So I’m officially on my way to China- and it’s a long, long way. In writing this, my friend’s guiding words about blogs rings in my ears- and I apologize ahead of time that this will mostly be an update-on-what I’m doing blog for the next little while. I’ve attempted to write about the lesser known destinations along US roads so far- and that will continue as I travel along the world’s asphalt, but there may be less of that in the next month, so bear with me!Flying isn’t easy to me anymore- and getting up at 3:30 am isn’t a great way to start the day. Luckily, the smooth RnB my cabbie had playing put me in a better mood (like, I’m serious). Syracuse airport is quickly becoming a favorite airport of mine- I like that it’s smaller, but it’s developing some really good connections, making it my now-preferred departure airport (as opposed to getting down to JFK to save some money- the now-relatively low cost of flying out of SYR now makes that trip obsolete).
One hour to Detroit. Myself and the maybe tallest guy in Syracuse are sat next to each other, in an endless “who’s shoulder should be in front?” battle. Interesting guy who lost an eye in a honey accident. As you can imagine, we then chatted the whole flight.
Connecting in Detroit was anticlimactic. The flight to Seattle, however was pretty entertaining. I managed to fall asleep, only to be woken up by a small Chinese toddler unbuckling my seatbelt. Slightly startled by the aggressive little bugger, I scanned for his owner, only to find his grandma filming the interaction on her iPad. This actually happened. We laughed, and our whole little section played with him for most of the flight in a very it-takes-a-village-to-keep-an-infant-from-ruining-this-flight sort of way.
In Seattle I left the concourse to visit my friend Jenn, who brought breakfast (YES!!!). This is where it gets interesting. Sitting at a table within eyesight of the security line, I gave myself an hour to get back in line. In the most frustrating security line experience of my life, this hour was not enough, and I officially missed my flight to Shanghai. Sometimes even people who travel a lot can make silly mistakes. Or, ya know, the guy in front of me who ignored the constant barrage of instructions, seemed to still decide bringing two liters of water on the plane was a good idea, and when told that wasn’t allowed, denied he would stand there, in front of the scanner, and drink his water. Kill. Me.
A blessing in disguise, Delta (for once) was pretty good about it, and booked me on the same flight the next day. I ended up being able to have a really nice evening with my family at home, sleep in a comfy bed (thanks Danielle), and return to SEATAC refreshed, and very, very, very early.
I guess the message is that sometimes things just go wrong. Plans unfold, and inconvenience happens (either our fault entirely, or not at all). All we can do is be flexible, have a good attitude, and move forward. And, finally, sometimes what we see as a bad outcome can end up being just what you needed.
Until next time!