It is 12:57 a.m. on Friday, August 08, 2008 and I am home, in my house, in my brand new bed. I got up this morning; well, yesterday, at 5:00 a.m., London time. We dragged ourselves to the coach, just for Great Russell Street to be blocked off, and the coach to have to do some convoluted three point turn thing and get out. We got to the airport, went around and around in circles for no apparent reason, getting in a queue to check in our bags, being told my bag was too heavy and not only do I have to pay for it, I have to take it to oversize bags. We were allowed 23 kilograms, my bag was 32.7. Get in another line for a new boarding pass, take the bag to oversize luggage, get in the line for security, oh wait, my carry on is too big, go back to check in and check it in, go back to the desk. Now, it's back to security where in one line they checked my bag, and then lucky me, I'm a random check, so the strange woman checked me, which involved lots of bodily contact and an up close and personal meeting with a metal detector. Finally, into yet another queue just to take off our shoes and run them through a scanner. Mind you, Andrea and I are both wearing flip flops. Now, walk through a million (OK, maybe not a million) just in time to give our passports to yet another stranger, answer even more questions and guess what, another check of our persons, our bags and our shoes. Now, sit and wait while small siblings behind me chase either other around playing slap, poke and tickle until one starts to cry. Finally, we get on the plane, just in time to sit, going nowhere. Our flight that was supposed to leave at 10:40 didn't leave until 11:20, giving me 8 and a ½ long hours to worry about my connecting flight. Add to this mix, surly airline attendants and about six crying babies. It was a lovely flight. I did watch some interesting things along the way – I watched Nim's Island, The Spiderwick Chronicles, and an incredibly interesting documentary on hot dogs, and another on truck stops. I watched part of an Ugly Betty episode and some more stuff that was so interesting I can't remember it.
We landed in Charlotte after 3:00. Apparently, one must carry their own bags through immigration. We rushed off the plane into yet another line (now we're home in the US, so we're calling it a LINE, no longer a QUEUE) to show our passports. Then we fetch our luggage, of course, my bags, along with Andrea's were some of the last ones to come along. Then we drag our bags through customs, just to throw in back to another baggage person. Then we have to go through airport security. My flight from Charlotte to Orlando was leaving at 4:30. I finished with airport security at 4:15. I ran madly through the airport from Concourse D to Concourse B, flung myself upon the check in desk, and flopped into my seat, just to hear the captain say "The doors will be closing in about 3 minutes." I'm still panting like a racehorse and pouring sweat. We roll out of the gate, roll out to the runway and STOP! We are tenth in line for take off. While we are waiting, the pilot tells us that there is bad weather south of Charlotte. So, to make this long drawn out story a little shorter, we pulled out of line, ended up back at the gate, and finally left Charlotte about 8:00. My sister in the meantime is waiting for me at the airport in Orlando, expecting me to be there at 6:07. By the way, if you ever need a personal tour of the Orlando Airport, call her. She spent about five hours there today, she knows it pretty well. She, my niece and a clerk named Sandy are all on a first name basis now. Thankfully, my neighbor let me use his phone to call her. We landed in Orlando at about 9:15. The first people I saw were my sister and my niece, right before my niece jumped up for me to hold her. She's grown about a foot since I've been gone. We went to pick up my bags, and guess who I see? My buddy Jessica, who left London about half a day behind me. She got to the airport the same time I did. We went to get my bags, the big oversize one doesn't come. I handed it to the guy in Charlotte myself. We wait and wait and wait, until another flight's luggage starts coming in. I go fill out the paperwork for a lost bag. By this time, it's 10:00. The woman at US Airways baggage center was WONDERFUL. She was efficient and polite and told me exactly what to do and what should happen. There was another flight coming in from Charlotte at 10:16 and she said my bag was probably on it. She was right. We wandered down to Chick-fill-a, which my sister knows where is, and got some food to go, wandered back and the new flight was just coming in. There, lo and behold, was my bag.
We left the airport and drove home, to find my dad's truck in my front yard. He and his wife have been the official cat sitter's while I was gone, and I was worried about finding time to go get my Bubba from my dad's house but he brought him home. My friends Laquita and her husband Kerry were also here waiting with my other sister. Laquita and Kerry cleaned my house while I was gone and it looks fabulous. After everybody left, I took a shower in my shower and now I'm sitting on my new bed with my new sheets and pillow cases that my sister got for me, writing this. I had a fabulous time in London, but to sit here in my own bed, with my cat, and my family and friends all close, that's a good thing. All is right in the world.