Sunday, bloody Sunday
It was a long day. (Not actually bloody, but there was some sunburn involved.)
The day started with brunch with my DC friends. We hit Whitlow's for the buffet, and by the time we got a table, it was already 11am - time for the crab legs to come out! It's wonderful to have a plate covered in crab legs, with a side of waffles and eggs and bacon. :) And great conversation with my favorite people to boot! Thanks to Amy & Rob, Dani, Jen, and Elizabeth for making my day!
Then I headed for Bry's soccer game. It was a gorgeous day to be outside in DC - mid-70's and bright sunshine! In hindsight, when I noticed the soccer players putting on sunscreen, I probably should have asked to borrow some. My left upper-arm (I was facing north most of the game) is a nice bright pink color. My face and neck got a little color, too, with the v-neck shirt, but not as much -- although I now know why my chest felt like it was on fire when I was sitting in the airport.
Yes, Washington National Airport. Scene of my last big travel fiasco, back in June. This time, the weather wasn't the problem -- it was the fact that I was trying to fly out late on a Sunday afternoon. I tried to go standby on two earlier flights, but ended up on my previously ticketed 7:50pm flight. Unfortunately, this left me sitting at DCA for almost four hours - so thanks to Dani for chatting with me and keeping me sane, while she watched her guys win the race in Martinsville (and I tried to keep her from hyperventilating).
I knew before my plane took off from DC to Dallas that I didn't have an assigned seat on the flight from Dallas to Austin - it was waaaay oversold. When we landed in Dallas, our gate was still in use, so we had to sit for a while. Then I had to run (laptop, backpack and all!) from C-22 to D-38. I think I was the only person on the sky-link tram at that hour (10:30pm), but I just couldn't get it to go any faster! Fortunately, the gate agent had a ticket waiting for me. (I think I would have cried if she hadn't - there were 24 people already on the standby list, and the next flight wasn't until this morning at 7:30am!) Phew! Got on the plane, finished knitting my SockWars sock (more on that later), and made it to Austin @ midnight. One good thing did happen: my suitcase had flown standby on an earlier flight, so it was waiting for me. Amazing how busy the Austin airport is at midnight on a Sunday!
Went straight to the car, loaded up, and started to drive out of the lot. Thump, thump, thump. FLAT TIRE. Seriously?!? At 12:15am?!?! *Sigh* I suppose I could have called AAA, but I didn't feel like waiting for them to find me. So I drove out, slowly, and went to the nearest gas station to fill up the tire. So far, so good. I'll take it to the tire shop to get it patched this week.
By the time I got home, it was 12:40am. Had to resuscitate the dying basil and parsley in the kitchen window, but I think they'll survive. (somebody remind me to ask the landlady to water them when I go to CA for Thanksgiving...) After unpacking and cleaning up a bit, I finally made it to bed at 1:15am. Exhausted!
Lessons learned: Get a confirmed seat. Don't schedule short connections in Dallas. And wear sunscreen!
The day started with brunch with my DC friends. We hit Whitlow's for the buffet, and by the time we got a table, it was already 11am - time for the crab legs to come out! It's wonderful to have a plate covered in crab legs, with a side of waffles and eggs and bacon. :) And great conversation with my favorite people to boot! Thanks to Amy & Rob, Dani, Jen, and Elizabeth for making my day!
Then I headed for Bry's soccer game. It was a gorgeous day to be outside in DC - mid-70's and bright sunshine! In hindsight, when I noticed the soccer players putting on sunscreen, I probably should have asked to borrow some. My left upper-arm (I was facing north most of the game) is a nice bright pink color. My face and neck got a little color, too, with the v-neck shirt, but not as much -- although I now know why my chest felt like it was on fire when I was sitting in the airport.
Yes, Washington National Airport. Scene of my last big travel fiasco, back in June. This time, the weather wasn't the problem -- it was the fact that I was trying to fly out late on a Sunday afternoon. I tried to go standby on two earlier flights, but ended up on my previously ticketed 7:50pm flight. Unfortunately, this left me sitting at DCA for almost four hours - so thanks to Dani for chatting with me and keeping me sane, while she watched her guys win the race in Martinsville (and I tried to keep her from hyperventilating).
I knew before my plane took off from DC to Dallas that I didn't have an assigned seat on the flight from Dallas to Austin - it was waaaay oversold. When we landed in Dallas, our gate was still in use, so we had to sit for a while. Then I had to run (laptop, backpack and all!) from C-22 to D-38. I think I was the only person on the sky-link tram at that hour (10:30pm), but I just couldn't get it to go any faster! Fortunately, the gate agent had a ticket waiting for me. (I think I would have cried if she hadn't - there were 24 people already on the standby list, and the next flight wasn't until this morning at 7:30am!) Phew! Got on the plane, finished knitting my SockWars sock (more on that later), and made it to Austin @ midnight. One good thing did happen: my suitcase had flown standby on an earlier flight, so it was waiting for me. Amazing how busy the Austin airport is at midnight on a Sunday!
Went straight to the car, loaded up, and started to drive out of the lot. Thump, thump, thump. FLAT TIRE. Seriously?!? At 12:15am?!?! *Sigh* I suppose I could have called AAA, but I didn't feel like waiting for them to find me. So I drove out, slowly, and went to the nearest gas station to fill up the tire. So far, so good. I'll take it to the tire shop to get it patched this week.
By the time I got home, it was 12:40am. Had to resuscitate the dying basil and parsley in the kitchen window, but I think they'll survive. (somebody remind me to ask the landlady to water them when I go to CA for Thanksgiving...) After unpacking and cleaning up a bit, I finally made it to bed at 1:15am. Exhausted!
Lessons learned: Get a confirmed seat. Don't schedule short connections in Dallas. And wear sunscreen!
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