So no entry about politics today! Instead I'm going to tell about yesterday! So I flew back to Houston from Philadelphia yesterday - made it, eventually. Let's go through a timeline, shall we?
Noon to 1:00: Goodbyes to friends and well-wishers in Dana basement.
1:00: Wait for airport shuttle by Wharton - I'm in the tunnel, but rain is pouring down and it's cold, probably in the 30s.
1;30 or so: Arrive at airport, check in, find that the flight (initially supposed to leave at 4:50) has been delayed until 7:40. Not so great. But I was kinda expecting that, seeing as how nearly every flight has been delayed due to nasty storms on the East Coast and Midwest.
2:00: At this point I've made it through security and into Terminal E.
Wumps of time pass here, I read Kate Chopin and the Economist world in 2009 edition, I go browse news sources - Obama is Time's person of the year, apparently.
5:00: I eat dinner (Burger King)
Hazy blurred together stuff here. I used the Internet at one point - Palin could beat Murkowski in an AK-Sen primary, but we'll talk about that another day.
7:00: I've been sitting in wherever's empty in the terminal but at this point I make my way to gate E3 because hey, plane's leaving soon, right? (At this point it's projected to leave at 7:55)
7:30 or so: Plane arrives from San Antonio, passengers disembark
8:15 or so: I start to wonder why we haven't boarded yet, find out that we're waiting for the pilot to show up from his flight from Orlando to Philly. Est time of that plane getting here: ~9:45. Flight currently projected to board at 10:00.
9:45: We get in line to board - oh yeah, this is Southwest and I'm in the A group. Turns out we have to stand in line just a little longer because they're de-icing the plane. (It's been raining the whole evening, and it's cold, but afaik it's not below freezing)
10;00: We board! I am happy. They're still de-icing the plane outside my window.
10:15: We take off. I settle down and finish a collection of Kate Chopin short stories - Bayou Folk, I think it's called. It's pretty good, but everyone speaks in dialect and Chopin throws some French phrases in (these stories take place in Natchitoches). I fail at doing the difficult crossword and the hard sudoku in the inflight magazine. Sorry.
1:15: We land in Hobby and are greeted by the surly faces of people waiting to board this plane on its next leg of the trip: to Los Angeles.
1:45: Gee, it's warm and humid in Houston, isn't it?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Houston always has pretty disgusting weather.
ReplyDeleteI want to be on a plane that's being de-iced! Too bad all my flights north are during the summer.
On the plus side, it'll be warm here for a bit before you can start freezing again! :D
ReplyDelete(re: the de-icing: it's way cold at 30,000 feet, so ice isn't all that surprising.)
I've gotta say, five and a half hours late is pretty impressive. :(
Kiriska - Basically, there was this guy in a cherry picking platform who was spraying something (water?) on the plane and it was purdy. Kinda looked like a fire extinguisher being used.
ReplyDeleteP. Static - Yeah, what you said is the reason they gave for the deicing. My computer tells me that it will be 46 on Monday, which sounds pretty good to me.
I find 46ยบ to be cold and only-go-outside-if-you-have-to weather. (Was that enough hyphens?)
ReplyDeleteI think the last time I flew Southwest was with my brother to and from Albuquerque the summer after our sophomore year in high school. I recall that the head flight attendant on the return flight had a flair for humor and used the safety session for her personal comedy routine. Of course, it being summer and Albuquerque, we had no problems with our departure time. Your flight troubles make me glad that Austin is only a three hour drive from home, however.