning. I just forgot. As it turns out, TSA didn't seem to think that it was a big deal and they let the little guy travel with me. How kind of them, in a scary sort of way.

PS (These are just funny: Q1 - Which door in the airport did this dino stroll in through? Q2 - At what other times have folks attempted to put their seatbelts on?)