adventures in air travel and voyages to maryland
so i recently decided to surprise my daddy. see, his 50th birthday was this past saturday (the 16th) so i flew up for a few days without telling him...
thursday, december 14th, day 1 - i got my roomie up at 4 in the morning so i could make my flight. the first part of the journey went very smoothly, just a little flight from austin to houston, only 30 minutes or so in the air. i landed at about 6:50 am with a little lay over until my second flight was supposed to leave at 7:45. around 7:40, we’re all safe and snug in the plane and we find out that the fog in maryland is so bad that bwi has canceled incoming and outgoing flights until visibility gets better. they said they’d update us in 20 minutes or so, so i just chilled on the plane all buckled in jamming out to my shuffle. around 8:30 they tell us bwi has started allowing incoming flights again, but by this time there is enough fog in houston to ground flights there as well. but again, they expect an update in as little as 20 minutes, so i continue to sit tight. around 9 am they announce that things have worsened back in maryland so now both airports are grounded. fun fun lol. but i didn’t mind, so long as they didn’t cancel the flight i was cool. they turned on some sitcoms and i tried to doze off (i had been up since 3:45 after all) but with no success. around 10 am they finally announced that the flight was delayed indefinitely and that we would be updated at 11. since we had a whole hour we were granted access back into the terminal, so i grabbed my bags and put my shuffle on loud and set off. it was so much fun actually. i went to the starbucks, got me a peppermint mocha and just wondered around with a soundtrack. it was really fun. around 11 the fog had finally cleared up enough in both locations that they were allowing boarding. got on the plane and actually left the runway around 11:30. i landed safe and sound at bwi just after 3, but because of the huge delay and the still dense fog, my friend was delayed picking me up. he got there about an hour after i landed. the ride back to cambridge is about 2 hours from the airport, so it was great talking and catching up with him. got to cambridge just before 7pm (that’s right, roughly 14 hours traveling... but it certainly beats the 36 hour drive). my dad was so surprised. my wonderful cousin came by and i got to see my grandma and my aunt and uncle too, so all in all it was a good day. and my friend spent the night. it was nice to sleep next to someone again... haven’t done that in far too long.
friday, december 15th, day 2 - i woke up and went to the doctors. just hadn't been in a long time (over a year unless you count the visit to check out my neck/back right after the car accident) and wanted to go back to the one i’d been going to for nearly 10 years since i was in the area. healthy as a horse (and losing more weight too) :) after the visit i got to see my best girlfriend. she’s the wonderful mommy of my brand new honorary nephew (we also decided i could be his “fairy godmother” since i just fly in and out every now and then lol). she came and picked me up around 11:30. i spent all day with her and the most beautiful baby i’ve ever seen. she’s such an amazing mom and he is so wonderful. we went to lunch, got some coffee, hung out at the house and played with him all afternoon. she showed me her and her honey’s christmas tree and all of the pictures and stories from her son’s birth. it was so wonderful seeing her and i cannot wait to see them all again. i know it will be far too long until next time. that night we did dinner at red lobster, me, mom, dad, my cousin and her husband. we had a blast (and one of the best waiters in the world lol). after that we all went to see the new movie “eragon”. it was really good. i loved jeremy irons (well duh lol) and i was really impressed with the “shade” (what can i say? i have a thing for the bad guys). thus ended day 2.
saturday, december 16th, day 3 - this was the main man’s actual birthday. 50. half a century. whoa lol. we got up bright and early and headed to golden coral for his breakfast with the family. because of several delays and a mix up in communication we ended up getting there as they started lunch and two of our party didn’t make it, but it was fun none the less. after “breakfast” we went to bell book and candle in dover. it was wonderful. haven’t been there in far too long either. got some much loved trinkets and a gift for my roomie too. after the shop we went to the dover mall. got some christmas gifts and spent a good long while wondering about with my mom and dad. that evening we did some outback for my daddy’s birthday dinner (just the three of us). it was really wonderful.
