Ramping Up To Travel

Ramping Up To Travel

In 48 hours I should be sitting at the airport in Columbia, SC (that has free wireless access BTW) at the start of a long travel day. My first connection is Cinn, OH. From there to Seattle, and then to Yakima - total travel time is about 11 hours.

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Last year Jason and I were delayed in Columbia, SC due to thunder storms and the entire trip out was bumped - the trip back was from hell. The problem was that the airline, in rescheduling our departing flights, cancelled and never rescheduled our return - so when we got back to Seattle from Yakima on the return- they had no record of our being on the plane that leaves Seattle.

Have you ever changed flights post 9/11? The deal is that once you pass through security and change flights, the "roving security team" finds you and does another security check - sans X Ray. So up stroll a man and woman, pulling on their rubber gloves, and they ask us to step aside for some privacy - behind a 18 inch column - that was funny. We are about to board a 737 - there are HUNDREDS of people standing there staring as we get patted down, luggage searched, ID's checked, and basically humiliated by two folks that are pissed since they didn't get to sit and stare at an x Ray screen all day, but have to walk all over SEATAC airport doing security.

At one point Jason looked over and said, "this is humiliating." It was and they finished. And all of the people boarding the flight were wondering what we had done and if they were going to get home safely since two shady characters were just re-checked - I wanted to scream, "We changed flights, this is what they do! I didn't run through the turnstile or anything like that! I haven't even had a traffic ticket in my life, I am not a threat!" I didn't scream anything because "Joey and Judy" would have come back and done a cavity search - very bad.

Long story - that was even longer in real life - we got redirected and subsequently stuck in Washington/Dulles for HOURS. Small side note - United Airlines SUCKS - that felt better. We started that trip in Yakima, WA that day at 4:30 am and finished in Aiken, SC at midnight - math folks know this already - that is 20 hours!!

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So my hope is that there are no early AM thunder storms on Thursday. My connection in Cincy is about an hour, in Seattle about the same - NO DELAYS PLEASE.

If possible I will post from the airport or after the trip while in Yakima - last time in Yakima, my friend was getting broadband in his house, if it has been installed I will update from there.

Can't wait to get in the woods.

WH