Monday, April 25, 2005

A Bang & A Whimper

I'm sitting on a rather oversized jet, probably somewhere over the Atlantic, banging out my newsletter on this tiny Blackberry keyboard. I am nestled tightly between two passengers on the first leg of my trip.

Ugh...My Head Hurts
My hang-over today was predictably long & painful. Last night I hosted a little party at my apartment. My leaving the country was just the little excuse I needed to have everyone over. It went perfectly!! I had a great time, and I think everyone else did too.

A Little Drama
So the party was fun, but of course it started with a little drama. I invited a ton of people, and for the most part everyone came. Of course a few could not make it, since it was the first night of Passover, but I was surprised to see how many people can fit in my little apartment.

My very close friends Shaw, October and their son Grayson couldn't make it to the party, but they drove all the way from Redlands to spend the day with me before I left town. It was great to spend time with them - the last time we hung out was Superbowl. Before they left, they gave me a lot of terrific news!!

October is 7 weeks pregnant with their second baby, and they are buying their dreamhome in Colorado. I'm sad and happy. More great friends are moving yet further away, but they are starting a new fantastic life. Good luck to the Rast family.

So Shaw & crew jump on the freeway just moments before Randall and date show up. I'm not showered or changed, and none of the food is prepared. Here comes the action. I was sure everyone would be late, but they all showed - one after the other. Randall's date promptly chipped in and prepared a vegetable platter, and shortly thereafter the real food arrived. At some point there was 5 people in my kitchen unwrapping or making food.

Mmm...Great Food
The theme of the party was centered around my trip, so I asked the guests to bring food or drink from one of the countries I would be visiting. It was a smash. We had Hungarian Deviled Eggs, Chicken Paprikash, russian pastries and salads, ukrainian chicken and fish, greek Mousaka and salad, and Finlandia (Finnish Vokda). Thank you mom, Anna, Natasha, Jane, and Nikki. The food was delicious.

Also, thanks Randall for that great bottle of wine, Dawn for the use of your chairs, Jenny & Tom for bartending, and Diana for the beautiful Coach passport wallet. And I really appreciate everyone being there.

I'm Off to a Great Start ;)
So I looked at my Itinerary before going to the airport to see from what terminal I would be leaving. Terminal B - must mean Bradley. I walk into the airport with 175lbs of stuff on my back, and I can't see British Airways anywhere on the signs.

I quickly pull out my Itinerary, and take a look. I immediately realized that I was looking a the wrong page. I'm leaving from terminal B in Helsinki (a week from now). Damn! So I look quickly and it says Terminal 1. It really isn't a long walk, but I am loaded up. So I start walking. When I get to Terminal 1, I realize that something is really wrong. It's the Southwest/Americawest terminal. There is no way they handle international flights there. So I pull out my itinerary once again. On closer examination I realize that I will be landing at Terminal 1 (very useful information), but l will be leaving from BRADLEY. Damn, damn!!

Getting through security and on the plane went very smoothly. I'm now finishing my gin and soda. Love that cocktail. But I need to tell you just one more story.

Just who is on this plane anyway?
Ok - like I said, I'm tucked neatly between two passengers. Just after getting off the ground, I notice a male "flight attendant" speaking to the passenger in the row in front of me. I quickly realize that the only two empty seats on this whole airplane are next to her. So I ask the stewardess if the aisle seat is free. He says, "its free, but I can't have you sit there." Then he turns to the woman sitting to my left, sitting in the window seat, "Are you together? Would you like to sit in this seat?" She declined, and we all sat there in bewilderment. Why would it be ok for her to sit in the seat, and not ok for me? And why would this silly woman choose a window over comfort for the whole row?

I'm thinkin' the girl in the row in front of us is a congressman's daughter. On second thought, maybe she's a princess? I AM on a British Airways flight. What do you think?

7 Comments:

At 7:38 PM, GMantel said...

You were racially and sexually profiled!!!

 
At 10:49 PM, Robert said...

Sounds a little strange, I give you that. You should´ve just got up and taken that seat. What´s the worst thing that could happen? I hope you didn´t spoil your opportunity of life by just remaining where you were doing nothing!

 
At 7:50 AM, Lobo said...

Nah, you just look ugly to that one. better luck next time.....a princess............jajajajaja ;-)

EA

 
At 7:51 AM, Anonymous said...

I'd simply introduce myself and see what happens. -Steve

 
At 8:45 AM, Cherie! said...

Did you shower?

 
At 6:52 PM, pappy said...

Perhaps the flight attendant wanted you for himself.

 
At 8:09 PM, Courtney said...

Adam, I'm disappointed!!! Where's that charm I know??? You should have just taken the seat and started talking. She never would have known what hit her!

 

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