sunday, december 17th, day 4 - so, by day 4 i was pretty exhausted lol. i tried to sleep in, but my busy life will have none of that! so i got a couple of phone calls and by noon i had my best guy friend in the world in my kitchen and a girlfriend on the way with her new hubby. the 4 of us went to lunch at cambridge’s new denny’s (i know, moving up in the world, eh?) and after words we went to the hyatt where we now have a starbucks (hooray!!! i’m a coffee junkie now, so i’m really glad i got my fix lol). we just sat and talked and talked and talked some more. it was great fun. my friend and her hubby had to take off around 3, so then it was just me and my guy for about an hour. i miss him so much. i’m gonna get him to come visit me in texas if it kills him lol. he’s promised me that if for any reason things do not work out between him and his present gal he’ll move to austin for me. i still love that boy to death and if he ends up coming to his senses and chasing me across the country then oh the joy, but if the only way to get him is for her to hurt him i hope he’s never mine... that night was good (aside for the average bitchiness that can run in the family), my cousin came over again and we all watched ice age 2. very funny indeed. after that my mom and i did some bonding and some music swapping (that’s right iTunes, there are still many ways to file share, even with you around lol). after some adult swim cartoonage, i went to bed.
monday, december 18th, day 5 - this morning i kissed my dad goodbye as he had to go to work before i left for the airport. i will miss that man. he wasn’t interested in the idea i had for his birthday present, so now i gotta figure something else out... thanks dad :P mom, mom-mom and i left the house around 11ish so we could take our time and do some shopping before my flight. we stopped at the crystal fox in annapolis where i got to replace a book i had bought my ex this time last year. then we went to the columbia mall. i got to see a good friend (actually the guy that introduced me and my ex oh so long ago) for the first time in over a year. he’s doing well... same as ever. i think it’s kinda reassuring to know that some things never change. i also got to stock up on some much missed teas from teavana (yeah matae vana!!!) and see the new apple retail store. so cute! after a little more drama we made our way back to bwi for my flight back to houston (and subsequently austin). so now i’m on the flight home. it’s amazing. air travel always awes me and there is simply no other explanation. to see the air, the clouds, the land and water far below. right now it’s dark and the lights below look like spidery veins on a dark mass. i swear coming back to maryland might just be an excuse to fly :) **just kidding mom, you know i come back for you**
to all the friends and family i missed - i’m so sorry i couldn’t see you. know that i love and miss you and will be back soon :)
to all the friends and family i saw - it was wonderful seeing you again! know that i will miss you and think of you often :)
in closing, we’re descending. i can see the frost building. i can see the ut tower. i can see the capitol. it’s good to be home.
thursday, december 14th, day 1 - i got my roomie up at 4 in the morning so i could make my flight. the first part of the journey went very smoothly, just a little flight from austin to houston, only 30 minutes or so in the air. i landed at about 6:50 am with a little lay over until my second flight was supposed to leave at 7:45. around 7:40, we’re all safe and snug in the plane and we find out that the fog in maryland is so bad that bwi has canceled incoming and outgoing flights until visibility gets better. they said they’d update us in 20 minutes or so, so i just chilled on the plane all buckled in jamming out to my shuffle. around 8:30 they tell us bwi has started allowing incoming flights again, but by this time there is enough fog in houston to ground flights there as well. but again, they expect an update in as little as 20 minutes, so i continue to sit tight. around 9 am they announce that things have worsened back in maryland so now both airports are grounded. fun fun lol. but i didn’t mind, so long as they didn’t cancel the flight i was cool. they turned on some sitcoms and i tried to doze off (i had been up since 3:45 after all) but with no success. around 10 am they finally announced that the flight was delayed indefinitely and that we would be updated at 11. since we had a whole hour we were granted access back into the terminal, so i grabbed my bags and put my shuffle on loud and set off. it was so much fun actually. i went to the starbucks, got me a peppermint mocha and just wondered around with a soundtrack. it was really fun. around 11 the fog had finally cleared up enough in both locations that they were allowing boarding. got on the plane and actually left the runway around 11:30. i landed safe and sound at bwi just after 3, but because of the huge delay and the still dense fog, my friend was delayed picking me up. he got there about an hour after i landed. the ride back to cambridge is about 2 hours from the airport, so it was great talking and catching up with him. got to cambridge just before 7pm (that’s right, roughly 14 hours traveling... but it certainly beats the 36 hour drive). my dad was so surprised. my wonderful cousin came by and i got to see my grandma and my aunt and uncle too, so all in all it was a good day. and my friend spent the night. it was nice to sleep next to someone again... haven’t done that in far too long.
