And she said: what happens here is no one's fault and it's just something we have to accept....
So airport security and a few intelligent BAA employees have managed to make me miss my flight, albeit not literally, as the problem generally lies with not having time to check in one hour prior to boarding. I find it ridiculous, and I'm mostly pissed off at my itinerary for being unclear, at my dad for misinforming me, and myself for being so careless. Then again, none of those are new.
What this means is that I'm sitting here in Heathrow, the airport I curse vehemently every time I think of, with four more hours to kill, of which three and a half will determine whether I can get home today. For some odd reason the only thing effing Virgin Airlines can do for me is put me on standby and inform me that not only do I have to purchase this standby ticket, but neither the airline nor the airport will be responsible for causing me to miss my flight. No one is fucking responsible for anything, I've noticed, including me.
If I get on this flight (positive thinking), I'll arrive in LA at 7:30PM instead of...before 3PM, which isn't a terrible difference, but this waiting here is. My laptop will die in about twenty minutes at which point I'll probably have to go spend all those pounds I got in change, buy a magazine and a latte maybe. So all I can say at this point, so early in the day, is that PLEASE LET ME GET ON THAT PLANE.
If I don't get on this plane....I'll be stuck here overnight and arrive before 3PM Monday instead of Sunday. Brilliant. Then I'd need a hotel or something. Or I could just get myself a locker for my vitals and camp around the terminal like I've seen others. I think this would be possible in every airport except Heathrow. Although, I don't know, I've never been stuck in the airport overnight here--we always got a room. Now I'm pissed enough to not get a room and let myself suffer incredulously just for the sake of principle, not that anyone would get it or care enough.
And I think that I really tried to evoke emotional support from the employee assisting me with getting me on a flight. According to her three people need to miss the next flight in order for me to get on it...is it wrong to wish others would be delayed? Is it wrong to hope that they'll never make the last flight of the day? Is it wrong to wish: anyone but me?
And I have regrets beyond not realizing I'm flying VS instead of BA or AY or AA, etc. (but what the hell is VS anyway? all I could think of at the time was Victoria's Secret?) and not sleeping all night, taking a 3AM bus to Helsinki in -20C conditions did not help. Waiting in line forever in Helsinki airport didn't help. Sleeping on the flight to London probably didn't help either. The simple fact is that I was too groggy for any of this, and while I may have been prepared in terms of packing, I was not prepared in terms of checking in. I thought I would have time to check in in 90 min. I didn't know that a million flights were arriving all at once and that Heathrow employees are nicer than BA employees. Shoot. I regret not taking out that book from my suitcase to read. I regret not packing the H&M Home 2009 Winter brochure with the bathroom I liked. I regret not taking the karjalanpiirakat from the fridge with me before I left, as planned. I regret sleeping so much during the holidays. I regret not spending enough time with people I miss already.
Overall I regret wasting money (shopless January?), wasting time, and wasting energy on all these flight concerns...The only stress I've had all throughout the holidays were regarding the stupid luggage and now this. I just want to go home. So I don't have to be in a state of limbo where I miss everyone instead of just one or two people from across the globe.
What this means is that I'm sitting here in Heathrow, the airport I curse vehemently every time I think of, with four more hours to kill, of which three and a half will determine whether I can get home today. For some odd reason the only thing effing Virgin Airlines can do for me is put me on standby and inform me that not only do I have to purchase this standby ticket, but neither the airline nor the airport will be responsible for causing me to miss my flight. No one is fucking responsible for anything, I've noticed, including me.
If I get on this flight (positive thinking), I'll arrive in LA at 7:30PM instead of...before 3PM, which isn't a terrible difference, but this waiting here is. My laptop will die in about twenty minutes at which point I'll probably have to go spend all those pounds I got in change, buy a magazine and a latte maybe. So all I can say at this point, so early in the day, is that PLEASE LET ME GET ON THAT PLANE.
If I don't get on this plane....I'll be stuck here overnight and arrive before 3PM Monday instead of Sunday. Brilliant. Then I'd need a hotel or something. Or I could just get myself a locker for my vitals and camp around the terminal like I've seen others. I think this would be possible in every airport except Heathrow. Although, I don't know, I've never been stuck in the airport overnight here--we always got a room. Now I'm pissed enough to not get a room and let myself suffer incredulously just for the sake of principle, not that anyone would get it or care enough.
And I think that I really tried to evoke emotional support from the employee assisting me with getting me on a flight. According to her three people need to miss the next flight in order for me to get on it...is it wrong to wish others would be delayed? Is it wrong to hope that they'll never make the last flight of the day? Is it wrong to wish: anyone but me?
And I have regrets beyond not realizing I'm flying VS instead of BA or AY or AA, etc. (but what the hell is VS anyway? all I could think of at the time was Victoria's Secret?) and not sleeping all night, taking a 3AM bus to Helsinki in -20C conditions did not help. Waiting in line forever in Helsinki airport didn't help. Sleeping on the flight to London probably didn't help either. The simple fact is that I was too groggy for any of this, and while I may have been prepared in terms of packing, I was not prepared in terms of checking in. I thought I would have time to check in in 90 min. I didn't know that a million flights were arriving all at once and that Heathrow employees are nicer than BA employees. Shoot. I regret not taking out that book from my suitcase to read. I regret not packing the H&M Home 2009 Winter brochure with the bathroom I liked. I regret not taking the karjalanpiirakat from the fridge with me before I left, as planned. I regret sleeping so much during the holidays. I regret not spending enough time with people I miss already.
Overall I regret wasting money (shopless January?), wasting time, and wasting energy on all these flight concerns...The only stress I've had all throughout the holidays were regarding the stupid luggage and now this. I just want to go home. So I don't have to be in a state of limbo where I miss everyone instead of just one or two people from across the globe.