Airport Blues

Over 4th of july weekend, I was away at my cousin’s wedding. I left my husband and kids at home so they could enjoy the 4th with his family. It was just a quick trip; down on the 4th, wedding on the 5th home early on the 6th. Totally not the kind of trip you want to take three kids on. The plan was they would pick me up from the airport and we would head straight to the Delta to spend the rest of the day on the water. 

I had just texted my husband, “flight’s on time, boarding in 20, see you soon”. I bought myself a water for the flight and wondered over to the screen to see where my parents flight was. I didn’t find their flight but my heart sank when I saw mine. Delayed. New departure time 2 hours from now. My new departure time also came with a new gate in a different part of the airport. 

I called my husband. He was disappointed, “I guess we aren’t going to the boat. Keep me posted”. I thought about standby to Oakland or San Francisco but I found posted signs, “change to standby will require upgrade to full ticket price”. Crap. I walked back out past security and followed the signs toward my new gate. 

I waited in the security line again. Unpacked my computer again, took my shoes off again, stood in the machine, that I don’t believe isn’t harmful, with my hands over my head again. I walked over to put myself back together and saw the TSA lady holding my bag. She took out the water I just bought for a ridiculously inflated price in the other terminal and told me I could step to the side and drink it if I wanted to but I couldn’t take it with me. 

I was pissed. Couldn’t they at least give me a voucher for my water? My day and my family’s plans for the day are already ruined due to this delay, now your going to stick me with paying another $4 for a small bottle of water? I begrudgingly bought my water, it was 2 hours till my flight no way I could go that long without water. 

I looked up for the first time and found myself in small room with only 2 gates a restaurant that served food I wouldn’t feed my dog, and twice as many people as the space actually had room for. I located an empty seat but the girls in the seat next to it apologetically told me it was already taken. 

I tried to casually navigate my way back through the bags, bodies, and baby strollers littering the small spaces between the rows of chairs. There were no open tables in the restaurant and a line to get in if one did open up. I tripped over a sleeping man’s leg and he glared at me. I was about to cry. This sucks. I resigned myself to my reality and found a place to sit on the floor. I pulled out my computer. Located the free airport wi-fi… no connection. Probably because I only have safari installed on my computer. Note to self, download Firefox. It’s not like I charged my computer anyway. I wasn’t going to need it for such a short flight.

Announcement… flight delayed another 15 minutes. 

I talked myself out of my bad mood. Yes, it sucks, but there is nothing that can be done about it. I could either be miserable and angry and let it ruin my whole day or just sit back and read, enjoy my $4 water, see it as a challenge to find something to eat that has any nutritional value, and know that I would be home soon enough. In the great scheme of things being stuck at the airport for a few extra hours amounts to less than nothing. At least some seats opened up and didn’t have to sit on the floor for the full 2 hours.