friday, december 15th, day 2 - i woke up and went to the doctors. just hadn't been in a long time (over a year unless you count the visit to check out my neck/back right after the car accident) and wanted to go back to the one i’d been going to for nearly 10 years since i was in the area. healthy as a horse (and losing more weight too) :) after the visit i got to see my best girlfriend. she’s the wonderful mommy of my brand new honorary nephew (we also decided i could be his “fairy godmother” since i just fly in and out every now and then lol). she came and picked me up around 11:30. i spent all day with her and the most beautiful baby i’ve ever seen. she’s such an amazing mom and he is so wonderful. we went to lunch, got some coffee, hung out at the house and played with him all afternoon. she showed me her and her honey’s christmas tree and all of the pictures and stories from her son’s birth. it was so wonderful seeing her and i cannot wait to see them all again. i know it will be far too long until next time. that night we did dinner at red lobster, me, mom, dad, my cousin and her husband. we had a blast (and one of the best waiters in the world lol). after that we all went to see the new movie “eragon”. it was really good. i loved jeremy irons (well duh lol) and i was really impressed with the “shade” (what can i say? i have a thing for the bad guys). thus ended day 2.
saturday, december 16th, day 3 - this was the main man’s actual birthday. 50. half a century. whoa lol. we got up bright and early and headed to golden coral for his breakfast with the family. because of several delays and a mix up in communication we ended up getting there as they started lunch and two of our party didn’t make it, but it was fun none the less. after “breakfast” we went to bell book and candle in dover. it was wonderful. haven’t been there in far too long either. got some much loved trinkets and a gift for my roomie too. after the shop we went to the dover mall. got some christmas gifts and spent a good long while wondering about with my mom and dad. that evening we did some outback for my daddy’s birthday dinner (just the three of us). it was really wonderful.
sunday, december 17th, day 4 - so, by day 4 i was pretty exhausted lol. i tried to sleep in, but my busy life will have none of that! so i got a couple of phone calls and by noon i had my best guy friend in the world in my kitchen and a girlfriend on the way with her new hubby. the 4 of us went to lunch at cambridge’s new denny’s (i know, moving up in the world, eh?) and after words we went to the hyatt where we now have a starbucks (hooray!!! i’m a coffee junkie now, so i’m really glad i got my fix lol). we just sat and talked and talked and talked some more. it was great fun. my friend and her hubby had to take off around 3, so then it was just me and my guy for about an hour. i miss him so much. i’m gonna get him to come visit me in texas if it kills him lol. he’s promised me that if for any reason things do not work out between him and his present gal he’ll move to austin for me. i still love that boy to death and if he ends up coming to his senses and chasing me across the country then oh the joy, but if the only way to get him is for her to hurt him i hope he’s never mine... that night was good (aside for the average bitchiness that can run in the family), my cousin came over again and we all watched ice age 2. very funny indeed. after that my mom and i did some bonding and some music swapping (that’s right iTunes, there are still many ways to file share, even with you around lol). after some adult swim cartoonage, i went to bed.
monday, december 18th, day 5 - this morning i kissed my dad goodbye as he had to go to work before i left for the airport. i will miss that man. he wasn’t interested in the idea i had for his birthday present, so now i gotta figure something else out... thanks dad :P mom, mom-mom and i left the house around 11ish so we could take our time and do some shopping before my flight. we stopped at the crystal fox in annapolis where i got to replace a book i had bought my ex this time last year. then we went to the columbia mall. i got to see a good friend (actually the guy that introduced me and my ex oh so long ago) for the first time in over a year. he’s doing well... same as ever. i think it’s kinda reassuring to know that some things never change. i also got to stock up on some much missed teas from teavana (yeah matae vana!!!) and see the new apple retail store. so cute! after a little more drama we made our way back to bwi for my flight back to houston (and subsequently austin). so now i’m on the flight home. it’s amazing. air travel always awes me and there is simply no other explanation. to see the air, the clouds, the land and water far below. right now it’s dark and the lights below look like spidery veins on a dark mass. i swear coming back to maryland might just be an excuse to fly :) **just kidding mom, you know i come back for you**
to all the friends and family i missed - i’m so sorry i couldn’t see you. know that i love and miss you and will be back soon :)
to all the friends and family i saw - it was wonderful seeing you again! know that i will miss you and think of you often :)
in closing, we’re descending. i can see the frost building. i can see the ut tower. i can see the capitol. it’s good to be home.